YOUNG WESTS GO WILD AT ROSALIE
Wests-Subiaco celebrated their first win of the season in emphatic style with a thumping 40-7 win over struggling Perth-Bayswater at Rosalie Park today in the RugbyWA club competition, sponsored by KWIK Crane and Transport Hire.
The win came off the back of a super-charged first half, Wests running one way traffic past the luckless Morley club to build a 25-0 half time lead.
Perth-Bayswater made up a little lost ground in the second half to dominate play for long periods, but without scoring until the last minute of play. Wests came good with a couple of late tries to blow out the score and can face the competition with renewed heart after a difficult couple of seasons.
Wests opened the scoring in the fourth minute with an angled penalty kick to flyhalf Dan Richards. The home team dominated possession as Perth tackled ineffectually and kicked unwisely, and then Wests rucked the ball downfield and passed to the short side in the corner for a simple try to fullback Chance Bunce after eight minutes.
The conversion attempt was woeful but Perth missed a penalty kick for the sideline four minutes later, and Wests took the ball, sweeping it wide to score in the other corner. The difficult conversion missed but the home side took a 13-0 lead.
To make matters worse, Perth blew a certain try after 20 minutes when they worked downfield and a player burst from a ruck with line barely defended. Incomprehensibly he chose to pass back to supporting players and allowed the Wests defence to close in and stop the movement.
Perth stayed on attack for five minutes but conceded a penalty on the halfway line for hands in the ruck. Richards' optimistic attempt fell well short, but Wests were back in the right end of the field and continued attacking until wing LJ Robinson capped off a width of the field sweep with a try in the corner.
Chance tried his hand -- or foot -- at converting it but the ball was badly astray. Wests hardly needed the points at 18-0, with Perth looking incapable of response. But the visitors rucked downfield with energy, opting for a penalty kick after 35 minutes but flyhalf Ethan Reid steered the simple kick wide.
Again Perth put together five minutes of energetic phases but without result, other than Wests prop Alex Rogers being sent to the sin bin by ref John Hill for striking following a disagreement after a ruck.
But Wests had the last word, stealing ball from the resulting penalty lineout and charging downfield, Bunce grabbing his second as he sailed through non-existent tackling to score wide of the posts. Bunce came good with the conversion and Wests strolled to the half time break with a comfortable 25-0 lead under their belts.
Wests kept the scoreboard ticking over as the second half opened, halfback Michael Marshall kicking a handy penlty after three minutes.
Perth moved back downfield and spent another five minutes thumping away with pick and drives in the corner, but knocked on and Wests escaped back down to halfway.
However, Perth-Bayswater found new purpose and kept the game well away from their 22, Reid making gains with much improved tactical kicking and the forwards putting in heavy work in close.
Perth stayed on attack, hammering Wests' line with repeated phases and crossed the line, only to be held up. A Perth scrum conceded a penalty for boring and again Wests escaped downfield. Tempers frayed and Perth lost hooker Adam Grant to the sin bin for striking, and captain Kereopa Pirikahu followed for a similar offence after 23 minutes and Wests moved back onto attack.
But this time it was Wests who made the mistakes, and Perth took the game back to the half way line.
Again Wests benefited from a Perth knock on and scrambled back onto attack, fortunate to be awarded a controversial try in the corner to reserve wing Jerome Bidau, going ahead 35-0 with ten minutes to play. Two minutes later they were in again in the other corner, rushing the disorganised Perth defence for Bunce to gain his hat trick and a thumping 40-0 score.
But Perth had a point to prove and strugggled back to the far end of the field, the forwards plunging over the line from a lineout. Number 8 Jackson Achilles claimed the try and Reid slotted the difficult wide conversion for a morsel of respect at 40-7.
-Rick Boyd
http://rugbywa.com.au/news/article,58175.html
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