Rabbitohs On Tour – 1st Leg – Sunshine Coast
The time had come. The first of our 4 away trips. Destination Sunshine Coast.
Expectations were high. This is where our season was going to turn around. After a poor period during origin this was where our run to the finals was going to start.
From the Dogs game we had 9 players returning. During the week, there was a real buzz about things. Excitement was in the air. The likes of Latrell, Jai and Campbell all returning from injury. Whilst our 4 Origin players were also returning from a successful game 3.
Excitement
How could you not be excited?
Although standing in our way was the Broncos who also had some big names returning. Sitting equal first on the ladder this wasn’t going to be easy for us. Still we did a number on them earlier in the year. We also have a great record on the Sunshine Coast.
Flying up on the Thursday morning we arrived at our hotel. It didn’t take long for the first bombshell to be dropped.
Latrell & Junior Out
Latrell is out for the game. This will make things tougher. We saw last year the difference once he returned. How much he lifts the players around him with his presence on the field. This was a huge blow.
Later that night there were rumours floating around that Junior was also out. The excitement of finally having a full strength side had disappeared.
This was going to be much tougher now. Although I remained upbeat. We still had the likes of Cody, Cam and Campbell playing.
We get to the ground early. There were plenty of Broncos fans there. Although there were also a good amount of red and green.
A Tough Day
The team lists dropped and it was confirmed that Junior was out. This was going to be tough.
Kick off came and we were the first to score. Who else but Alex Johnston. That try moved him to outright 3rd of all time and now within reach of overtaking Billy Slater by the end of the season.
It didn’t take long for the Broncos to hit back.
Lucky Marty
From the kick off Marty Taupau lifted his knee in what could only be seen as a deliberate act to Campbell Grahams sternum. He was lucky it was only 10 in the bin. It had to be a send off.
A penalty goal and we hit the lead once again.
This was time to take advantage. We get good field position. Sadly we looked lost in attack. The halves just weren’t creating. We looked disjointed. There were concerning signs there.
The Broncos were rushing up and putting pressure on us. Then the usual crash ball error. We didn’t make that possession count.
Opportunities Taken
The Broncos took their opportunity by once again exposing our left side defence. We found ourselves down on the scoreboard.
Leading into halftime we had one last chance. Finally we get some joy going to the right this time and Campbell is too strong for them. Blake Taaffe with the conversion and we head into the break up 14-12.
Concerning signs though when I watched both teams coming from the field. The body language would have suggested we were the team that conceded right on halftime and the Broncos were the team to take the lead with the late try.
Not Our Night
It didn’t take long to see that this wasn’t to be our night. Our ball control wasn’t great.
An early error by the Broncos saw us in great attacking position. From the scrum a hit up by Tom Burgess and straight away we give back possession to the Broncos.
That was as close as we got.
Their forwards were getting on top of ours. Lead by Payne Haas. Really only Jai Arrow was troubling them.
Reece Lightning
Reece Walsh was carving us up. Continually troubling our left side defence. This was a big issue. They score to take the lead.
The game was far from over, but the boys just couldn’t get back in the contest. Another soft try from the Broncos up the middle and it was hard to see how we get out of this.
More errors kept giving the ball back to them and building pressure on our defence. The positive attitude we saw against the Warriors was nowhere to be seen.
Game Gone
The left side once again exposed and the game was gone. We would need a miracle from here.
We finally get some field position. This time Blake was hit off the ball in a high shot and the Broncos player is sent to the bin.
This time we take advantage and score. We were now 10 behind with enough time. Can we do it? Sadly no.
Kissing Broncos
Once again the left side defence exposed and finished off by Adam. You could tell he really loved that try. Kissing the Broncos emblem just to rub it in a little more.
In the end poor effort and attitude cost us. This result sees us drop out of the top 8. Teams behind us are closing in.
It is a bit of a scary period for us. Only winning 2 of our last 8. We have dropped from 1st to 9th in a small space of time. The line in the sand is now. This is where we need to start going on a run otherwise our season is over.
Defence
This is the second time we have played poorly after having the bye. Our biggest issue is defence. It needs to improve. The fact that we’ve gone from conceding 13 points a game to over 30 just highlights the biggest issue.
A run home that includes the Tigers, Sharks, Dragons, Knights and Roosters with a bye in there should see us make the 8 if we get the attitude right. Sadly our chances for the top 4 have taken a huge hit.
Jai A Standout
Very few players could hold their head high from the other night. Jai Arrow to me was our stand out player. Coming back from a long layoff he didn’t miss a beat.
There were too many poor performers to single anyone out. Drop balls, incomplete execution and poor reads in defence all played their part in the loss.
Now it’s on to the 2nd leg of the tour to Tamworth to play the Tigers. Nothing short of a big win will be acceptable. This is where we really need to give our points differential a boost. That could be the difference between making the 8 and missing out.
Rabbitohs On Tour – 1st Leg – Sunshine Coast.
By Josh Kemp for Bunnies TV.
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