THE Molong Magpies First Grade side has capped two stellar undefeated seasons of rugby with a second premiership in a row.
The New Holland Cup First Grade win, recorded in front of hundreds of fans at the Molong Recreation Ground, saw the Magpies drop the hammer early and never look back.
Played in wintry conditions, the home side registered a 45 to 17 win over the Narromine Gorillas, and captain and lock Ben Watt said he was “cloud nine” when the final whistle blew.
“The season goes by so quick,” he said. “We just kept on stacking up the wins. So it was a relief, but yeah, it was probably just cloud nine, to be honest.”
A flurry of action in the first-half saw Molong register tries at the 10, 19 and 20-minute mark via Nick Duffy, Charles Harris and Charlie Steele-Park.
Duffy crossed again at 39 minutes, and Harris’ boot was in fine form going four from four heading into the halftime break with a 28 to 7 scoreline.
“Anyone in our team can score from anywhere,” said Watt. “That’s what makes us a bit of a dangerous team.
“The way that Charlie Harris played, he was probably my player of the match, he cut through the line like a hot knife through butter.
“He’s a pretty special player and a proud Molong boy, so it was good to see. And his hair also managed to stay perfect as well, so that was good.”
It was more of the same after the break as Duffy became a hat-trick hero at the 49-minute mark before Michael Mann joined the scoring feast a short time later to make it 45 to 12 with just less than half a period to go.
“We had a great start to the second half,” Watt said.
“We knew we had to step up because there was a wind against us, and we spent that first 10 minutes in their half of that second half.
“You never want to think you’ve won it. You always go until the fat lady sings. We just talked about not being complacent.
“We had a strong start to the second half, and then just sort of built ascendancy from there.”
With about 20 minutes to go, Molong’s defensive effort came to the fore, as the side essentially parked the bus and let nothing through.
“There was a period in the second half where we probably defended about 20 phases. We stood up there and defended the line.
“I think to show that type of grit, especially when you’re up by so many points, was probably just a good example of what we’re like as a team.
“We wanted to always be sort of ruthless, relentless, and accurate and precise.”
Angus Mckenzie was a standout for Narromine with two tries, while Harrison Bowman had one.
For Watt, winning on the day was a whole club effort.
“There’s our amazing women’s team, and then also the Second Grade side as well,” he said.
“For all three teams to be in finals, and whilst First Grade got the premiership, it’s sort of like when one of us wins, we all win.
“It’s also coaches, supporters, life members, the community, and stuff like that. We’re just super grateful for everyone from the community and surroundings that came out to support us ’cause we couldn’t have done it without them.”
The New Holland Cup Second Grade grand final saw Wellington jump out to an early lead, only for Narromine to pull it back and take a slender one-point lead before a late try, conversion, and then a second penalty goal from Allan Riley sealed the deal for the Redbacks.
In the Women’s North Cup the Mudgee Wombats lost to Parkes Boars by the slimmest of margins, going down 12 to 13.
Central West Rugby Union grand final – results
New Holland Cup First Grade
Molong Magpies 45 v Narromine Gorillas 17
Tries – Molong Magpies – Duffy (3), Harris, Steele-Park, Kirby, Mann
Narromine Gorillas – Mckenzie (2), Bowman
Conversions – Molong Magpies – Harris (5)
Narromine Gorillas – Hardie (1)
New Holland Cup Second Grade
Narromine Gorillas 17 v Wellington Redbacks 23
Tries – Narromine Gorillas – Gainsford, Lyne
Wellington Redbacks – George, Doherty, Timu
Conversions – Narromine Gorillas – McPherson (2)
Wellington Redbacks – Riley (1)
Penalty Goals – Narromine Gorillas – McPherson (1)
Wellington Redbacks – Riley (2)
Women’s North Cup
Mudgee Wombats 12 v Parkes Boars 13
Tries – Mudgee Wombats – Godfrey, Tavita
Parkes Boars – Fox, Guy
Conversions – Mudgee Wombats – Waring-Bryant (1)
Penalty Goals – Parkes Boars – Heard (1)