Round 5
Norths Devils 22 l. North Qld Young Guns 32

2007 Wizard Queensland Cup Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: Australia > Queensland > State/Metropolitan Level Competition: Wizard Queensland Cup

No love lost at Bishop
Mon April 16, 2007
Source: www.qrl.com.au

Former Devil Jackson Nicolau has returned to haunt his former club, the Young Guns playmaker scoring a contentious try and kicking four goals as North Queensland toppled Norths 32-22 on Sunday.

Before a big crowd at Bishop Park, Nicolau broke open an otherwise tight affair with a decisive four-pointer in the 69th minute, racing 30m after what appeared a forward pass from Shane Muspratt to Brett Anderson in the lead-up.

As if to erase any doubt however, the Young Guns then added a further try to Scott Smith in the dying moments, helping the Kirwan club leapfrog Redcliffe and Easts to top spot.

The clash gave good value to patrons on a day when none of the State's NRL teams played. Locked 10-all at halftime, the two teams reeled off plenty of big hits as they tried to beat the other into submission.

In the opening minutes it was Devils backrower Matthew Bartlett finding himself among everything. The lanky forward forced an error from Ben Lowe with a rugged tackle on the opening set, then broke the Young Guns line with a strong charge.

It was fitting Bartlett should also be the first one on the scoreboard, running a great angle off the dummy-half to plunge over from close range in the sixth minute.

By its own high standards North Queensland was atrocious in the first quarter-hour, failing to find touch from a penalty, dropping the ball most sets, slipping off tackles and failing to compete on the ground. Looking tentative in his first appearance back at Nundah, Nicolau was among the worst offenders.

The Guns' rough trot seemed to be compounded when hulking prop Ben Vaeau went down with a leg injury, forcing play to be stopped. However the Kiwi refound his feet and continued on, scoring a try on the 18-minute mark by carrying two men over the line. It appeared to revive his team.

Three minutes later the Young Guns struck again via State of Origin winger Ty Williams and hit the front 10-6. Williams looked like he barely left second gear, but rounded opposite man Luke Samoa with ease to ground a difficultly bouncing grubber in-goal.

Samoa had his revenge just before halftime, jumping over Williams to take a bomb, then offloading in a two-man tackle to find Will Chambers, who subsequently put Bartlett across for his second try.

Either side of the break there was drama aplenty. Only recently returned from injury, Williams left the field with a hamstring twinge. Norths debutant Liam Foran also headed for the sidelines after being hit in a humdinger by Joe Clarke.

Hitman Matt Rua repaid the favour for the Devils several times, most noticeably when he obliterated Charlie Frith with a trademark driving shoulder. There was no quarter given and little respect shown. Youngsters Samoa and Will Chambers both had a running war-of-words with veteran Rod Jensen, James Aubusson stole a scrum feed off Nicolau, while Anthony Perkins went on report for an awkward tackle on Scott Minto.

A further try to Jay Aston for Norths and two to Young Guns Mark Henry and Brett Anderson added to the hostilities and made for a tense end. Devils heads dropped though when the late Nicolau try was awarded and the contest was effectively over from that moment on.

NORTH QUEENSLAND 32 (Mark Henry, Ty Williams, Brett Anderson, Scott Smith, Ben Vaeau, Jackson Nicolau tries; Jackson Nicolau 4 goals) d NORTHS 22 (Matthew Bartlett 2, Kieran Turner, Jay Aston tries; Luke Samoa 3 goals) at Bishop Park.

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