NRL Round 3 – Sydney Roosters v South Sydney Rabbitohs: So disappointing!

 

Artwork: John Campbell

 

Sydney Roosters v South Sydney DRLFC
Sydney Football Stadium
Friday 17 March 7:30pm

 

The first leg of the 2023 Ron Coote Cup.

A very difficult report to write.

A loss to the Evil Empire, the Sombrero, Eastern Suburbs, the Sydney City Roosters, the Bondi Breakers, our neighbouring rivals since foundation in 1908.

A loss after being up ten-nil after a dominant first thirty minutes.

Really needed more points to show for that great start.

Consecutive losses, with our next month being: Manly, finally a home game at least, the Storm, the resurgent Bulldogs, then undefeated Dolphins, in Brisbane.

The build up for a Souths-Roosters clash is always hyped.

Much hype in South Australia this week around the start of the 2023 AFL season … I am part of several AFL tipping competitions, including three at my school, Faith College!

A very Barossa lead into this Friday night football clash:

Faith College students can study wine making.

Following the College athletics carnival, staff happy hour was enthusiastically supported in the schools’ wine centre.

To clear space for this years’ vintage, staff were able to taste, then purchase, at heavily reduced prices, 2016 and 2017 vintage wine.

Is there a better way to wrap up a Friday?

Further to the three school AFL tipping competitions I am participating in, as an ecumenical citizen, I then collected my Tanunda Club membership card, and duly submitted my (AFL) tips for Round 1 in the club competition there.

A very belated Balfours Angus Beef and McLaren Vine Shiraz pie from Foodland – living up to their slogan of ‘the mighty South Aussies’– was a satisfactory pre-game snack.

***

The Mario Fenech-George Piggins inspirational play of the match: Keon Kolomatangi crashing through former Souths premiership five-eighth Luke Keary to open the scoring. Kolomatangi’s typically dynamic run reflected Souths’ early dominance.

The Tony Rampling-Les Davidson tackle of the match: The tackle made by the Rabbit in the Vineyard player of the match, Keon Kolomatangi on Queenslander Lindsay Collins, during that early part of the match, with Souths in control.

Is Kolomatangi a chance to line up for New South Wales against Collins at the Adelaide Oval in Origin Game One on 31 May?

The Michael Andrews-Luke Stuart work rate award: Campbell Graham ran for 196m, set up Izaak Tu’itupou Thompson for his try, in another consistent display.

The Phil Blake ‘chip n chase’ best attacking moment: Latrell’s sublime pass to Alex Johnston, to score in the left corner, during Souths’ early domination.

AJ’s NRL try tally now sits at 168. For the past two seasons, Johnston has topped the try scoring list with thirty tries both years. Since his debut in the premiership year of 2014, when he scored twenty-one tries in eighteen games, Johnston has been nothing less than a try-scoring machine.

At twenty-eight years of age, he is in pursuit of: Brett Morris (176), Steve Menzies (180), Billy Slater (190) and the legendary Ken Irvine (212).

Coach Demetriou lamented the inability of the team to ‘ice their try -coring opportunities’. A poor completion rate and penalties conceded by senior players did not help.

Full time: Sydney Roosters 18 – South Sydney 16.

***

Ron Coote Cup return bout, Round 27, Friday night, 1^st September, Olympic Stadium, Homebush.

On to the original silvertails, Manly, this Saturday night.

Round Four, and our first home game for 2023.

Yes, it’s a long season.

***

R.I.T.V. player of the year points:

3- Keon Kolomatangi

2- Campbell Graham

1 – Tevita Tetola

LEADER BOARD:

5: Campbell Graham & Keon Kolomatangi

3: Lachlan Ilias & Isaiah Tass

1: Shaqai Mitchell & Tevita Tetola

 

 

Russel Hansen has worked in schools for over thirty years – as a teacher, coach, coach educator, sports coordinator and in pastoral care roles. Whilst at Brisbane Boys’ College as Director of Athletics, he led teams to six GPS premierships in track and field, and cross country.

He has coached at all levels from school to international, most recently coaching a lad to the Australian U/20 4x100m relay squad for the 2022 world U/20 championships.

He is married to Heidi, a Primary school principal, and is father to two adult daughters.  

 

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