THE Forster Tuncurry Dolphins dashed the dreams of the aspiring Gloucester Cockies in fulfilling their own ambition of a hattrick of premierships in the Lower Mid North Coast rugby union competition at Tuncurry on Saturday.
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The spirit required by the Dolphins for their two tries to nil and 17-6 success was exemplified by “the man with the red helmet”, inside-centre Mark Hagarty, who sustained a deep head wound early on but who finished the game with his head swathed in a blood-soaked bandage.
On a splendid, near-Spring afternoon with a light but valuable northerly at their backs, Gloucester failed to capitalise on their domination of possession in the first half hour only to see the Dolphins snatch a 7-3 lead at the interval through the magical hands of skipper Matt Nuku.
The five-eighth dragged in a high pass, off-loaded to his charging prop Colin Harris and as the move swung to the right wing, flanker Brad Murray bullocked his way over in the corner. Lee Crozier curled the conversion over from the side line.
“Beaten by the better side,” acknowledged Gloucester’s generous coach, Steve Parkin. “We had a couple of opportunities to score early on and didn’t take them.”
Marshalled splendidly by halfback Andrew Paynter, the Cockies won possession and retained it, sweeping the ball back and forth only to be kept at bay by the grimly tackling Dolphins, backrowers Murray, Chris Simon and Rob Avard, hooker Troy Haines, locks Rob McCabe and Jack Woods and props Colin Harris and Lee Crozier.
Though hooker Rob Tresidder’s scrum shunted the Dolphins’ pack alarmingly in the 16th minute, it proved a temporary lapse and the Dolphins regrouped. The Dolphins’ lineout worked a treat with Woods and Murray claiming crucial possession.
Again danger threatened only for fullback Kurt Forester and winger Jack Nicholson to run down winger James Yates after his long-range intercept.
Into the second half, the wind behind them and Nuku able to drive the ball deep down-field, the Dolphins’ forwards continued nullifying the try-scoring skills of influential Cockies backrowers, Jamie Andrews and Chris Marchant.
A critical moment in the engrossing duel came on the hour when with a lineout on the Dolphins’ line, the Cockies’ renowned mauling site, the ball was thrown with a crooked trajectory, and Gloucester’s try-scoring opportunity was lost.
The outcome of the Brokenwood Wines Cup still hung in the balance after 68 minutes
