Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Canterbury (2010)

Canterbury-Bankstown 66

Melbourne 12

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Josh Reynolds’ mammoth 38 points helped secure the minor premiership for the Bulldogs against a Melbourne side who were going to finish seventh irrespective of todays result.

The Bulldogs showed that they came to play in one of the most devastating opening halves of football for the year. Just five minutes into the match, Taakimoeaka busted through the Storm defence, passed left to Cutler who ran 20 metres and almost scored before being pulled down agonisingly close to the tryline by Widdop. A quick play the ball allowed Jack to scoop up the ball from dummy half and barge over next to the posts. Reynolds converted for an early 6-0 lead.

From the kick-off, Canterbury made huge metres upfield with quick play the balls and powerful forward running. On the fourth tackle they were 30 metres from the Storm line. Reynolds drifted to the right, linking up with Cutler, who drew a defender before passing to Ielei who dived over in the right corner untouched. Reynolds converted the try from the sideline to take the Dogs out to a 12-0 lead after 8 minutes.

Again from the restart, Canterbury forged upfield. On the third tackle, a great offload by Williams put Cutler into space. Cutler ran 30 metres before getting a pass away to Reynolds, who ran 20 metres to score under the posts. Reynolds slotted an easy conversion, extending the lead to 18 after ten minutes.

Rhys Jack scored an easy try five minutes later when a Reynolds cross kick bounced off the upright back into the field of play. Jack scooped up the loose ball and scored under the posts. Reynolds converted yet another Dogs try.

On the fourth tackle after the restart, Williams made half a break and got a ball away to Rauicava, who stepped back in-field and 30 metres downfield, before drawing Widdop and passing to Ielei who scored his second try on the right side. Reynolds conversion again successful, and after just 18 minutes the Bulldogs lead 30-0.

Five minutes later, Jack kicked early in the set and picked up a 40/20. From the scrum the Bulldogs pushed up the middle. A clever change of direction from dummy half by Smith, who dummied left before passing right to Taakimoeaka who barged over under the posts to score. Reynolds potted another easy conversion.

A sloppy pass from dummy half which went behind Isa, was scooped up by Ielei who ran 40 metres downfield. With Widdop bearing down on him, Ielei attempted a pass back inside to Rauicava but it was knocked down and cleaned up by Widdop.

Melbourne, on the back of a penalty and some good running, saw them on attack just 5 metres from the Bulldogs line for the first time in the game. However a well anticipated intercept by Reynolds saw him run 90 metres to score under the posts. He converted the try to take the lead out to 42.

With halftime about to sound, Canterbury were on the attack again, but Chisholm intercepted a loose pass and ran 95 metres to score untouched. Widdop converted the try and at halftime the Bulldogs lead 42-6.

In the second half, Canterbury continued with their attacking play when Tia-Kilifi found space down the left wing but ran out of space and attempted a pass inside but it went to ground and was cleaned up by the Storm cover defence.

Melbourne were again under another Bulldogs attacking raid, however a drop out restart by Widdop relieved them when it cleared the defenders standing on halfway. The ball bounced it’s way down to the Dogs 10 metres line.

Widdop made a break down the left wing before kicking infield for his support, but the ball was cleaned up by Cutler.

A gift scrum for Canterbury deep inside the Storm half provided them with yet another golden opportunity, Reynolds drifted left from the scrum, passed to Jack who passed to Ielei who slipped through the retreating defence and scored out in the left corner. Reynolds conversion attempt from the sideline was unsuccessful.

Five minutes later Melbourne hit back when Widdop dived over in the left corner from dummy half. Dane Chisholm converted the try and after 62 minutes, the Storm trailed by 34.

A loose pass from dummy half by Woolford went behind Kelly. Reynolds rushed through and kicked the loose ball ahead twice, before diving on the ball to score to the left of the posts. Reynolds converted his third try.

Three minutes later, Jack shrugged out of two tackles before getting a pass away to Browne who ran 10 metres to score under the posts. Reynolds converted to take the score out to 58-12.

In the last 5 minutes of the match, the Storm players began showing their frustrations as a number of fights began flaring up. Eventually it got too much for referee Henderson, who sent off Hitchcox and sent Smith to the Sin Bin for 10 minutes for fighting.

With just 2 minutes remaining, Reynolds put through a grubber for himself, collected the ball and scored under the posts. As he scored the try, yet another fight started up in back play. The referee awarded an 8 point try. Reynolds converted the try and potted the penalty goal from in front to take the score out to 66-12. The game came to an end 1 minute later as the rain began to pour down and tempers looked about to flare up again.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Gareth Widdop

2              Maeli Seve

3              Willie Isa

4              Bennett Leslie

5              Dane Chisholm

6              Rory Kostjasyn

7              Luke Kelly (c)

8              Sione Kite

9              James Woolford

10           Jesse Bromwich

11           Robbie Rochow

12           Atelea Vea

13           Billy Rogers

14           Sinbad Kali

15           Dale Langford

17           Fred Makimare

22           Jy Hitchcox

CANTERBURY-BANKSTOWN BULLDOGS

1              Trent Cutler

2              Kose Ielei

3              Shane Neumann

4              Daniel Rauicava

5              Junior Tia-Kilifi

6              Rhys Jack

7              Josh Reynolds

8              Brad Morrin

9              Nathan Smith

10           Tim Browne

11           Daniel Harrison

12           Yileen Gordon

13           Danny Williams

14           Nathan Dib

15           Harlan Alaalatoa

17           Corey Payne

22           Conrad Taakimoeaka

WHEN THEY SCORED

5th min                 - Canterbury 6-0 – Jack try, Reynolds goal

8th min                 - Canterbury 12-0 – Ielei try, Reynolds goal

10th min              - Canterbury 18-0 – Reynolds try, Reynolds goal

16th min              - Canterbury 24-0 – Jack try, Reynolds goal

18th min              - Canterbury 30-0 – Ielei try, Reynolds goal

24th min              - Canterbury 36-0 – Taakimoeaka try, Reynolds goal

32nd min             - Canterbury 42-0 – Reynolds try, Reynolds goal

40th min              - Canterbury 42-6 – Chisholm try, Widdop goal

58th min              - Canterbury 46-6 – Ielei try

62nd min             - Canterbury 46-12 – Widdop try, Chisholm goal

69th min              - Canterbury 52-12 – Reynolds try, Reynolds goal

72nd min             - Canterbury 58-12 – Browne try, Reynolds goal

78th min              - Canterbury 64-12 – Reynolds try, Reynolds goal

79th min              - Canterbury 66-12 – Reynolds goal

CANTERBURY-BANKSTOWN 66 (Reynolds 4, Ielei 3, Jack 2, Taakimoeaka, Browne tries; Reynolds 11 goals)

