Well, after seeing the news of a few people leaving Kalamunda, I thought that could be the game to watch this weekend ... so off I went into the Hills almost immediately to be let down by the referred Bacon & Egg pie. It’s nothing to write home about.

The home team ran on from the changing rooms to the customary slow hand clap from the second XV with Soaks electing to take the field from the other side with much less grandeur and a noticeable lack of size in the smaller numbers. Regardless, they still persisted with their early game plan of one off’s in an attempt to take on the Bulls up front for the early spell. A good few first minutes of getting clattered has never made much sense to me, but Kala’s first possession was a simple hoof against the wind to make 40 metres well into the Soaks half and to make in one kick, what Soaks hadn’t made in 4 or 5 minutes of 6 or 7 phases.

For a wind influenced game, it was at the 8th minute that we had the first scrum that resulted in a Kala penalty which was duly despatched upfield, followed by another for the exact same offence minutes later that gave the Red & Black pack something to take into the loose battles, a confidence that that would tell much later in the game

With the kicking duel taking the game from end to end, unfortunately it was the counters & handling possessions that took the game from side to side in an all too frequent drifting direction that defences were dealing with, as space simply ran out. One of those drifting possessions did lead to a result for the home side, in a simple bit of acceleration saw the ball carrier go through the gap to feed the right winger who made it round the outside and under the posts for the first score. The fact that it grounded under the posts untouched should have had the Soaks management fuming for the formality of a conversion in what was never going to be a high scoring game.

A Soaks onslaught down to the Kala line ensued and a first but important defensive scrum was shunted backwards in what turned out to be a theme for the day of both sides faring better on opposition set pieces. Surely you need to look after your own ball first & foremost, which on reflection I believe Kala did a little better that their visitors, in finding support players to protect the ruck or take that pass handed out in close quarter combat. Perhaps Kala had the better team ethic on this particular match day, working for other throughout the 80 minutes, in comparison to the visitors who expected a little more of each other than was practical – like finishing an 80m break with a simple 2v1 pass and not being a forward one.

Whilst the second quarter played out with Kala defending their half with some high work rates of all positions, Soaks still stuck to the strategy and went into battle to tie the Kala tight defenders to create some space that was so often covered by the patient Kala midfield. But the Soaks’ standout man, the hard working red hatted back row, albeit wearing #4 for today, that saw who was opposite him and pinned his ears back to take it to the line … successfully.
This score struck the Kala defence where it hurts and several payers didn’t think much of what Soaks had to offer from all accounts, but a wounded Bull is a dangerous one especially when you’re a huge #8 with good hands combining with a playmaker of a centre putting 3 or 4 passes between themselves to make 60+ metres up the pitch against the wind and opposing a tired defence that appeared to look to someone else to do the work this close to half time. Some quick ball and quick ball is always great when the D is already retreating, for the Kala 10 having a groundhog moment to put the right winger through the gap again to take the lead going into the break. The interval saw the Soaks individuals trudge back to their half time huddle having been stretched by a Kala attack that made the side to side handling possessions look like a strategy that could work.

Soaks took a little while for the half time talk to sink in as they started the second half in exactly the same way as the first, inevitably leading to frustration against that Red & Black line thus allowing Kala to extend the lead though a kickable penalty, kickable as in a howling wind heading the same way. Perhaps the ringing in Soaks’ ears had come to a crescendo after seeing an opening in the scoreboard now, but several possessions heading towards the line seemed to be stifled by their own individualism as in taking on yardage only to throw a speculative pass to the nearest team mate to take it as far as he could go … no real strategy about it. However, a run of penalties that the diminutive half back tapped quickly did eventuate in the second half points they were searching for to stay within a score of the home side.
Into the final quarter of the game now and the weather set in with increasing wind giving a nett gain to the Kala clearances that were hoofed down field; nett as the wind swirled and picked up a pocket of rain that it dumped on the district.
Soaks' back three were kept pinned back and although felding the ball well in the conditions, they didn’t appear to counter with the same openness & linking that the previous back three had exited that half of the field, preferring to find their support in the waiting pack of lessened size mentioned earlier, however at least now they were heavier after the rain.

With 15min to go, a Soaks penalty awarded was deliberated over without any real decision as at the conclusion of the discussions they ran it straight at a set defence that had been gaining the upper throughout the game, a defence that had closed the midfield down well, made tackles stick and often organised a double hit on those stray Soaks backs that thought there was a gap. When it was talked up it was an effective defensive strategy.

The last minutes of this affair saw Kala make it into the Soaks half and that’s where they stayed. A penalty decision to take the scrum turned out to have been a clever one, remaining in the lead and in the right territory. Keeping possession was critical and that they did at the base of the scrum given the theme of performing only on opposition ball. Nonetheless, eventual possession came Soaks way but only in the time added on period. They threw it wide and back again knowing it was the last play in the face of an organised Kala defence focusing well on ball carrier and close options … again to close them down to a point of dispossession immediately followed by the final whistle.

The 15-14 result to Kalamunda was hard earned but well deserved as I felt they did play for each other and communicated well. As long as the incoming coach maintains the defence strategy they’re going to be a difficult side to beat at home.