Avondale have reaffirmed their position as Illawarra Rugby premiership favourites after a 43-point victory over Vikings in Saturday’s grand final rematch.
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The Wombats demolished their opponents 55-12, turning in a complete, 80-minute performance and comprehensively outplaying Vikings in every facet of the game.
The win comes just two weeks after Avondale suffered their second defeat of the season, a 20-12 loss to Bowral and coach Murray McDonald acknowledges the loss was the warning his team needed.
“The loss to Bowral was a big wake-up call,” McDonald said. “They are a really good side, I knew we were in for a tough game and they did their homework. It was the loss we needed.
“Saturday against Vikings was one of our best games of the season so far. I was really impressed with the way we played in both the forwards and the backs.
“The big powerful forwards were going forward and it gave the backs the space to run their plays.
“We really stood up against Vikings, they’re a tough opponent, we came out of the blocks really quickly and kept the pressure on all game.”
Recognising the backs hadn’t quite clicked into gear, McDonald made a crucial positional change following the loss to Bowral, moving five-eighth Silipa Tuigamala to fullback and fullback Antonio Ale to the number 10 jersey.
“It’s a switch he feels had an instant impact on the team’s attack.
“Lipa is a fullback and we made him a 10 because we didn’t have one last year. Antonio is a 10, so the switch suited both players.
“Lipa is happy at the back, there’s more open running, he gets his hands on the ball in open space and he’s enjoying the challenge at the moment.”
The loss placed a major dent in Vikings top-two hopes and sees them in a battle to secure a spot in the finals. After winning seven-straight matches, the 2017 runners-up have now lost two in a row and coach Sean Barrett acknowledges his team must right the ship next weekend against Bowral if they are to figure at the business end of the season.
I was really impressed with the way we played in both the forwards and the backs.
- Murray McDonald
“The most disappointing thing from the weekend was the lack of effort after the game got away from us,” Barrett said. “It all became too hard and we lacked the desire and will to compete.
“If we don’t turn it around quickly, we’ll slip out of the top four and won’t be there for the important matches. It’s definitely now or never for the guys. We just need to get our confidence back and if we play well we’ll be competitive against Bowral.”
In Saturday’s other matches, Bowral maintained their pressure on Avondale with a comprehensive 53-14 victory over Campbelltown and Tech bounced back to beat Camden 44-10. Shamrocks travelled to Shoalhaven and kept their finals hopes alive with a 33-18 victory thanks to a Rory Davis hat-trick, while University overcame a number of injuries to claim a 62-19 victory over Kiama.