MELBOURNE 12 (Widdop, Chisholm tries, Widdop, Chisholm goals)

Referee: Phil Henderson

Crowd: 26

Half-Time: Canterbury-Bankstown 42-6

Scrums: Melbourne 7-6

Penalties: Canterbury-Bankstown 8-3

Goal Kickers: Reynolds (Canterbury-Bankstown) 11 from 12, Chisholm (Melbourne) 1 from 1, Chisholm (Melbourne) 1 from 1

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Auckland (2010)

Melbourne 34

Auckland 24

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

The two most out of form sides met in Melbourne for a clash which really could go either way. Melbourne, having lost 5 of their last 6 games, faced an Auckland side who has won just 1 of their last 9 games, yet were in a situation where a win against the Storm, along with a Sharks loss to Windsor, would see the Vulcans move into the top 8.

Auckland kicked off and right from the outset, both sides showed that they weren’t going to take too many risks with play dominated almost entirely by the forwards. Tufeao almost sliced through close to the Storm line when he threw a dummy, but lost the ball when trying to get an offload away.

The second error of the match granted Melbourne with their first scoring opportunity when a pass from Wright went behind Godinet who was looking to kick a 40/20 on the last. The Vulcans winger scooped up the ball but was tackled and the ball handed over to Melbourne, just 35 metres out from Auckland’s line.

Chisholm scored a great try when he picked up the ball from dummy half, dummied, ducked, stepped and dived over to score next to the posts. Chisholm converted his try for a 6-0 Storm lead.

Five minutes later Auckland hit back when Godinet cross-kicked to his right winger Tuinauvai. Seve appeared to let the ball go thinking it may go out on the full, but didn’t see Tuinauvai behind him, who caught the ball and ran around to score untouched. Locke’s conversion attempt was unsuccessful and after 13 minutes the Vulcans trailed 6-4.

Within the next five minutes Melbourne hit back when Langford charged the ball up to the goal line defence and spinning out of the tackle and falling forward over the line to score. Chisholm converted the try to take the Storm lead out to 8.

Auckland fought back almost immediately when a Caird offload put Godinet into space. Godinet ran 30 metres and passed to Aranga who came flying through in support and ran 20 metres to score. Locke converted the try to reduce the deficit to 2.

The Vulcans continued to dominate play, especially Caird, who was again inspirational in setting up the next try to Taka, when he ran at the Storm goal-line defence, drew two defenders before passing to Taka who scored on the right side. Locke’s conversion put Auckland in front by 4 with 10 minutes to go in the first half.

From the kick-off, Auckland pushed the ball down the left wing making several incisive runs. Godinet spread the ball from the left wing to the right to Tuinauvai, who went looking for a try in the right corner but was almost pushed into touch. Taka scooped up the ball from dummy half and dived through the retreating cover defence to score in the corner. Locke’s sideline conversion was unsuccessful.

Auckland almost scores another try when a Godinet bomb is dropped by Koko who slipped. While on the ground, Koko was somehow able to kick the bouncing ball dead with two Vulcans defenders on top of him looking for a gift try.

Right on halftime, Chisholm scored a magnificent solo try. Play had shifted to the right side to Chisholm who found himself running out of room and with no support, he stepped back, propped, danced to the left, stepped right, bumped off a tackle and then found himself in space and ran 40 metres to score. His attempt to convert his own try was unsuccessful and at half time Auckland lead 20-16.

The second half began in a very restricted manner, both sides focussing entirely on playing in the middle of the ruck. Woolford attempted a 40/20 but kicked the ball out on the full. 3 tackles later Godinet put in a chip kick which was caught by Afioga who dived over to score but was ruled to be offside.

Ten minutes into the second half the weather dramatically changed from sunny to icy cold, windy and raining. Ball control for both sides deteriorated rapidly due to the conditions and both sides opted to kick more often. A grubber by Chisholm just went dead before Uhatafe could get a hand on it.

Rochow broke throw the Vulcans right edge defence and ran 30 metres before being brought down 5 metres short of the try line. Woolford attempted a grubber from dummy half. The ball bounced off the Vulcans defenders legs and Woolford dived on the loose ball, giving the Storm a repeat set on the Auckland line. Chisholm put up a bomb which was misjudged and allowed to bounce by Aranga and Vea collected the loose ball and scored near the uprights. Chisholm converted to give the lead back to the Storm after 57 minutes.

As the weather got worse, so did the ball control and both sides struggled to gain any momentum. It took until the 65^th minute before Auckland scored when Taka ran onto a short inside ball at pace close to the Storm line and barged over for his third try to the right on the sticks. Locke’s missed conversion saw the Vulcans in front by just 2 points.

Melbourne hit back almost immediately when a clever short pass by Kostjasyn put Vea through a huge gap, who raced away to score on the left side. Chisholm converted the try and the Storm were back in front by 4.

Play was again sloppy with little opportunities for either side. Another Chisholm bomb was again misjudged and allowed to bounce by Aranga, but Seinafo was able to clean up the loose ball, preventing another Storm try.

With just 3 minutes left, Chisholm sealed the match with another brilliant solo try. Woolford passed to Chisholm, who was 10 metres from the Vulcans line. Chisholm ran the ball, got out of the tackle, saw no space, so he stepped back, stopped and then stepped and charged to his right between two defenders, broke through the defence and score next to the posts. He converted his own try to seal a Storm victory 34-24.

