Cover Photo: Gemma Clarke
Tallon Smith
West Wyalong’s place in the Group 20 top five will go on the line this Sunday when the side travels to Griffith to face the sixth-placed Black and Whites in a showdown that could go a long way to determining which side plays finals.
The Mallee Men sit two points clear of the Black and Whites with four games to play, and have an easier run home with a bye up their sleeve (Yenda, bye, Leeton) compared to their chasing rivals (Leeton, Waratahs, DPC).
Despite this, the importance of Sunday’s clash at Solar Mad Stadium on Sunday is not lost on West Wyalong coach Luke Clarke.
“It’s massive, if we can win this week, it goes a long way to cementing our spot in the top five, but if they win it makes it a little bit scarier for us, so it’s a massive game,” he said.
“I dare say they will be up for the game and still fighting for their chance to make the top five too.”
Coming off a 34-14 loss to Tullibigeal-Lakes United last weekend, the Mallee Men will again be without mentor Clarke for Sunday’s crucial match.
However, there will be a change to the side’s halves, with a former Ray Thorpe Medallist starting at five-eighth after spending the second half there in the loss to the Sharks.
“Braiden Jones moves to six, which is a big thing,” Clarke said.
“He was killing it there in the second half last week, so I think that will be really good for us.
“The Sharkies were really good last week, so the boys were a bit wounded, but I think we are pretty much full strength besides myself out.”
As for West Wyalong’s focus heading into the match, Clarke said the side’s completion rate will be paramount to picking up the two competition points.
“[The focus is on] completing against these guys and staying in the arm wrestle early, kicking to corners and making them do the hard yards out of their own end,” he said.
“I think the completions will be the big thing for us, if we can complete over 80 percent, then that will go a long way to winning the game for us.”
In another huge round 15 game, the TLU Sharks will put their six-game winning streak on the line when they host the ladder-leading Griffith Waratah Tigers at the Lake Cargelligo Recreation Ground on Sunday.
After the Tigers punished Hay for short lapses in their match last weekend, scoring three tries short bursts at the back end of both halves, TLU co-captain Nathan Morris said the side will need to remain focused across the 80 minutes if it is to win the match and maintain its spot inside the competition’s top three.
“We can’t have any lapses, a side like Tahs, they don’t need too [many] chances if you give them to them, so we’ve got to be pretty headstrong and not give them too many easy chances,” he said.
“If we can get a good start and sort of just play percentage football, complete our sets [and] play the long game, you give yourself a chance against the bigger boys.
“Hopefully it’s a bit warm, but in saying that you can’t rely on that sort of stuff.
“[We need to] complete our sets [and] do the hard yards.”
In other games over the weekend, Leeton will look to put itself in the frame to move back inside the top three when it travels to Hay to face the Magpies, while Yanco-Wamoon will host Darlington Point-Coleambally in the round’s only Saturday game.
Yenda will enjoy a bye in first grade, while its reserve graders will take on Narrandera.
