THE video of yesterday’s A grade game between Norths and Fassifern is unlikely to be in high demand.
But both teams emerged from a soggy Keith Sternberg Oval positive with what they could take from the game.
Norths were the happier after winning 30-22 in a match in which neither side completed their sets at more than 50 per cent, with conditions partly to blame.
It was 12-all at half-time with all the tries coming from opposition handling errors near their own line.
In the second half, Norths managed to hold on to the ball a little bit better and it made all the difference.
They were well served by skipper Josh Roberts at five-eighth and livewire utility Chris Porter.
The most impressive player on the field was Tigers prop John Totini who delighted in making big hits and strong yards up the middle.
He will prove to be a huge asset for the Tigers if he can eliminate the moments of ill-discipline.
“He goes real hard,” Porter said of Totini. “He’s just got to watch his discipline. If he gets that out of his game, he’ll be unstoppable.”
The opening tackle of the game summed up exactly what Porter was talking about.
Totini put a huge hit on Fassifern prop Ethan Glen, but gave away a penalty for not getting off him quickly enough.
But it set the scene with Porter attributing the win to his team’s defence.
“We just muscled up in defence,” Porter said.
“Our completion rate was terrible but our line-speed was good. Our defence kept us in it.”
Porter is back with the Tigers after two seasons with the Ipswich Jets.
His decision to rejoin the Tigers was motivated by his desire to play with his close friends and win a premiership with them.
“All my mates were coming back so it made me want to,” the 27-year-old said.
“And I’m away from work every second week so can’t train then.
“I’ve still got to work on my fitness but other than that it’s going pretty well. Everybody is working for each other.
“We’re all mates together and everyone wants to win the premiership. We’re all getting on so there’s not many years left.”
Porter concedes yesterday’s game was not pretty but is confident the Tigers have plenty more to offer.
One negative for them was the first half ankle injury to halfback Steven West, who was carried from the field and said he heard a crack when a player fell on him.
West’s replacement Robbie Peters scored a 70m intercept try with six minutes of the match remaining to put the win beyond doubt.
Fassifern player-coach Daniel Roos was far from dejected despite watching his team lose a game it could have won with a bit more discipline and ball control.
He saw enough to be encouraged by the progress his team is making.
“They didn’t make the mistakes we made in our own half,” he said of Norths.
“People might have thought we were going to be easybeats this year. But we’ve shown that we’ve matched every team we’ve played. Once we stick to our structures and game plan, we’ll be very hard to beat.”
IRL scores
- Norths 30 def Fassifern 22
- Brothers 38 def West End 4
- Goodna 50 def Swifts 0
QT: Defensive hunger triggers win over Fassifern in rain and slush
14/04/2014, Jay Buchan, Queensland Times
http://www.qt.com.au/news/tigers-bare-teeth/2228521/