MELBOURNE STORM

5              Michael Koko

2              Maeli Seve

3              Willie Isa

22           Luke MacDougall

18           James Uhatafe

9              Rory Kostjasyn

7              Dane Chisholm

8              Hep Cahill

20           James Woolford

24           Jesse Bromwich

11           Robbie Rochow

12           Atelea Vea

13           Billy Rogers

14           Ryan Marlin

15           Dale Langford

16           Mananui Te Hue Hue

17           Pulou Vaituutuu

AUCKLAND

1              Johnny Aranga

2              Fetongi Tuinauvai

3              Niuvao Taka

4              Mike Afioga

5              Kevin Locke

6              Patrick Ah Van

7              Pita Godinet

8              James Gavet

9              Kelvin Wright

10           Mataupu Poching

11           Silaii Tufeao

12           Tulson Caird

13           Jeremy Latimore

14           Howie Matthews

15           Feu’u Seinafo

16           Nathaniel Neale

17           Kurt Tehira

WHEN THEY SCORED

7th min                 - Melbourne 6-0 - Chisholm try, Chisholm goal

13th min              - Melbourne 6-4 – Tuinauvai try

18th min              - Melbourne 12-4 – Langford try, Chisholm goal

23rd min              - Melbourne 12-10 – Aranga try, Locke goal

30th min              - Auckland 16-12 – Taka try, Locke goal

32nd min             - Auckland 20-12 – Taka try

40th min              - Auckland 20-16 – Chisholm try

57th min              - Melbourne 22-20 – Vea try, Chisholm goal

64th min              - Auckland 24-22 – Taka try

68th min              - Melbourne 28-24 – Vea try, Chisholm goal

77th min              - Melbourne 34-24 – Chisholm try, Chisholm goal

MELBOURNE 34 (Chisholm 3, Vea 2, Langford tries; Chisholm 5 goals)

AUCKLAND 24 (Taka 3 tries, Tuinauvai, Aranga tries; Locke 2 goals)

Referee: Matt Hawkins

Crowd: 60

Half-Time: Auckland 20-16

Scrums: Melbourne 9-3

Penalties: Auckland 6-3

Goal Kickers: Chisholm (Melbourne) 5 from 6, Locke (Auckland) 2 from 5

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Shellharbour (2010)

Shellharbour 38

Melbourne 14

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Cellar dwellers Shellharbour travelled down to Melbourne to take on a Storm side desperate to bounce back after their high scoring shock loss last week to the Centurions.

Shellharbour got the game underway and both sides’ defences were solid early on. It took a powerful run by Thorby to make the first break of the game. He offloaded to Millard who was brought down by Hitchcox just two metres short of the try line. Davidson spread the ball right from dummy half and Brown scored in the corner after five minutes. Goodwin’s sideline conversion was unsuccessful.

From the restart, the Dragons focussed their attack down the Storm right edge. Brown made another break but was brought down by the cover defence on the last tackle. Melbourne managed to find themselves on the Dragons line shortly after but turned the ball over on the Dragons try line when attempting an offload.

A change of direction by Greenfield helped create an overlap on the left edge and he threw a beautiful cut-out pass to Jiminez who barged his way over the try line to score in the left corner. Goodwin’s sideline conversion attempt hit the upright and was flagged away. After ten minutes the Dragons lead 8-0.

Just 4 minutes later Melbourne hit back with a try to Rogers who took a hit up close to the Dragons line, hit the defence, twisted his way out of the two-man tackle and managed to ground the ball to the right of the posts. Kelly’s conversion attempt missed and after 15 minutes the Storm trailed by 4.

Melbourne’s left edge was again caught out when Davidson drifted left and threw a pass to Goodwin who drew the only defender out wide before passing to Jiminez who scored his second try in the left corner. Goodwin again unsuccessful with the sideline conversion.

Both sides struggled to complete their sets due to poor handling and silly passes turning possession over. An offload by Catania was intercepted by Kali. Melbourne spread the ball right but a bad last pass kills off the momentum. Cahill collected the loose ball but was pushed into touch.

A great play by Millard, who drifted right and passed to the straight running Marketo, who barged through the Storms sliding defence to score to the right of the posts. Goodwin’s conversion attempt hits the upright yet again denying him a conversion. After 26 minutes, the Dragons lead 16-4.

Melbourne’s defence improved markedly and they managed to hold out several Dragons attacking raids, but eventually they were caught out again on the left side when Fien put in a cross kick which was cleanly taken by Jiminez who scored in the left corner for the third time. Goodwin’s sideline conversion hit the cross bar and bounced over to give Shellharbour a 22-4 lead right on halftime.

The Storm scored the first points of the second half when Kelly ran across field to the right and gave a short pass to the straight running Chaill who ran through a gap to score. Kelly’s conversion hit the upright and bounced through to bring the deficit down to 12.

A midfield bomb shortly after by Widdop was allowed to bounce by Brown, who managed to regather the ball before being pushed into touch. From the ensuing scrum, Kelly sent the ball onto Hitchcox, who ran around the defence and almost made it to the try line but threw a flick pass back infield which was collected by Bromwich who would have been awarded a try if Hitchcox hadn’t stepped on the sideline.

A good dummy and step by Davidson saw him break through the defensive line and ran 30 metres before being tackled. Fien spread the right to Bosden, who got an offload away to Catania who scored under the posts. Goodwin converted the try and with less than 20 minutes remaining, Shellharbour increased their lead to 28-10.

Just five minutes later Henry made a break through the middle, passes left to Davidson who almost makes it to the try line before throwing a Benji Marshall-esque flick pass behind him to Jones who scores next to the posts. Goodwin converted the try to increase the lead to 24.

The Storm though never gave up. Koko injured his ankle when attacking the Dragons try line, and even though he was limping, he still called for the ball and managed to charge over the line but was held up.

Shellharbour though weren’t finished either, and some great work down the narrow left passage by Goodwin saw him get an offload away to Jiminez who scored an easy try in the left corner for the fourth time. Goodwin missed the conversion from out wide, leaving the score at 38-10 with 5 minutes left.

Melbourne attempted a shot restart and were successful when Koko caught the ball. Three tackles later, Bromwich received a pass and decided to charge at the try line and managed to get an arm free and reach out to score to the right of the posts. Kelly misses the conversion as the full time siren sounded.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Jy Hitchcox

2              Maeli Seve

16           Daniel O’Regan

4              Willie Isa

5              Michael Koko

6              Gareth Widdop

7              Luke Kelly (c)

8              Sinbad Kali

9              Rory Kostjasyn

10           Jesse Bromwich

11           Robbie Rochow

12           Atelea Vea

13           Billy Rogers

14           Mananui Te Hue Hue

15           Dale Langford

17           Fred Makimare

20           James Woolford

SHELLHARBOUR DRAGONS

1              Ian Catania

15           Daniel Jiminez

3              Bronx Goodwin

6              Ryan Millard

5              Jace Brown

7              Brad Davidson

22           Nathan Fien

8              Ricky Thorby

9              Scott Jones

10           Junior Paulo

11           Jack Bosden

24           Jake Marketo

13           Michael Greenfield

14           Mataika Vatuvei

17           Aaron Henry

18           Rob Worsley

19           Scotty J Jones

WHEN THEY SCORED

4th min                 - Shellharbour 4-0 – Brown try

10th min              - Shellharbour 8-0 – Jiminez try

14th min              - Shellharbour 8-4 – Rogers try

18th min              - Shellharbour 12-4 – Jiminez try

26th min              - Shellharbour 16-4 – Marketo try

40th min              - Shellharbour 22-4 – Jiminez try, Goodwin goal

46th min              - Shellharbour 22-10 – Cahill try, Kelly goal

62nd min             - Shellharbour 28-10 – Catania try, Goodwin goal

67th min              - Shellharbour 34-10 – Jones try, Goodwin goal

76th min              - Shellharbour 38-10 – Jiminez try

79th min              - Shellharbour 38-14 – Bromwich try

SHELLHARBOUR 38 (Jiminez 4, Brown, Marketo, Catania, Jones tries; Goodwin 3 goals)

