KWIK Premier Grade - Week 11 Preview

[Darren]

By RugbyWA Media
Contributors: Josh Zimmerman

Nedlands vs University
The Forseshore – 3.30pm
First round: University 17 – 24 Nedlands

With their 26 – 8 victory over Wests Subiaco on the weekend University has now strung together four wins in the row and risen to second on the ladder. On current form they would have to be considered among the best teams in the competition and will relish the opportunity to test themselves against leaders Nedlands at The Foreshore on Saturday.

Nedlands returned to the winner’s circle in round 10 but their 17 – 10 victory over a Cottesloe side that has now lost five on the trot was less then emphatic and Tony Ball’s side will need to lift considerably if they are to stop Uni’s hot streak and maintain their ten point lead at the top of the ladder.

The first meeting between these sides back in round two was close and if not for a couple of lapses in concentration Uni may well have taken the points on the day. UWA have improved considerably since then while Neddies have lost some of their aura of late and an upset could well be on the cards.

Wests Subiaco vs Palmyra
Rosalie Park – 3.30pm
First round: Palmyra 17 – 21 Wests Subiaco

Palmyra has quietly gone about its business accumulating 6 wins so far this season the most recent of which was a 29 – 7 drubbing of Associates at Tompkins Park. John Taylor’s side, currently fourth, has found its groove and firmly established itself as a contender this season.

Wests Subiaco, currently third, also has six wins and are one of only two sides that can lay claim to having stopped the Nedland’s juggernaut in 2011. However they were comprehensively outplayed in the wet by Uni on the weekend and will need to pray for sunshine, or improve their handling in the rain, if they are going to continue to play the run and stun style that has been so effective for them thus far this campaign.

Wests’ backline has proven it can score from anywhere on the park and they will need to be in killer form if they are to challenge Palmyra who, with only 148 points conceded so far this year, is the top defensive side in the competition.

Associates vs Wanneroo
Allen Park – 3.30pm
First round: Wanneroo 26 – 26 Associates

Wanneroo has recovered from a slow start to the year to win their last four and surge within a sniff of the top four. The Roo Dogs are fifth with just percentage keeping them out of a finals position. Their 32 – 29 win over Kalamunda on the weekend was the latest in a string of close victories and Elwee Prinsloo will be happy with the knack his side is showing for winning the tight ones.

Associates has shown promise at times this year with convincing wins over Kalamunda and Perth Bayswater but perhaps tellingly has beaten only one of the teams that currently occupy the top five spots on the ladder, that win coming all the way back in round one against Palmyra. Currently seventh, Soaks are not out of the running yet but will need to start beating the top sides if they are to enter finals consideration.

These sides played out the only draw of the year to date when they met in round two but neither will be happy to share the points for a second time this season.

Perth Bayswater vs Kalamunda
Pat O’Hara Reserve – 3.30pm
First round: Kalamunda 17 – 19 Perth Bayswater

After a fairytale start to the year Perth Bayswater have fallen off the pace of late and just aren’t displaying the same swagger that delivered them four wins from the opening six rounds 2011. A poor showing against Rockingham on the weekend on their way to a 3 – 23 loss hasn’t helped matters and Baysie (6th) need to quickly rediscover their mojo if they are to break back in to the top half of the table.

Kalamunda has struggled this year and is currently at the bottom of the log but the Bulls played with a lot of heart in a close loss to Wanneroo on the weekend and opposition sides will be wary of labeling this side an easy beat as their tenacity and fighting spirit mean they are capable of challenging anyone on their day.

Perth Bayswater will be targeting this game as a must win if they are to spark their season back into life while Kalamunda will be fired up and out for blood after just falling short in their last start.

Rockingham vs Cottesloe
Lark Hill Complex – 3.30pm
First round: Cottesloe 48 – 26 Rockingham

Cottesloe are a far cry from the team that finished second in 2010 and the Seagulls must be wondering what went gone wrong after round five which is the last time that the side won a game. Cott (9th) showed improvement, especially to their porous defense, in a close loss on the weekend to Neddies but have a long way to go if they are to have any chance of making finals in 2011.

