Tallon Smith
Yanco-Wamoon snapped its first run of consecutive losses this season on the eve of the finals with a 46-18 victory over the Hay Magpies at the Yanco Sportsground on Saturday.
After falling to fellow top three sides Griffith Waratahs and Tullibigeal-Lakes United over the past fortnight, a Hawks team bolstered by the return of skipper Ulai Oti-Lahood from suspension piled on nine tries to three to return to form in the final competition round.
Yanco-Wamoon coach Kye Longford said his side started slow, but once the Hawks’ completion rate picked up early in the second half, they accelerated quickly to post a convincing win.
“[The] first half was very scrappy and very ordinary, full credit to Hay, I think they came across with 16 players, I think they got their bus bogged a bit earlier so it wasn’t a good start,” he said.
“They came out, played their style of footy, I think they have been playing that little bit of expansive footy, Fijian footy, and [those] boys have been playing well off each other.
“They led at one stage, our defence has been a bit scrappy, and I think we went into the sheds about 18-12, so it wasn’t ideal.
“We knew it was going to be a bit like that, especially with a couple [of players] coming in just working on our cohesion.
“The second half was a lot better, I think we made an error in the first set, then completed six straight and scored four tries, so it just shows if you can hold the ball, it makes it a bit of a different game.”
With four different players scoring multiples to comprise the Hawks’ nine four-pointers, there were a number of strong performances across the paddock for the home side.
However, it was centre Caleb Atkinson that stood tallest, scoring a hat-trick in yet another reminder of why he is one of the most dangerous centres in the competition.
“He was really handy on the weekend, he was aggressive too, which is not usually his game, but the way he played was exceptional, and I think it was probably one of his better games for the season,” Longford said.
“He’s been really good, we’ve got a lot of good performances out of him, and he seems to be really enjoying his footy which is showing on the field.”
Next up for the Hawks is a rematch of their penultimate round clash with Tullibigeal-Lakes United in the qualifying final at the Yanco Sports Ground on Sunday.
Despite having lost to the Sharks in their previous bout, Longford said the key to reversing that result and booking a date with Waratahs in the major semi final is simple.
“Just show up with the right attitude and effort too, every game it doesn’t matter if you’ve got players in or out, it’s 13 on 13,” he said.
“We’ve just got to show up, hold the ball and not give away any penalties or any silly errors.
“I think if we can focus on ourselves, everything else will take care of itself.”
The clash between the Hawks and Sharks will kick off at 2:35pm.
YANCO-WAMOON 46 (Caleb Atkinson 3, John Wharepapa-Rawiri 2, Jim Dabea 2, Harry Marcus 2 tries; Shan Bradbrook 5 goals) DEFEATED HAY 18 (Andrew Solo 2, Ratu Qiokata tries; Sulio Loka 3 goals) at Yanco Sportsground, Saturday August 22.