MELBOURNE 14 (Rogers, Cahill, Bromwich tries; Kelly goal)

Referee: Luke Phillips

Crowd: 70

Half-time: Shellharbour 22-4

Scrums: Melbourne 13-5

Penalties: 4 all

Goal Kickers: Goodwin (Shellharbour) 3 from 8; Kelly (Melbourne) 1 from 3.

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Central Coast (2010)

Central Coast 46

Melbourne 38

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Melbourne returned home after narrowly holding on against Cronulla a week before, to stake a claim on a top four spot against the lowly Central Coast, whose finals chances are hanging by a thread.

After a cautious start by both sides, Central Coast received a penalty close to the Storm line for a play-the-ball infringement. They instantly moved the ball from right to left and Dwan crashed over in the corner after just 5 minutes. Ndaira converted from the sideline to get the Centurions out to a 6-0 lead.

On the second tackle after the restart, Dureau linked with Davis, who threw a cut out pass to Naiqama who raced 60 metres down the right sideline before passing inside to Williams who scored unopposed between the uprights. Ndaira’s conversion was successful and in the space of 7 minutes, Central Coast were leading 12-0.

Melbourne went on the attack after Rogers almost forced himself over the try line. The ball was then spread deep and wide to Kite who stepped, fended and strode over the top of defenders in a bullocking run which saw him score under the posts. Widdop converted to bring the deficit back to six.

Melbourne lifted a gear and just four minutes after scoring their first try, they crossed for their second when Langford hitting the ball up on the Centurions line, spun out of the tackle and fell over the try line. Widdop converted from directly in front and after 24 minutes, the scores were tied.

Central Coast hit back just five minutes later when Dwan scored his second try in the left corner after some quick, flat passing created an overlap. Ndaira’s second sideline conversion was again successful.

From the restart, Central Coast worked entirely on the right side of the field before Dureau put in a kick downfield. Chisholm, running back to get to the ball received a horrible bounce and Davis managed to regather the ball for the Centurions. Ndaira spread the ball left to Fawcett who was in space and scored in the left corner. Ndaira converted from the sideline for the third time and Central Coast were back out to a 12 point lead.

Another scintillating run down the right touchline by Naiqama put the Storm on the back foot again. Fairweather scooped up the ball from the play the ball and ran in-field swerving around the few defenders and scored under the posts. Ndaira again successful with the conversion from in front, giving the Centurions a 30-12 lead.

Melbourne managed to hit back immediately when Kali scored to the left of the posts after a bomb wasn’t cleanly taken. Kelly cleaned up the scraps and spread the ball to Kali who scored. Widdop’s conversion attempt was unsuccessful and at halftime Central Coast lead 30-16.

The points continued to flow in the second half for both teams. Melbourne opened the scoring after the break after some magic by Widdop, who ducked out of a high tackle, bumped off a few defenders, stepped, fended and got an offload away to Rogers who ran away and scored between the posts. Widdop converted, bringing the scored to 30-22.

Melbourne started to lift and dominated play, until Dureau opted to run the ball on the last, passed to Naiqama, who drew two defenders before getting a pass away to Williams who had enough space to score in the right corner. Ndaira lands his fourth conversion from as many attempts from the sideline, taking the Centurions lead out to 36-22.

Another attacking raid by Central Coast saw some amazing work by Naiqama who dived and scored in the right corner while in mid air, but the try was denied as the sideline official ruled he had gone into touch because Naiqama had touched the corner post.

The Centurions employed the same tactic again by moving the ball right, drawing a defender and passing, creating an overlap for Naiqama to dive in the right corner. Ndaira amazingly kicked his fifth goal from as many attempts from the sideline.

The Storm players began getting frustrated and tempers flared a few times. The Storm defence began bunching up, leaving gaping holes out wide. Central Coast again used the method of drawing defenders and passing right to give Naiqama space on the right wing and he went over for his second. Ndaira missed his sixth sideline conversion, but with 11 minutes remaining, the Centurions had a seemingly unassailable 46-22 lead.

A cross-kick by Kelly was dropped by Fairweather in a tough contest; Vae picked up the loose ball and scored near the posts. Widdop converted and with 8 minutes left, the score was 46-28.

Melbourne again chanced their luck with a kick, when a Kelly grubber into the Centurions in-goal was dived on by Isa just 3 minutes after the last Melbourne try. Widdop’s conversion from out wide on the right was unsuccessful. With just 5 minutes left, the Storm trailed by 14.

Widdop put in another grubber early in the tackle count, which was chased through and dived on by Chisholm who scored to the right of the posts. Widdop quickly potted the goal, taking the deficit to just 8 with 2 minutes left. However neither team troubled the scorers in this time the Centurions won 46-38.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Jy Hitchcox

