THE Macintyre Warriors missed out on their chance to host the Group 19 grand final, but that’s only made them more determined to smash the Ashford Roosters.
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They will be back at Warrior headquarters in Boggabilla on Sunday.
President, Peter Rice, has urged all supporters from throughout the region to make a beeline to Boggabilla next week, and he’s sure they will.
“It was a phenominal crowd on Sunday and we were rushed off our feet,” he said.
Sadly so were the Warriors. They went down to the Inverell Hawks 33-20. But the score doesn’t tell the full story.
The Warriors, renowned for their speed, came out determined to dominate early.
And it all looked good.
They were being led from the front by frontrowers, 18-year-old Liam Close from Toomelah and Aaron “Big Foot” Robinson.
“They have been huge for us all season,” Rice said. Especially young Liam.
“It’s fantastic to have a young gun like him who is the leader of the pack,” he said.
However, a rolled ankle caused Close to spend most of the game on the sidelines.The Hawks took the opportunity to go on the attack.
They trapped the Warriors on their own line for two “long stints”.
“But the boys really dug deep. That defence kept them in the game,” Rice said.
The second half was again a see-sawing affair. The Hawks only took the lead with a field goal late in the match, and then secured the victory with a try on the siren.
The boys really dug deep. That defence kept them in the game.
- President Peter Rice
“It was disappointing to lose but it was a fantastic game of rugby league and we were in it right to the end,” Rice said.
The best backs were Brandon McIntosh, David McGrady and young fullback Malcolm McGrady. The Warriors remain confident they can return to their winning ways on the weekend.
“We are heading to the Boomi (artesian) baths for a recovery session (on Tuesday) and then we are all heading out for tea in Gundy,” Rice said.
“The spirit is all there. We’ve had a great season and we plan to keep it going, but we want to see as many supporters as we can get there on Sunday to help cheer us on. It’s all or nothing for all of us. There was a huge crowd and within 20 minutes after the match there wasn’t a piece of rubbish on the ground. They had all cleaned it up. That’s the pride and passion they have for this club.”
