Recap

Tough Times continue for Dirty Twos

By Chris Gordon

As if Goulburn wasn’t already struggling for player numbers in the previous round, eight of the players that took the field that day were unavailable on Saturday against Uni-Norths.

Thanks to a lot of arm twisting and last minute call-arounds, five debutantes bolstered a team already filled with newcomers but with Goulburn required to play one man short for the entire match, it proved too tough an assignment with the Dirty Twos losing to Uni-Norths by 62-0.

The requirement to play one player down related to the competition rule whereby teams that cannot assemble a front row capable of full contact scrummaging and which request uncontested scrums have to play with 14 players. 

It was a comprehensive win by the Owls but even amidst such a sizeable loss, there were plenty positives for Goulburn.

Despite playing one player down for the entire match, Goulburn restricted Uni-Norths to a lower score than their first round opponents. And in the second half, with Uni-Norths already up by 38-0, gritty Goulburn defence denied them any further tries for the first 17 minutes of the second session.

Probably the biggest positive for Goulburn was that their effort and discipline never dropped even as the score grew and the time remaining diminished. There was no back chatting the ref and no sin bins – often the outcome for teams on the wrong end of a large scoreline and facing adversity.

Back home next weekend, and hopefully with greater numbers, it may be a different story for the Dirty Twos, but even if these tough times persist, it’s worth remembering that adversity is the prism in which character is truly revealed.

Uni-Norths 62 bt Goulburn 0.

Second grade photos, courtesy Pete Oliver Imagery.

Best & Fairest points:

3 – Michael Cooke
2 – Jimmy Rudd
1 – Campbell Kruger

Players Player

Michael Cooke

By the clock:

7 mins – Uni-Norths converted try 0-7
9 mins – Uni Norths try 0-12
14 mins – Uni Norths conv. try 0-19
18 mins – Uni Norths conv. try 0-26
26 mins – Uni Norths conv. try 0-33
31 mins – Uni Norths try 0-38

52 mins – Uni Norths conv. try 0-45
56 mins – Uni Norths conv. try 0-52
59 mins – Uni Norths try 0-57
66 mins – Uni Norths try 0-62