Round 1 - Laurie Daley Cup (U18)
Macarthur Wests Tigers 30 - North Coast Bulldogs 12
Very impressive display by the boys especially given it was the first round & played in very hot conditions. Well structured & disciplined and looks like the team is very fit, so kudos to Daniel Milford & the rest of the coaching team for their pre-season.
There were a few pushed passes in good opportunities but overall very good. Can't remember any poor missed tackles, just a few communication breakdowns in defence but very few.
If this is the quality we have in the 18s, it bodes well for how the Wests Magpies SG Ball team shapes us.
Thought our best were left wing James Lanyon, lock Kye Penfold, left backrow Andrew Sio, prop & captain Ashton Chan-Sau, starter hooker then lock Harry Bickhoff, left centre Ruben Toga & replacement dummyhalf Keynan Pes.
But really all players dug in and showed promising qualities. Right centre Jermayne Fa'afiu is a tall (long legs), powerful lad, a handful on every run; the halves provided good direction (5/8 Kai O'Brien has a good running game but was a bit rocks'n diamonds with his passing game at times).
Prior to the game, many on here wondered why James Lanyon is playing U18s and yesterday he showed his immense quality. MOM for me, strong in his runs, very evasive, nearly beat 3 or 4 each run with combination of strength & evasiveness, has good speed & lovely left-to-right pass inside. Can see he has a lot of physical development left in him although a good size in U18s so we have a good one here. No doubt if he stays injury-free will be playing Flegg this year.
Kye Penfold (lock) was a beast. Ploughs through his work, strong in his runs with a good late step & just 'locks' down that middle for us in D with his physicality and strong defence. Brings aggression & presence.
Both backrowers Andrew Sio & Jake Gaffney were strong but thought Sio really stood out on both sides of the ball. Can produce big dominant tackles in D and is a strong wide-running type with athleticism.
Captain Chan-Sau (prop) is a workhorse and also has very good intent in his runs. A lot to like with his energy, leg speed & effort in the middle as a converted backrower.
As other mentioned in the pathways thread, our dummy halves were strong - both different types. Harry Bickhoff started the game at hooker, very willing type, decent service and strong in defence. Then livewire Keynan Pes came on around 20 mins & from memory was dummy half for the remainder. Really provided spark with his running game and effort in defence. Bickhoff went into lock and was strong here - just a solid player that looks to be a promising hooker/lock type moving forward.
It seems this team has a good a very good mix and structure of players and decent depth too. When halfback Achurch went off for a HIA, Caleb Salanoa came on and slotted in seamlessly and was impressive himself with his ability to injection himself into the game.
Also left centre Reuben Toga looks another blockbusting type with a great fend (scored off his fend), decent speed & can produce a good hit in defence. Had limited opportunities but was quality with each run & tackle. One to watch.
Riverina Bulls next week who had a close loss yesterday.