2              Maeli Seve

3              Willie Isa

16           Daniel O’Regan

22           Dane Chisholm

6              Gareth Widdop

7              Luke Kelly (c)

24           Sinbad Kali

20           Rory Kostjasyn

10           Sione Kite

11           Robbie Rochow

12           Atelea Vae

13           Billy Rogers

9              James Woolford

15           Dale Langford

17           Fred Makimare

19           Mananui Te Hue Hue

CENTRAL COAST CENTURIONS

5              Aaron Fairweather

2              Kevin Naiqama

1              Jimmy Fawcett

4              Simon Williams

20           Nick Dwan

23           Adrian Davis

7              Scott Dureau

13           Lucas Miller

9              George Ndaira

10           Sione Tovo

11           Corey Vlaciky

12           Marvin Filipo

6              Ben Wyborn

14           Chris Adams

15           Shaun Boss

16           Mitch McMahon

19           Warren Schillings

WHEN THEY SCORED

5th min                 - Central Coast 6-0 – Dwan try, Ndaira goal

7th min                 - Central Coast 12-0 – Williams try, Ndaira goal

19th min              - Central Coast 12-6 – Kite try, Widdop goal

24th min              - 12 all – Langford try, Widdop goal

29th min              - Central Coast 18-12 – Dwan try, Ndaira goal

32nd min             - Central Coast 24-12 – Fawcett try, Ndaira goal

36th min              - Central Coast 30-12 – Fairweather try, Ndaira goal

39th min              - Central Coast 30-16 – Kali try

46th min              - Central Coast 30-22 – Rogers try, Widdop goal

52nd min             - Central Coast 36-22 – Williams try, Ndaira goal

58th min              - Central Coast 42-22 – Naiqama try, Ndaira goal

69th min              - Central Coast 46-22 – Naiqama try

72nd min             - Central Coast 46-28 – Vae try, Widdop goal

75th min              - Central Coast 46-32 – Isa try

78th min              - Central Coast 46-38 – Chisholm try, Widdop goal

CENTRAL COAST 46 (Dwan 2, Williams 2, Naiqama 2, Fawcett, Fairweather tries; Ndaira 7 goals)

MELBOURNE 38 (Kite, Langford, Kali, Rogers, Vae, Isa, Chisholm tries; Widdop 5 goals)

Referee: Matt Hawkins

Crowd: 100

Half-Time: Central Coast 30-16

Scrums: Central Coast 5-4

Penalties: Central Coast 6-4

Goal Kickers: Ndaira (Central Coast) 7 from 8, Widdop (Melbourne) 5 from 7

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Newtown (2010)

Newtown 26

Melbourne 20

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Newtown travelled to a cold and very windy Olympic Park to take on a Storm outfit who have enjoyed some big victories at home this season.

Melbourne chose to kick off and run with the wind in the first half. Within the first minute the Storm had given away two successive penalties, allowing Newtown to go on the attack early. On the last tackle, Ford opted to run but was caught before he could create an opportunity for his outside men.

Both teams were penalised early for ruck infringements. After one such penalty against Newtown, Melbourne attempted a kick for touch but were unable to do so. Newtown immediately spread the ball from the left wing to the right, but were bundled into touch on the first tackle.

On the last tackle of the set from the scrum, Kostjasyn gave a short flat pass from dummy half to Widdop who was unable to break through the Jets goal line defence. Newtown knocked the ball on four tackles later. The ball was picked up and passed to O’Regan who stepped around some loose defence, threw a dummy inside before scoring next to the right upright. Widdop converted the try giving the Storm a 6-0 lead after 12 minutes.

It took five minutes for Newtown hit back after a brilliant flat cut out pass from Ford creates an overlap and puts Savage over in the right corner. The conversion attempt from out wide was unsuccessful.

On the first set from the restart, Foran attempted to put in a kick downfield, but it came off the legs off a Storm defender. Guerra regathered the loose ball and ran 30 metres to score out near the left corner. The conversion attempt was again unsuccessful from out wide.

Tempers started to flare late in the first half between both packs of forwards. After one such fracas, Newtown received a penalty and immediately went to the right, but Tuigamala’s attempted pass over the top, while being tackled, went into touch.

O’Regan made another weaving run of 40 metres before being brought down just shy of the try line. Two plays later O’Regan put in a grubber into the Jets in-goal and Stanley pounced on the ball to score, but he was ruled off-side and the try disallowed.

On the last minute of the first half, Newtown attacked the Storm line after some solid work by the forwards. Ford drifted across field towards the right wing and managed to slip through the sliding defence to score. Tuatara-Morrison converted the try and at half-time Newtown lead 14-6.

Newtown went close to scoring on several occasions early in the second but the Storm defence was equal to the task. The first opportunity Melbourne got they took, when O’Regan ran onto an inside ball from Kostjasyn and barged over on the left side.

Twelve minutes later, Peters attempted a kick from dummy half but one of the Jets decoy runners ran too close to him, and Peters ended up kicking the ball into his teammate. Melbourne moved the ball down the Newtown left side before another inside ball close to the try line put Bromwich over for a try. Widdop converted the try and Melbourne had a two point lead.

From the restart the Storm forwards made big metres up field and managed to get to the Jets 30 metre line for the fifth tackle. Widdop attempted a small chip kick which was partially charged down, however he managed to regather the ball ran 20 metres, drew the fullback and passed to Rochow who scored out wide on the right side. Widdop’s conversion attempt failed and with 11 minutes remaining the Storm lead 20-14.

With seven minutes left Newtown are awarded a scrum after Melbourne knocks on inside their own half. Foran spreads the ball from the scrum to the left, using a run-a-round to create an overlap before passing to Tuatara-Morrison who scored in the left corner. Tuatara-Morrison kicks a magnificent sideline conversion to level the game.

With just 5 minutes remaining, Maori breaks through the first line of defence before being tackled by cover defenders. Moujalli receives the ball while running wide of the ruck on the left of the field and breaks through the defence and runs 15 metres to score under the posts. The Storm players took exception to the Jets jubilation and yet another scuffle breaks out under the posts after the try is scored. Order is restored and Tuatara-Morrison converts the try to give the jets a 6 point victory.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Gareth Widdop

4              Chase Stanley

3              Willie Isa

2              Dane Chisholm

5              Luke MacDougall

6              Daniel O’Regan

7              Luke Kelly (c)

8              Jesse Bromwich

9              Rory Kostjasyn

10           Sione Kite

11           Robbie Rochow

16           Fred Makimare

13           Billy Rogers

14           Sinbad Kali

15           Pulou Vaituutuu

17           James Woolford

18           Dale Langford

NEWTOWN JETS

1              Luke Towers

2              Chris Tuatara-Morrison

3              Tu’u Maori

4              Sonny Tuigamala

5              Troy Savage

6              Jonathon Ford

7              Liam Foran

14           Tinirau Arona

9              Keith Peters

10           Ray Moujalli

11           Brad Barrett

12           Aiden Guerra

13           Jason Baiteri (c)

15           Russell Aitken

16           John Leiatua

17           James Koloamatangi

21           Ryan Verlinden

WHEN THEY SCORED

12th min              - Melbourne 6-0 – O’Regan try, Widdop goal

17th min              - Melbourne 6-4 – Savage try

20th min              - Newtown 8-6 – Guerra try

40th min              - Newtown 14-6 – Ford try, Tuatara-Morrison goal

52nd min             - Newtown 14-10 – O’Regan try

65th min              - Melbourne 16-14 – Bromwich try, Widdop goal

69th min              - Melbourne 20-14 – Rochow try

73rd min              - 20 all – Tuatara-Morrison try, Tuatara-Morrison goal

75th min              - Newtown 26-20 – Moujalli try, Tuatara-Morrison goal

NEWTOWN 26 (Savage, Guerra, Ford, Tuatara-Morrison, Moujalli tries; Tuatara-Morrison 3 goals)

