Another exciting weekend of the Blumers Lawyers Canberra Raiders Cup is in the books with the Bushrangers, Warriors, Blues and Sharks all recording round five victories.
Tuggeranong Bushrangers 30 d Yass Magpies 10
The Tuggeranong Bushrangers have secured the top spot after a dominant 30-10 win over the Magpies at Walker Park on Saturday afternoon.
Both sides had early scoring opportunities, but it was Tuggeranong who drew first blood with hooker Joshua Eppelstun faking a pass to his right and diving over in the tenth minute to put the Bushrangers up four points.
Only minutes later, Liam Oakley came up with a piece of brilliance grubbering to himself to extending the away side’s lead.
Yass bounced straight back through dummy-half Jack Hartwig, who caught the defence off-guard and beat some staggered defence to score under the posts and close the gap to 10-6.
Star forward Zac Saddler showed some magic when he picked the ball up from dummy-half and drew two defenders to get an incredible offload to his five-eighth Jack Heyman for a four-pointer right on halftime.
The Bushrangers ran away with it in the second half, tallying up another three tries to drive home with a 30-10 victory and the two competition points.
The Bushrangers hold their first place spot on the competition ladder, tied with West Belconnen on eight points.
West Belconnen Warriors 36 d Woden Valley Rams 20
West Belconnen continue their Canberra Raiders Cup dominance, remaining undefeated through the first five rounds of action.
The Warriors snagged a big win on ladies day at Phillip Oval, piling seven tries on the home side to take a 36-20 victory.
Warriors fullback Ryan McQueen bagged a double and Robert Roberts continues his run at a second McIntyre Medal Best and Fairest award after nailing four conversions in the side’s big win.
The Rams were without a few of their most experienced players and will look to bounce back after a well-deserved bye round this weekend with representative football taking place on Saturday.
Queanbeyan Blues 64 d Queanbeyan Roos 10
The Blues recorded a massive win over their cross-town rivals on Saturday afternoon, piling on a total 12 tries in the famous derby.
Man of the match Jake Butler-Fleming was enormous on their right-edge, scoring three tries in the side’s big win.
In what shaped up to be a huge contest pre-game, was quickly put to bed after the Blues were relentless in their attack, headed to the sheds with a 30 point lead at halftime.
Captain-coach Terry Campese made a huge case for man of the match, but left for the bench early in the second half and didn’t return until the final five minutes, having a hand in almost every first-half try.
It shakes up the competition significantly, after the Blues went into that game with only one win. Now, the Blues will take enormous confidence as they take on the Belconnen United Sharks in round six.
Belconnen United Sharks 30 d Gungahlin Bulls 28
The Sharks have been welcomed back to the winner’s circle, boasting a close two-point victory over Gungahlin at home.
The Bulls now drop to second-last on the competition ladder after losing another close game, this time just being pipped at the fulltime siren after a late comeback surge.
The Sharks put together an 80-minute performance that they’ve been chasing for quite some time as they knocked off one of the competition favourites of the season’s beginning.
Three failed conversions from the Sharks kept the Bulls in distance of hunting down a much-needed win. But, the Sharks goal-line defence aimed up at the end to hold them out for the two competition points.
The Sharks now sit one placing outside the top five, where they will play the Queanbeyan Blues in round six for a current spot to play finals at the season’s end.
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