THREE undefeated football sides went into last weekend seeking to keep their great starts to a new season on a roll.
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All three met last season’s premiership winners and all three lost.
On the rugby league front Scone Thoroughbreds had won all seven games in the Hunter Valley Group 21 competition but tackled last season’s premiers Greta Branxton at Greta Central on Sunday and lost 34-26.
Inverell Hawks had won all eight Group 19 matches they’d played but, when they went to Moree’s Burt Jovanovich Oval, they returned to the Sapphire City 42-22 losers.
Down in Tamworth the unbeaten Tamworth Kangaroos had won all their Tamworth AFL matches, including a first-round win over reigning premiers New England Nomads in Armidale to kick off the season.
However the Roos, even with a home ground, fell to the same fate as Scone and Inverell.
It dropped them to second on the TAFL ladder too while the Hawks had the ignominy of dropping to third (on for and against) behind the two Moree sides – Boomerangs and Boars – who play this weekend in a Group 19 blockbuster.
Scone Thoroughbreds did remain top although they will have four of their stars – captain-coach Daniel Ritter, try-scoring fullback Tim Smith, winger Joel Henderson and utility star Justin Apthorpe – in Mudgee playing in tomorrow’s Country Championship Tier 2 Final against Riverina.
The Thoroughbreds are drawn to play Singleton this Sunday.
“Hopefully we pull up all right,” Ritter said this week.
Tamworth Roos coach Tony Bishop said the Nomads outplayed his side and showed why they have won the past three TAFL flags.
“Our forward line was generally ineffective against them,” he said.
“We do have a few players to come back.
“Ben Mitchell was out today and is an important ‘tall’ in our team.
Height was an issue for the Roos, with Thomas Hunt, Tim Keys, Phillip Mitchell, Omphile Temoso and Velani Chakalisa all towering over their Roos opponents at different stages.
The Nomads’ big men are also mobile.
Hunt was also having his first game of the season for the Nomads after winning their best and fairest award last season and, after a slow start on Drew Murden, took control in the final two quarters.
The Nomads now bounce to a big clash against third-placed Inverell Saints while the Roos have a big local derby against the Tamworth Swans at No 1 Oval.
While the Moree Boomerangs and Moree Boars joust for top spot in Group 19, the Inverell Hawks play Glen Innes and must shape up after given a fierce wake-up call at Moree last Saturday.
“We started all right up there but made three crucial mistakes before half-time,” said Hawks coach Peter Stevens who had also coached the Greater Northern Under 18s to a close 21-18 semi-final loss to Newcastle in their recent Country Championship semi-final.
“They were way too good for us though.
“We’ve got to go back to the drawing board and, to be completely honest, I haven’t been happy with the last three weeks.”
That’s training and playing.
“We have had players away with rep stuff but good sides work their way through that,” Stevens said.
“We’ll go back to training this week.
“The next two or three weeks could determine our season, whether the boys have that hunger or not.”
The Hawks will most likely be missing Greater Northern stars Guy Mepham and Harold Duncan for this weekend’s clash with Glen Innes at home on Varley Oval.