MELBOURNE 20 (O’Regan 2, Bromwich, Rochow tries; Widdop 2 goals)

Referee: Rob Bowen

Touch Judges: Zac Tozer and Monty Beecroft

Crowd: 61

Half-Time: Newtown 14-6

Scrums: 7 all

Penalties: Melbourne 8-7

Goal Kickers: Tuatara-Morrison (Newtown) 3 from 5, Widdop (Melbourne) 2 from 4

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Balmain-Ryde Eastwood (2010)

Melbourne 30

Balmain-Ryde Eastwood 24

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Competition front-runners Balmain-Ryde Eastwood headed down to take on a Melbourne team who only a week ago were thumped by Wentworthville, had its key players all returning from duties in the NRL, and in the case of Gareth Widdop, playing test football for England.

The game was dominated from start to finish by some very heavy defence by both sides, especially by David Gower. However it was Chase Stanley who opened the scoring after ten minutes, when he crossed out wide after some clever quick passing created an overlap. The conversion attempt was unsuccessful.

Neither team gave an inch for the next 15 minutes, until Dane Chisholm was put through a gaping hole and he ran away to score under the posts. Chase Stanley converted the try from in front.

Both teams started to find space and were making easy metres but poor last tackle kicking options ruined genuine scoring opportunities for both sides.

With just under 10 minutes remaining in the half, Curran made a break out on the right side and ran twenty metres before passing inside to Ryan who quickly gets the ball along to Meaney who ran away and scored under the posts. Lazarus converted and the Tigers had reduced the deficit to 4.

Melbourne though, hit back almost immediately when Vaituutuu barged over through the Tigers defence and scored under the posts. Stanley converted the try, giving the Storm a 16-6 lead heading into the sheds at halftime.

The second half began full of big hits and crunching tackles. A deep kick by Kelly went into touch just 10 metres from the Tigers line. From the scrum win the Tigers turned the ball over and the Storm instantly pushed the ball wide. Kostjasyn dived over from dummy half out wide on the left. Stanley‘s conversion attempt was waved away.

With just under twenty minutes remaining, Blake Lazarus looked to have scored a certain try in the far left corner before being penalised for a shepherd. Melbourne pushed up field quickly before a cross field bomb by Kelly was caught by Koko who quickly offloaded to Stanley who scored in the corner. Chisholm’s conversion attempt again unsuccessful, but Melbourne seemed to have an unassailable 24-6 lead.

A penalty against Balmain-Ryde Eastwood just five minutes later, for holding down in the tackle while defending on their own line, allowed Chisholm to take a shot at goal and claim an easy two points.

Trailing by 20 points, the Tigers attack finally began to click. Their restart was allowed to bounce by the Storm and it went into touch, giving Balmain-Ryde Eastwood the scrum feed just 20 metres from the Storm line. Ryan Carr dived over from dummy half and scored adjacent to the posts and Lazarus quickly potted the conversion to take the Storm lead back to 26-12 with less than ten minutes to play.

The Storm immediately went back on the attack and just two minutes later a cross field bomb by Kelly was spectacularly plucked out of the sky by Koko who scored in the left corner. Chisholm missed the conversion from out wide. Melbourne were now up 30-12 with 6 minutes left.

The Tigers were not finished yet. Blake Lazarus sauntered across field and threw a dummy which the rushing Storm defence fell for and he ran through them and scored under the posts and again quickly converted to bring the lead back to 12.

With time running out the Tigers continued coming at the Storm, but they left their charge too late. The siren sounded as Blake Lazarus put in a grubber for himself, but it was Cowan who picked up the loose ball and scored under the posts. Lazarus converted after the full time siren and the Storm managed to hold out the Tigers 30-24

MELBOURNE STORM

18           Jy Hitchcox

20           Michael Koko

3              Willie Isa

4              Chase Stanley

5              Dane Chisholm

6              Gareth Widdop

7              Luke Kelly (c)

8              Jesse Bromwich

9              Rory Kostjasyn

10           Sione Kite

11           Robbie Rochow

12           Hep Cahill

13           Billy Rogers

14           Sinbad Kali

15           Pulou Vaituutuu

21           Dale Langford

17           Daniel O’Regan

BALMAIN-RYDE EASTWOOD TIGERS

1              Sean Meaney

2              Lee Bennett (c)

3              Tame Tupou

4              Mitch Brown

5              Sam Latu

6              Darren Nicholls

7              Blake Lazarus

8              Eloni Vunakece

9              Ryan Carr

10           David Gower

11           Rhys Curran

12           Matthew Ryan

13           Jarred Farlow

14           Willie Mataka

15           Alan Schirnack

16           Gavin Cowan

17           Brett Lane

WHEN THEY SCORED

10th min              - Melbourne 4-0 – Stanley try

22nd min             - Melbourne 10-0 – Chisholm try, Stanley goal

32nd min             - Melbourne 10-6 – Meaney try, Lazarus goal

37th min              - Melbourne 16-6 – Vaituutuu try, Stanley goal

49th min              - Melbourne 20-6 – Kostjasyn try

63rd min              - Melbourne 24-6 – Stanley try

69th min              - Melbourne 26-6 – Chisholm goal

71st min               - Melbourne 26-12 – Carr try, Lazarus goal

73rd min              - Melbourne 30-12 – Koko try

76th min              - Melbourne 30-18 – Lazarus try, Lazarus goal

80th min              - Melbourne 30-24 – Cowan try, Lazarus goal

MELBOURNE 30 (Stanley 2, Chisholm, Vaituutuu, Kostjasyn, Koko tries; Stanley 2, Chisholm goals)

BALMAIN-RYDE EASTWOOD 24 (Meaney, Carr, Lazarus, Cowan tries; Lazarus 4 goals)

Referee: Jon Stone

Crowd: 70

Half-Time: Melbourne 16-6

Scrums: Melbourne 10-7

Penalties: Melbourne 10-6

Goal Kickers: Stanley (Melbourne) 2 from 4, Chisholm (Melbourne) 1 from 3, Lazarus (Balmain-Ryde Eastwood) 4 from 4

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Wentworthville (2010)

Wentworthville                                48

Melbourne                         12

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Competition point-scoring machines Wentworthville travelled to a miserly cold Olympic Park to take on Melbourne in a match between sixth and seventh on the competition ladder.

