PIRATES restored the derby order at Ken Chillingworth Oval on Saturday to keep their premiership hopes alive but were pushed all the way by Tamworth.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It was a real arm wrestle, ferocious at times even, and in the balance right to the final whistle.
Pirates looked to be home when Ethan Caccianiga crossed in the left-hand corner and, to a huge cheer from the nearby grandstand, James Trappel converted from the sidelines to push them 13 clear with just over seven minutes remaining.
But the Magpies weren’t done with, with Scott Blanch scoring with a minute and a half to go to give the Magpies some hope of a miracle.
Pat Strong couldn’t add the extras though, leaving them eight behind, which is how they finished up, with Pirates reclaiming the derby bragging rights and, more importantly, advancing to the preliminary final, 31-23.
Somehow.
“We gave them every opportunity to beat us today,” a satisfied but frustrated Pirates coach Andrew Verrell said.
“Our error rate was terrible.”
They countered that with some “great stuff” and some solid defence which, as is often the case in big games, was what won it for them.
“We defended well,” Verrell said.
“We met their big guys well.”
The first half was a real see-sawing affair, with neither side really gaining any ascendancy.
The Magpies showed early they weren’t going to depart from the attacking style that has served them so well this season, opting for touch from their first two penalties.
Their third they decided to take the points, Strong converting to put them 3-nil up after five.
It stayed that until just under 20 to go when Pirates winger Matt Grinter snuck over.
Tamworth almost hit back on the half hour, with hooker Sanimo Navatu barging his way over from 5m out.
All that good work was quickly undone though, with the Magpies knocking on the kick-off, and Pirates’ bookends Dave Irvine and Bart Leach combining to lock up the scores.
Five-eighth Jake Hartmann ducked through to put Pirates back in front a few minutes later but a penalty after the bell to Strong closed the margin to four at the break.
The Magpies asserted all the early pressure in the second half and, after being held up then knocking on at the scrum, eventually scored, with Harry Veitch scampering over to finish off a 50m breakout.
Strong ignited it, dancing his way around the Pirates defence before linking up with Nick Humphries who then found his skipper.
It put them one ahead with half an hour to go.
But they again messed up the kick-off and, from there, Pirates just shut them out.
They controlled the territory and got back in front through Mick Collyer with 19 to go.
“I think we were just starved of the ball,” Magpies co-coach Mark Daley said.
“And we didn’t react well to that and our options to that weren’t great.”