MOREE Boars ladies tackle team made an historic statement, reserve-grade won a game that went right to the wire and the newly-minted under-18s outfit was well-beaten but far from disgraced at Boughton Oval on Saturday.

The Boars’ Group 4 opening round against Dungowan Cowboys didn’t disappoint, with three grades playing in stifling, summer-like conditions.

Moree Boars ladies tackle, coached by Chris Swan, created a new, refreshing chapter to local rugby league history with a runaway 28-4 win over the Cowboys.

Full-back Leila Murray etched her name as Moree’s first try-scorer in a ladies tackle competition, and Trudy Sharpley backed up her try with two goals.

Maddie Martin, Taliah Ryan, Abbie Gray and team captain Daharna Wightman each scored tries.

“It all fell into place for them, and I can see they’re in for a good season,” Swan said.

“They’ll get better as they get going and the more games they play, the better they’ll get.”

Moree reserves returned triumphant after 80 minutes of football that could’ve gone either way.

First-half tries to Moree lock Alex Lawrence and prop Rhys Smith – both converted by Adrian Smith – levelled the score at 12-all at half-time.

Late tries in the second-half to centre Connor Ryan – his second for the game – and team captain Luke Hobday sealed the match. Adrian Smith landed four conversions from five attempts to close the game 28-22.

Tries for Dungowan went to centre Bernard West, who crossed twice, and second-rower Lincoln Wood and lock Bradley Woods. Nic Syron converted three tries from four attempts.

Moree Boars reserves’ team manager, Charlie Shearer, who shares coaching duties with club stalwart Alf Newman, was a happy man after the game.

“It’s always good to start the season with a win,” Shearer said.

“We probably started a bit ‘how-you-going’ in the first half, but the boys fought back and the back-end of the first-half is why we won the game, I think.

“We dug in a bit deeper. The boys all hooked in for each other and ran away with it at the end,” he said.

“It was a good, physical game. Fitness showed a bit, but I can blame the heat for that. We haven’t had any cold weather yet, so the heat played a big factor. I’m proud of all the boys’ efforts, definitely.”

The coach named several players as key elements in the game, including front-rower Jackson Shearer, prop Rhys Smith, second-rower Luke Hobday and centre Connor Ryan.

“Jackson would’ve played nearly 60 minutes of football. He dug deep and played really well. Our other front-rower, Rhys Smith, played well, too,” Shearer said.

“And I can’t take anything away from Connor Ryan, Luke Hobday, Stan Smith and Dylan Craigie – they did well. All the boys played well.

“They gelled, and they’ve been gelling well at training – everything has been going really well,” he said.

The Boars’ under-18s, co-coached by Joe Wade and Brent McDonald, were beaten by a Dungowan Cowboys powerhouse, but were far from disgraced, despite the scoreboard showing 54-nil at full-time.

Dungowan ran in 10 tries and booted seven conversions. Second-rower Oliver Milsom grounded the ball three times, with hooker Coby Miller crossing twice.

Full-back Matthew Beattie, centres Sam Archer and Oscar Turner, five-eighth Leif Deitrich and prop Lachlan Hawkins each scored tries.

Coby Single starred for the Cowboys, adding seven goals to his try-scoring double, giving him 22 of Dungowan’s 54 points.

Cowboys coach, Tim Milsom, said the margin wasn’t a true reflection of the game.

“It’s great to see Moree having juniors again – it’s been a couple of years,” Milsom said.

“They were good. There was a lot of good contact out there, and credit to them. I think they’ll improve as the season goes and do really, really well.

“We’ve got a bit of a legacy, I guess. A few of our boys played in the grand-final last year, so I’ve got half-a-dozen or so of those blokes come back this year,” he said.

“They offer a fair bit of experience and most of the boys did their jobs. Zac Milsom was good in the middle and the front-row and so was Lachlan Hawkins – the two front-rowers got us going forward really, really well.

“Leif Dietrich and Fletcher Panton in the halves controlled the game well, which allowed our edges to score some good tries,” Milsom said.

“It’s hard to pick just one player, but probably shared by Zac in the middle and Leif on that edge.”

Boars co-coach, Joe Wade, was far from disappointed.

“This is the first time we’ve fielded an under-18s side in a couple of years. This was the first time the boys have actually played their first game together, where most of the Dungowan boys have been playing together since Year 7,” Wade said.

“We’ll be right. There’s a couple of positives to take out of the game, as well as a few negatives.

“Our boys kept turning up for each other, and they played ‘til the bell. None of them dropped their heads – there’s a lot of fight in the team.

“It’s a bit disappointing to get beaten like that at home, but we’ll come back, better and stronger,” Wade said.

Words and Images: Bill Poulos