Drew Arabin against Boorowa on Saturday. Arabin made a couple of line breaks and played well in the losing side.
The local derby by Boorowa against Binalong at the Binalong Rec Ground last Saturday saw the George Tooke Shield open hostilities for the 2018 season. Played in very warm conditions and with a moderate westerly blowing, the Jersey Girls took the field to open proceedings in front of a very large and vocal crowd. The Jersey Girls kicked off and the opposing full-back Noakes went straight through them and scored under the posts, almost untouched! This set the scene for the match. The home side couldn’t get their hands on the ball, the Roverette’s tries kept coming and after 12 minutes of play it was 14-0. Binalong were running into a fresh breeze and their kicking game was suffering on the few occasions they did get the ball.
However, Ali Spencer did make a good line break mid-way through the half and Cara Phillis was injecting herself into play with good effect. Although they couldn’t score they did get some better field position with Teagan King and Alexandra Ryan good in defence. The opposition reasserted themselves, scored 3 more tries and the girls went to the break down 30-0. With the breeze at their backs the Jersey Girls fared better in the second half and limited the visitors to only 3 tries. Kelsey Dowling and Kayley Hart were good all day; their ball handling was largely very good and although they lost the match 46-0 they didn’t let their heads go down.
By contrast the Brahmans started their first half with 2 quick tries, the first to a dazzling James Blair and the second to Rodney Freeman; neither were converted and the home side were up 8-0 after nine minutes. Neither of the Brahmans coaches played and some disruption to positions caused some misunderstandings and tries by the visitors as the first half wore on. In the 18th minute the Rovers struck to trail 8-6. The Brahmans defence to this point had been good but seemed to break down and in the 21st Minute Boorowa were in the lead 12-8, followed seven minutes later to stretch the lead to 18-8. Brothers Danny and Drew Arabin tormented Boorowa all day with repeated strong line breaks, but unfortunately none resulted in points. Jake Arabin defended well as did Rodney Freeman. With five minutes of the first half remaining the Rovers were in again to post a 10 point lead followed by another try to take the players to half-time with Binalong now trailing 24-8. The task of catching up looked difficult in the second stanza. Jarrod Whatman and Kobi Bradshaw, now at full back, stood up when the Brahmans needed them.
When the second half opened and with the wind behind them the hosts set about bridging the gap. The first opportunity came after 6 minutes when Dylan Arabin kicked a 40-20, but the Brahmans failed to capitalize. Nevertheless, four minutes later James Blair put in another blistering run to take the score up to 24-14 and the home side kept Boorowa at bay until the second drinks break came up at ¾ time, after Boorowa scored again to lead 28-14. After a long absence from Binalong, Trent Casey returned at dummy half and directed play well when on the ground, but the revelation was bench prop Jarrod Alcorn who made good ground with the ball. The very warm afternoon took its toll on the bigger players. At the 25 minute mark the visitors struck again and went to a 36-14 lead and the game was gone for Binalong.
To their credit, the hosts kept up the attack and almost on full time this paid dividends when 5/8 Chris Enslow plunged over and Kobi Bradshaw piloted the ball over for the final score of 36-20. This writer saw a few negative things in the Brahmans game but there were more positives to consider with a re-structure of the playing roster. This Saturday the Binalong Brahmans will host the North Canberra Bears at Binalong Rec Ground, Jersey Girls at 1:00pm, Brahmans at 2:00pm. This will also be a tough hit-out for both grades. Full bar and kiosk available and hoping the heat abates somewhat. Result: Boorowa 36 def Binalong 20 (tries: J.Blair (2), R.Freeman and C.Enslow. Goals: Dylan Arabin, K.Bradshaw. Referee: Mr.L.Brown.
