Group 10 coach Jordan Dwyer says his side’s willingness to learn, and master, the basics of the game will ensure it continues to improve throughout the 2018 Western Women’s Rugby League season.
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Group 10 kicked off its campaign with a 30-4 win over Group 11 at Blayney’s King George Oval on Saturday, Orange Hawks gun Kaitlyn Phillips leading the charge for the hosts on what is shaping up as a deadly right edge for the blue and whites.
Dwyer lauded his side’s first half as tremendous, a period that set up the commanding victory with a mix of solid attack and stout defence.
“The girls followed the game plan and applied a lot of pressure,” Dwyer said.
“The second half was a bit scratchy with some unforced errors but, overall, I was very happy with the commitment in defence and important areas of the game like kick chase and getting repeat sets.
“I’m really happy with the win, but we have a lot of improvement in us. As will the other teams.”
Panthers stars Jess Hotham and Amy Hewitt were outstanding in their first game of contact rugby league, while halfback Bec Ford was also instrumental in the opening round win, scoring a telling try in the first half on the back of a darting run.
Dwyer believes a powerful Group 11 outfit will bounce back in the coming rounds of the competition.
But doing so in round two won’t be easy, with the red and blacks set to host round one surprise packets Castlereagh fresh off a thumping 36-0 victory over Woodbridge Cup.
“They made our girls work hard for our win, no doubt about that,” Dwyer said, before adding the competition’s other result did shock him somewhat.
“It did a little bit, but I know that a few of the Castlereagh girls have had a bit of experience playing in the nines so that would have helped.
“I wouldn't be writing off Woodbridge though, they have some good speed in their side and will improve as the competition progresses.”
Group 10’s round two clash is against Woodbridge Cup at Grenfell on Sunday.
Group 11 hosts Castlereagh League at Forbes on Saturday, with both the under 18s and opens games to kick-off after Western’s Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cup games at Spooner Oval.
ROUND ONE SCORES:
OPENS
- GROUP 10 30 (Amy Hewitt, Bec Ford, Ella-J Harris, Claire Woolmington, Jacky Lyden, Grace Mooney tries; Bec Ford 3 goals) def GROUP 11 4 at Blayney.
- CASTLEREAGH LEAGUE 36 (Channy Burgess 3, Tori Canham 2, Maria Nagy tries; Canham 6 goals) def WOODBRIDGE CUP 0 at Dunedoo.
UNDER 18s
- GROUP 11 22 def GROUP 10 6
- WOODBRIDGE CUP 30 (Georgia Woodhouse 4, Hayley Sharpless 2, Madi Parr tries; Chloe White goal) def CASTLEREAGH LEAGUE 16 (Kiara Hawkins 2, Kaitlyn Brown, Kayla Astill tries)