A FIVE-try first-half performance helped the Kootingal-Moonbi Roosters secure a 42-14 victory over the Werris Creek Magpies.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
While the weather at David Taylor Oval may have been cold, the Roosters form was red hot as they set about building a comfortable lead.
Roosters centre Kyle Cochrane got the ball rolling for the visitors, scoring his first of two tries for the afternoon in the opening minutes.
Roosters captain Jordan Sharpe then wasted little time following up, scoring his first try for the game a short time later.
Read Also:
Jack Rumsby soon followed suit, scoring his first try of the afternoon to help the Roosters take a 24-0 lead into the half-time break.
Sharpe said the side had paid particular focus to "getting off to a good start".
"There was a massive emphasis on us to come out firing in the first half," Sharpe told the Leader.
"Our starts have been okay this season, today [Saturday] I think we only dropped the ball twice, didn't let any tries in and scored five tries of our own.
"We really had an emphasis on completing our sets and getting to our kicks, which I think we did really well."
After half-time the Magpies came back to life thanks to a try from Nathaniel Slater.
Slater's good work was quickly followed up when Scott Berry scored the Creek's second minutes later.
Dwight Millgate then continued the momentum, handing the Magpies their third try in a row.
However, that was where the offence ended for the home side, as the Roosters piled on another four tries late in the half to run out 28-point winners.
"It was a massive win for us," Sharpe said.
"We knew if we won today [Saturday] we would push up into second spot.
"Compared to last season where we started really well, we have a completely different team this year and while we have started this season off slowly, we are really building towards the end of the year."
Magpies co-coach Matt Parsons said his side struggled to stop the Roosters' attack.
"We gave away a lot of penalties and I think physically they were probably ready to go and we weren't quite," Parsons said.
"They put us on the back foot early."
Parsons said the upcoming bye weekend would be a major benefit to his side.
"We're not making any excuses about today [Saturday] Kootingal were just too good for us, but we are missing five or six key players," he said.
"We need the bye to get a few blokes back and give a few of our guys a rest as well.
"After that, we will be back for our Old Boys Day and begin our run home."
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
