After the complete washout of Match Day 4, everyone had fingers crossed that Match Day 5 would go ahead despite some rough weather during the week. Match Day 5 has been designated as Indigenous Round by the NSWRL with the focus on tackling racism and promoting the message “Pass Back. Move Forward.” The Yarrawarrah Tigers are proud to be part of Indigenous Round celebrations and we acknowledge the long and proud history and connection between Rugby League and our First Nations people.
We would also like to give a Big Tigers Shout-Out to Faye Lehane, manager of the Tigers U6 team. Faye has been involved in league for many years and has recently taken up a new role with the District Rugby Football League Referees Association as female referee mentor.
This is a great honour for Faye and also a deserved acknowledgement of her knowledge, commitment and dedication to the game. Faye is excited about the role and can't wait to get started, she said the growth in female referees has been encouraging and she is excited to help young athletes in their journey as well as shape the future career paths of young women.
The Tigers are proud of Faye's involvement and we are all sure she will be a great asset to the Referees Association.
U6 Green Tigers 24 De La Salle 36
The was a fantastic game by the U6's and the improvement from last week was clear to see. The more time this team can have together, the better they will be and every player grew in confidence and was keen to get involved in the game. Josh Dart and Logan Jones played their best games for the U6's with both players involved in all the positive things the Tigers did today. Hendrix Austin, Layken Koprivic and Conor Lehane were busy throughout the game and all sought work when their team needed them. Caden McPherson and Jake McMillan were always dangerous with ball in hand and they were well supported by Robert Couley, Daniel Romyn and Ollie Trevillian. Hopefully the U6's can build on this result and take some additional confidence into next weeks game.
Player of the Game: Logan Jones
Tigers Spirit Award: Josh Dart
U7 Green Tigers 44 Engadine Dragons 48
The U7's good run was ended by an entertaining Dragons team in an exciting game that had a bit of everything. Thirty two tries in total with the Tigers going down by a solitary try. Caleb Dawson and Hendrix Crawley were strong again and their all round game is coming along nicely. Sonny Faughey had another strong game and his defence and speed with the ball caused all kinds of problems for the Dragons defence. Kade Jones and Jack Jones carried on their good form from a couple of weeks ago and they could prove to be the U7's secret weapons if this good form continues. Harrison Payne and Arlo Gibbons also had strong games, making some good runs and always troubling the Dragons whenever they had the ball. We hope Angelo Talotta and Hendrix Malaki recover in time for next week and the U7's hopefully will get back to winning ways.
Player of the Game: TBA
Tigers Spirit Award: TBA
U8 Green Tigers 8 Gymea Gorillas 50
The U8 team came up against a well organised and well drilled Gymea Gorillas and were beaten 50-8. Levi Horne scored both ties for the Tigers and caused problems for the Gorillas all afternoon. Levi Horne, Aston Gibbons and Max Carlson made some good runs throughout the game but were often met by a solid Gorillas defence without too many gaps. In defence Charlotte Dart, Hunter Welfare and Malachi Kane were outstanding trying to stop wave after wave of Gorillas attack and all three tackled themselves into the ground. Zac May, Joey Rodriguez and Hudson Amor were all over the ground, tackling, making runs and trying to break up play were they could.
Player of the Game: Levi Horne
Tigers Spirit Award: Malachi Kane
U12 Bronze Tigers 16 Arncliffe Scots 4
Thanks to the Roosters for hosting us and the game kicked off in bright sunshine although it was wet under foot. The Tigers kicked into the sun and some good carry’s by Lucius Viteri, Leo Giovenco and Jake Dooley got the Tigers going forward and looking dangerous early on. Arncliffe made some early attacks and they started to put the Tigers defence under pressure. A smart move by the Scots saw the ball go wide and a good passage of play with the Scots forwards passing the ball through hands, created an extra player on the wing and they scored in the corner to take a 4-0 lead.
A couple of good runs by Bede Staniforth managed to get the Tigers to the Scots try line, but some poor handling gave momentum back to the Scots and the Tigers were unable to score. Lewis Amesbury was making some great last ditch tackles to stop the Scots attack from scoring and in the first half alone, he stopped three certain tries to the Scots. Finally the Tigers got some advantage to their pressure and Bede Staniforth made one of those mazy runs through traffic that he is becoming known for. He picked the ball up on the Tigers 30 metre line, before stepping and dummying through the defence and running 70 metres, to score under the posts and get the scores level 4-4.
A dropped ball by Scots early in the tackle count, got the Tigers on the attack again and some enterprising play by the backs saw Bede Staniforth score his second try to give the Tigers a 10-4 lead at half-time.
The Scots started the second half camped on the Tigers line. Set after set, saw the Tigers defend their try line superbly and after 23 tackles they managed to withhold the Scots attack, before getting some respite and forcing a mistake. The Scots however continued to attack, sensing a chance to get back in the game. They managed to pin the Tigers back on their goal line and it was only some fantastic last line defence that prevented Scots scoring. The tide finally broke for the Tigers, scoring a try that broke the Scots hearts. Another wave of attack by the Scots forwards resulted into a kick into the in goal area. With the Scots forwards bearing down on Levi Dawson, he managed to gather the ball cleanly, run around the Scots attack before running the length of the field to score under the posts and give the Tigers a 16-4 lead. Levi was so excited about scoring he was celebrating at the half-way line knowing the importance of the try.
