Tallon Smith
Over eight years since they last achieved the feat, the Junee Diesels made it three wins in a row after defeating the Wagga Brothers 48-4 at Laurie Daley Oval on Saturday.
Led by a quadruple from winger Cooper Wright, the Diesels ran in nine tries to one to retain the Rick Keast Memorial Shield and join Temora and South City in equal fourth on eight competition points.
Junee assistant coach Damian Willis said while Wright finished each of the opportunities well, the performance of halfback Stu Dunbar was pivotal in allowing the winger to shine.
“Three tries in the first half, and then he got one towards the back end of the second half, he played well,” he said.
“Stuey Dunbar inside him was probably the key to that, Stuey had a really good game.
“[He] threw Coop I think three long balls which hit him on the chest, and luckily Coop was able to show a clean pair of heels and score three tries in the first half.”
The Diesels have been bolstered in recent weeks by the returns of co-coaches Ben Shea and Chase Bernard, with the latter bagging a double of his own in his second game back on Saturday.
Willis said the pair have added more strike to an already strong Diesels outfit, as the side pushes for a top five finish.
“Both are quality players, they have been playing footy across the world, so they are no mugs,” he said.
“Definitely having those two blokes back in the side has strengthened the squad significantly.
“They both played really big minutes and Chase scored a couple of tries which was good.”
In addition to the two competition points on offer for the two sides on the day, the Rick Keast Memorial Shield offered a chance for both Junee and Brothers to remember a much-loved former coach of both teams.
Willis said it was a special occasion for both clubs, with the Diesels taking a 9-8 lead in the all-time series since the shield was first contested in 2009.
“It’s an awesome day for us at Junee, and to celebrate Rick’s life with a big win against Brothers was a fitting tribute to the great man,” he said.
“There [are[ a lot of people who are still involved with the footy club that can still remember Rick, he coached there in 2001 and a couple of years after that.
“He has left a really strong legacy in our club and Brothers as well being the first coach that won the grand final [there] in 1995.
“Very pleasing to get the win and just keep plugging away week in, week out, which is good for us, and just making sure that we are getting better and better.”
Both teams will be bak in action this Sunday, with Junee travelling to Nixon Park to face Temora, while Brothers will take on Cootamundra at Les Boyd Oval.