Right from the kick-off Wentworthville were on the attack. Their first set ended with a bomb by Keating which was misjudged by Hitchcox. The ball slipped through his fingers and rolled dead. The Magpies got the ball back from the drop out and immediately pushed the ball right, catching the Storm defence out as they rushed up, creating clear space for Sio to run in and score out wide. Sio missed the conversion attempt and after 2 minutes, Wentworthville were up 4-0.

Hitchcox dropped another bomb in the next set but Wentworthville were unable to capitalise on the field position when Robinson knocked on just 5 metres shy of the try line.

Wentworthville’s defence ensured the Storm forwards had to work hard to get the ball to halfway and some very sound Storm defence managed to keep the Magpies attack at bay for several sets.

The Storm got their first attack on the Wentworthville line after 15 minutes, but a grubber kick by Chisholm was easily cleaned up by Nasso.

Much of the play was featured around the halfway mark of the field for 20 minutes. A Matt Keating break and a great last minute pass lead to Oake scoring under the sticks. Sio converted the try and Wentworthville lead 10-0.

Just 5 minuted later, Wright made a break down the left side and passed to Nasso who scored in the corner. Sio missed the difficult conversion.

Melbourne managed to get themselves in good field position and dominating play, but poor kicks at the end of their sets were easily cleaned up.

As the half drew to a close, O’Hanlon made a break on the right side, passed inside to Cross who put Oake away under the posts. Sio converted and with two minutes left in the half, Wentworthville lead 20-0.

Wentworthville’s kick-off in the second half was knocked on by the Storm and from the ensuing scrum, Wentworthville went straight on the attack. After some quick passing through the backline created an overlap, Sio was in space and scored out in the right corner. Sio missed another tough conversion attempt.

Melbourne received back-to-back drop outs, but were again unable to convert the opportunities into points. Pelepelese made a break through the middle and ran 40 metres before being tackled just 10 metres short of the try line. Some sharp quick passing out left created another overlap and another easy try out wide for Nasso. Sio missed the conversion from out wide, and after 53 minutes, Wentworthville lead 28-0.

Points started to flow freely for both sides from here. A knock-on by Melbourne deep in the own half, gave the Magpies a scrum. Play was moved right immediately and Uaisele scored. Sio missed yet another difficult conversion attempt.

Just three minutes later, Lee Te Maari made a break and ran 60 metres before being brought down. Play quickly moved left and Wright scored next to the uprights. Rose converted the try and Wentworthville lead 38-0.

A rushed kick from dummy half by Woolford was fumbled by Nasso in his own in-goal. From the drop out the Storm made their way up to the Magpies line. Woolford dived through the marker defence to score adjacent to the posts to put the Storm on the scoreboard. Chisholm converted and with 12 minutes to go, Melbourne trailed 38-6.

The Storm attack started to pick up a gear and five minutes after scoring, they were over the line again, after a clever inside ball put O’Regan through a gap and he scored under the posts. Chisholm again converted the try.

Any prospect of a Storm comeback was killed off when Cross made a break and passed the ball to Mortimer who ran away and scored under the posts. Uaisele converted the try to take the score out to 44-12.

With just two minutes left Wentworthville winger Ken Sio crossed for his third try out wide after some quick passing created an overlap. Wright stepped up to take a shot at goal but was unsuccessful from out wide. At fulltime, the Storm had been soundly beaten 48-12 by Wentworthville.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Jy Hitchcox

2              James Uhatafe

3              Willie Isa

4              Michael Koko

5              Maeli Seve

6              Daniel O’Regan

7              Dane Chisholm

8              Jesse Bromwich

9              James Woolford

10           Sione Kite

11           Fred Makimare

12           Hep Cahill (c)

13           Billy Rogers

14           Sinbad Kali

15           Dale Langford

16           Mananui Te Hue Hue

17           Pulou Vaituutuu

WENTWORTHVILLE MAGPIES

1              Tim Mortimer

2              Ken Sio

3              Etu Uaisele

4              Jonathon Wright

5              Domenic Nasso

6              Matt Keating

19           Daniel Cross

8              Mitchell Allgood

9              Anthony Mitchell

10           Blake Blackburn

11           Pat O’Hanlon

20           Brendan Oake

13           Tim Robinson (c)

7              Trent Rose

12           Lee Te Maari

15           Nathan Armitt

16           Pele Pelepelese

WHEN THEY SCORED

2nd min                - Wentworthville 4-0 – Sio try

22nd min             - Wentworthville 10-0 – Oake try, Sio goal

26th min              - Wentworthville 14-0 – Nasso try

38th min              - Wentworthville 20-0 – Oake try, Sio goal

44th min              - Wentworthville 24-0 – Sio try

52nd min             - Wentworthville 28-0 – Nasso try

56th min              - Wentworthville 32-0 – Uaisele try

61st min               - Wentworthville 38-0 – Wright try, Rose goal

68th min              - Wentworthville 38-6 – Woolford try, Chisholm goal

74th min              - Wentworthville 38-12 – O’Regan try, Chisholm goal

78th min              - Wentworthville 44-12 – Mortimer try, Uaisele goal

80th min              - Wentworthville 48-12 – Sio try

WENTWORTHVILLE 48 (Sio 3, Oake 2, Nasso 2, Uaisele, Wright, Mortimer tries; Sio 2, Rose, Uaisele goals)

MELBOURNE 12 (Woolford, O’Regan tries; Chisholm 2 goals)

Referee: Henry Perenara

Touch Judges: Aaron McRoberts and Mike Smith

Crowd: 50

Half-Time: Wentworthville 20-0

Scrums: Wentworthville 11-10

Penalties: Wentworthville 4-2

Goal Kickers: Sio (Wentworthville) 2 from 7, Rose (Wentworthville) 1 from 1, Uaisele (Wentworthville) 1 from 1, Wright (Wentworthville) 0 from 1, Chisholm (Melbourne) 2 from 2.