Credit to the Scots as they continued to attack and another Lewis Amesbury last ditch tackle prevented the Scots scoring a consolation try. This was a fantastic result for the U12's who spent the majority of the second half tackling themselves into the ground to defend their line.
Player of the Game: Lewis Amesbury
U12 Silver Tigers 6 Gymea Gorillas 20
There is a fair bit of history between these two sides in what promises to be a tough game between two competitive teams. We welcome Mason Holliday to the team who was making his debut today in his first ever game of league.
Gymea kicked off and the Tigers were awarded early penalties to test the Gymea defence. Gymea scored on their first set with a good break down the wing before good interplay between their backs put them over close to the posts to take a 4-0 lead. From the kick-off Mason De Luca made three consecutive runs with Gymea penalised each time trying to halt the big forward. The Tigers continued to attack the line and a great kick by Zar Mackenzie right across the try line saw Lewis Amesbury beat the last defender for speed to score in the corner and give the Tigers a 6-4 lead.
Some great runs from Dylan Sammut started to punch holes in the Gymea defence as the Tigers looked to take advantage of their possession, however they couldn't find the final ball and the Gorillas held firm. Both teams were being pinged for high tackles and the game suffered as a result. because of the constant stops in play. Another couple of penalties to the Gorillas put them in good position and with four minutes remaining until half time they crossed to go ahead 8-6. Another series of high tackles resulted in a Gymea player being replaced for constant infringements, and this put the Tigers on the Gymea try line, but the defence held firm and the Gorillas go into the break with a two point advantage.
Gymea scored early in the second half to take a 14-6 lead and the Tigers had some work to do to get back in the game. The try gave Gymea a real lift and they started to attack the Tigers at every opportunity. The relentless pressure saw Gymea continue to threaten the Tigers line, but some last gasp defence saw the Tigers hold on. This was short lived and the wave of pressure from the Gorilla's finally saw them cross the try line and go out to a 20-6 lead.
The second half was somewhat spoilt by a high penalty count and neither team could get any momentum. A great tackle by Billy Dunn stopped a certain break away try and this got the Tigers going forward. They made good metres pushing the Gorillas back to their try line and a series of penalties against Gymea kept the Tigers camped on the Gorillas line, but the Tigers were unable to take advantage, with the Gorillas defence holding them at bay time and time again. The Gorillas held on for a 20-6 win and despite some good moments the Tigers were just a little off their game this week.
Player of the Game: Zar Mackenzie
U15 Silver Tigers 10 Penshurst Kookaburras 16
The Tigers play Penshurst in a must win game for the U15’s if they are to have any chance in playing finals.
In the early stages both teams played through their sets to get into the game. A midfield battle ensued until the Tigers were awarded a penalty for a high shot and from the next play the ball was worked to Alex Moussa who was able to run around the defence and score under the posts to give the Tigers a 6-0 lead. Albie Lamaro, Blake Burke and Coby Wilson were making good metres up the middle with Jai McEwen and Kade Bergman looking for holes to exploit at every opportunity. The Tigers coughed up the ball near their defensive line and Penshurst made the most of the error to level up the scores at 6-6.
From the kick off Penshurst advanced and put a speculative kick in behind the defence that nearly resulted in another try, only for Alex Moussa to make a fantastic tackle to stop their advance. A couple of penalties put the Tigers on the attack but they were unable to pressure Penshurst eventually kicking the ball dead. Penshurst forced an error from their next set to put the Tigers on the back foot only to cough the ball up themselves after some heavy defence from Dylan Kerr, Kobi Porter, Max Cleland and Will Price. The final minutes of the half saw both teams on the attack but unable to break the line.
Penshurst got us underway in the second half and some poor handling from the Tigers gave the ball away on their 30 metre line. A good steal from Albie Lamaro near to the try line gave the Tigers the ball and a great 40 metre run by Kobi Porter got the Tigers in good position. An error by the Tigers gave the ball to Penshurst who should have scored but put the ball down on the 10 metre line thinking it was the try line, a huge let off for the Tigers. Both teams were looking for an advantage but the defence from both teams was holding strong and breaks were hard to come by.
Penshurst went ahead with a try after their attack fended off at least five Tiger tackles to take a 10-6 lead. From the kick off Penshurst spilled the ball and the Tigers went on the attack. Working the ball from one wing to the other, the Tigers created an overlap on the right wing and Luke Fenton scored to level the scores at 10 apiece. The try lifted the Tigers who started to play with more energy and urgency and it felt like momentum was about to swing in the Tigers favour. Fintan Kelly was making good runs and important metres from his wing and Jacob Way was also looking for work on the opposite wing. However, a penalty to Penshurst got them going forward and a good back line move created space on the wing and they went ahead again 16-10 with six minutes to play.
The final minutes were marred by injuries to both sets of players and neither team were able to get any cohesion. With three minutes to go Alex Moussa received a bad injury in the tackle and time was allowed to tick down while he was treated. A cracking game against two evenly matched teams with Penshurst winning 16-10. Another defeat to the Tigers after being in the game for long periods.
Player of the Game: Alex Moussa
U18 Merged Tigers/Crocs 0 Arncliffe Scots 58
The U18 team came up against a red hot Scots team that proved to be, too big, too strong and too fast for the merged team. The game was abandoned just after half time with the Scots in complete control of the game.
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