By Alex Hrissis, NSWRL
Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles have overcome the harsh conditions to defeat Newtown Jets 14-10 at Henson Park on Saturday, moving to seventh place on The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup ladder.
This Round Seven clash started off as a gritty affair with both sides struggling to adapt to the rainy conditions. The first clear-cut chance to score came when Joshua Cook fed the ball to Royce Hunt for a crash play, but the front-rower was held up by the Sea Eagles' defence.
The home side struck first when Kade Dykes made a break down the blindside and passed back inside to captain Daniel Atkinson, who sprinted down the last 10 metres and dived over to score. Atkinson converted his try to put Newtown ahead 6-0.
Soon after, Mawene Hiroti made a break down the wing and attempted to offload to his centre but it was intercepted by the opposition. With the help of some momentum and crisp passing down the right edge, Lehi Hopoate found Clayton Faulolo outside, who barged past the Newtown defenders to get his side on the scoreboard.
Blacktown made it back-to-back tries to take the lead on the stroke of halftime when they found themselves in Newtown's 10-metre zone. Jakob Arthur provided a stunning cut-out pass for Raymond Tuaimalo Vaega, who crashed over in the corner to put his team ahead. Brandon Wakeham converted from the sideline to make the score 10-6 heading into the sheds.
The Sea Eagles picked up where they left off after halftime as they scored their third try of the day. Some tidy passing along the left edge found Kobe Rugless pushing through to score and put his side ahead 14-6.
Newtown bounced back in a last-ditch attempt to keep the game alive as some passing along the right edge found Jordin Leiu who crashed into the corner to score. However, the conversion sprayed wide to leave Newtown trailing 14-10 with 10 minutes on the clock.
A last-minute sprint down the right wing from Hiroti gave Newtown some hope, but the ball was ultimately fumbled to leave the score at 14-10 and hand Blacktown the two points.
Talking Points
- The late inclusion of Jakob Arthur provided a spark for the Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles with the half bringing a strong kicking game and setting up a try.
- The Sea Eagles picked up back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
Key Moment
The Sea Eagles were trailing 6-4 late in the first half until a Mawene Hiroti offload was intercepted by Blacktown. This provided a huge momentum shift for the away side and led to a try minutes after.
What's Next?
In Round Eight of the NSW Cup the Jets will travel to Canberra to take on the Raiders, while the Sea Eagles will host Parramatta Eels.