On Report: Maeli Seve (Melbourne)

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****

Match Report - NSW Cup - Melbourne v Western Suburbs (2010)

Melbourne                         36

Western Suburbs             18

Andrew Ferguson

Olympic Park

Second placed Western Suburbs travelled to Melbourne to take on an in-form Melbourne side in what was always going to prove to be a tough match for both sides.

Right from the kick-off Melbourne were on top early. The kick-off was fielded by Falcone who stepped on the dead-ball line. Melbourne got the ball back from the drop-out and in the very first hit-up, Rogers busted through the middle, offloaded to Hitchcox who scored under the posts with the clock almost at 1 minute. Chisholm converted and Melbourne led 6-0.

Just four minutes later Makimare busted through the Magpies defence and after running 30 metres, passed inside to Hitchcox, who stepped through the chasing defence to score under the posts for the second time in just five minutes. Chisholm again converted and the Storm were up 12-0 after 5 minutes, and looking like they were going to run up a cricket score.

The Melbourne forwards were making very easy metres up the middle of the field and threatened at all times with the ball in hand, but three consecutive big hits by Andrew Pearn caused a turn-over. For the next 20 minutes play was almost entirely dictated by Wests in the Storm half, with most of their attack directed at the Storm left edge, but was fruitless every time.

Wests were 10 metres short of the line, when a Corby pass from dummy half went behind the players. Pritchard turned around to collect the ball and some great stepping through the broken play saw him cross the line to the left of the posts. Corby converted the try and Wests had reduced the lead to 6.

Melbourne’s goal-line defence was very impressive for the entirety of the first half, especially on the left side. Wests attacked the Storm left side seven times in the first half alone, all of which were unsuccessful.

Jamie Sharkie made a break but was brought down 20 metres shy, with no one in support and the try line open. Soon after, Hitchcox made a break down the Magpies right hand side touchline, as the defence closed in he threw a pass inside, but it missed its mark and was cleaned up by Skandalis.

Two quick play-the-balls by Wests saw them travel 60 metres downfield and again attacking the Storm left corner, only to once again come away with nothing. Kelly kicked a 40/20 to get the Storm out of their own half and on the attack, but a poor kick at the end of the set went dead.

Wests made easy metres down the ground and once again went left-side only to see the play diffused once again.

At halftime, Melbourne led 12-6. Wests had the majority of possession, and in key field position, but poor last tackle options meant that they never appeared likely to score.

Strong defence early in the second half by both sides saw cheap turn-overs early in the tackle count. Woolford scored after barging over from dummy half nine minutes into the second half. Chisholm converted and Melbourne lead 18-6 with half an hour left to play.

Some fantastic defence by Wests kept Melbourne inside their own 20 after 4 tackles. Chisholm attempted a chip and chase but he was unable to regather the ball cleanly and Wests picked up the ball and went immediately on the attack. However the first hit-up saw the ball go to ground after a huge hit on Pearn knocked the ball loose.

Melbourne immediately shifted the ball wide and Isa made a break down the Wests right side and is brought down just 5 metres shy of the Magpies a try line. Seve received a quick pass from dummy half and scored in the right corner. Chisholm missed the conversion from out wide. With 20 minutes to go, Melbourne led 22-6.

Bromwich made a break up the middle and passed inside to Widdop who almost makes it to the try line before being brought down. A quick play the ball and pass from dummy half saw O’Regan cross the line out wide on the left side. Chisholm again missed with the difficult conversion attempt

With 11 minutes to go, the Storm attack kept making huge metres. Bromwich scored after running through some weak defence and fell over the line for a try next to the posts. Chisholm converted which essentially put the game to bed, with Melbourne leading 32-6.

Wests however weren’t going home yet. Josh Davis, who had been put on report for lifting in a tackle, ran hard and straight onto a pass, broke through the Storm defence and scored. Corby converted to reduce the deficit to 20.

Just 3 minutes later, a chip kick by Aiga is allowed to bounce by Chisholm. Falcone regathered the ball, passed to Pritchard who scored untouched. Corby converted to bring the score back to 32-18.

With just 2 minutes to go, Melbourne retained possession after a short restart. The instantly moved play left and Seve managed to cross the line for the second time. Chisholm missed the conversion attempt from out wide. Melbourne running out 36-18 winners.

MELBOURNE STORM

1              Justin O’Neill

2              Dane Chisholm

3              Willie Isa

4              Chase Stanley

23           Marion Seve

6              Gareth Widdop

7              Luke Kelly

19           Jesse Bromwich

9              James Woolford

10           Sione Kite

11           Fred Makimare

12           Hep Cahill

13           Billy Rogers

14           Dale Langford

15           Mananui Te Hue Hue

16           Daniel O’Regan

22           Jy Hitchcox

WESTERN SUBURBS MAGPIES

4              Rhys Pritchard

2              Troy O’Sullivan

3              Andrew Everingham

12           Josh Davis

5              Gus Aiga

6              Ben Falcone

7              Nathan Waters

8              Duan Poanecki

9              Chris Corby

10           Andrew Pearn

11           Nu Akeripa

20           Alex Raineri

13           Jamie Sharkie

14           David Harris

16           Kurt Kara

19           Michael Stolk

24           John Skandalis

WHEN THEY SCORED

1^st min      - Melbourne 6-0 – Hitchcox try, Chisholm goal

5^th min     - Melbourne 12-0 – Hitchcox try, Chisholm goal

31^st min                   - Melbourne 12-6 – Pritchard try, Corby goal

50^th min   - Melbourne 18-6 – Woolford try, Chisholm goal

61^st min   - Melbourne 22-6 – Seve try

66^th min   - Melbourne 26-6 – O’Regan try

71^st min   - Melbourne 32-6 – Bromwich try, Chisholm goal

74^th min   - Melbourne 32-12 – Davis try, Corby goal

77^th min   - Melbourne 32-18 – Pritchard try, Corby goal

80^th min   - Melbourne 36-18 – Seve try

MELBOURNE 36 (Hitchcox 2, Seve 2, Woolford, O’Neill, Bromwich tries; Chisholm 4 goals)

WESTERN SUBURBS 18 (Pritchard 2, Davis tries; Corby 3 goals)

Referee: Jon Stone

Touch Judges: Greg Banks, Aaron McRoberts

Crowd: 40

Half-Time: Melbourne 12-6

Scrums: Wests 8-5

Penalties: Melbourne 6-4

Goal Kickers: Chisholm (Melbourne) 4 from 7; Corby (Western Suburbs) 3 from 3

****This match report appeared in Rugby League News magazine****