Rockingham has also struggled for consistency so far but was impressive in its win over Perth Bayswater on the weekend and has pushed a number of sides this year. After ten rounds Rocky find themselves in eighth but will be confident of making a run up the ladder if they can play the way they did against Baysie on a regular basis.

Lark Hill is not an easy ground to travel to and Cottesloe may find it difficult to back up their effort against Nedlands from the previous round. Rockingham has momentum on its side and so the home team must start as favourites in this one.

http://www.westernforce.com.au/NewsE...8/Default.aspx

[theforceguy]

I wonder if Alfi will be playing for Baysie. For that matter i wonder how many Force players are playing local club rugby the weekend

[chertubler]

Should be a great day at Rocky good luck to both teams,

[SinBin]

Wannaroo's winning streak came to an end today at the hands of Soaks who put in a dominant first half display, scoring 4 converted tries to 2 penalties for the RoosDogs HT 28-6. Soaks continued to pour on the misery for the RooDogs at the start of the 2nd half, but once again Wannaroo showed their knack of coming back from behind, adding a further 21 points to their total. Their efforts fell short however with the Soaks running out winners 36-27.

[Darren]

Nedlands 36 def UWA 34
Wests Subiaco 22 def Palmyra 19
Associates 36 def Wanneroo 27
Perth Bayswater 27 draw Kalamunda 27
Rockingham 16 loss Cottesloe 25

[Engage!]

I believe the Neds v UWA was a humdinger, a game that could have gone either way.

[bunter]

Thanks to Cott for the trip to Rocky and Thanks to James for showing up too. Cottesloe won fairly and squarely and good on them after the shit they have copped over the past week. Rocky were good for 20 minutes of rugby only.

I'm sorry but the ref needs to do a serious look at the dvd for this game.
My pinion, for what it's worth, probably the worst display for a while and we cop a lot. No communication from the sideline to the ref as the mics were apparently faulty, and so much missed.

Don't want to sound like a ref whinger but the sort of crap officiating we saw today could certainly drive a man away from the game. It seemed like every time Rocky got close to James, there was a penalty against them for some alleged infringement.
You might have scored some points with James or ARU ref, but you did a good job of shutting the game down to a one sided affair. Not happy!

[Kev]

So when is something to be done about the standard of refereeing ... if I understand it correctly, there's minimal expenses paid and a lot copped for a Saturday afternoon.
With sponsors in hand - Argonaut, Bankwest, OPSM ! when will a tiered level of decent expenses be paid for their time, then we might get some that want to do it and want to become of a decent standard.
As for JOC turning at Rocky, what was the point. He cud have easily wrecked any world cup chances by a loose tackle, wrong step or some other injury. He missed some simple kicks then left the field after show chasing some appalling refereeing in the form of cotton wool wrapping.

[Darren]

With sponsors in hand - Argonaut, Bankwest, OPSM ! when will a tiered level of decent expenses be paid for their time, then we might get some that want to do it and want to become of a decent standard.

OPSM to sponsor referees?

[Kev]

OPSM to sponsor referees?

A little creative license or perhaps some irony ....

[maelkann]

OPSM sponsor AFL refs, if that's what you're thinking of...

[Rucking Good]

As for JOC turning at Rocky, what was the point. He cud have easily wrecked any world cup chances by a loose tackle, wrong step or some other injury. He missed some simple kicks then left the field after show chasing some appalling refereeing in the form of cotton wool wrapping.

It was the first time that JOC had played with his younger brother and he was willing to take the risk as it is unlikely to happen again. He did not make any difference to the final outcome but enjoyed his time with Johnny. Good on him.

[Hansie]

I hear JOC may have another run with Cott against Wests. I have no doubt Wests will relish the opportunity to show him the kind of respect Community rugby has for talent.