The Bull Sharks Premier Men are starting to create strong combinations and find some consistency under new coach Mick Heenan.
A win over Sunnybank to kick off the second round of Queensland Premier Rugby keeps them in touch with the top four.
But it was an unusual drive home for the Premier Women who lost their first game of the year.
Premier Men
Bull Sharks won 43-31
How it was won:
We shot out to an early 19-0 lead, and we also started the second half well which allowed us to get out to a 31-12 lead. Those two periods ended up being important in the context of the game because when Sunnybank exerted some dominance over us for a 20-minute period in the second half, that buffer was important. The last 10 minutes were more interesting than they needed to be, but we were good enough to score a couple more tries to seal the result.
The highlight:
The first 15 mins when we went out to a 19-point lead. Everything we touched turned to gold. Rhian Stowers, Hamish Roberts and Adam Gouda scored tries and we played some really good footy. It became a bit tit for tat after that.
The work to do:
It makes for entertaining rugby, but we don’t want to be in a position where we have to score so heavily to win because of the tries we allow in.
What made you happy:
We had a lot less ball, we had three minutes less than Sunnybank, but we are much more efficient. We have found our game. Our conversion is improving. We are creating more scoring opportunities from our field position and converting them into points which is great.
Bull Sharks Football:
This is coming together because of the combinations we have been able to build. Freddy Dorrough and Tyler Campbell had never played together at the start of the season and each week they have become more familiar with each other and are now a great combination.
Trademark player:
Jack Winchester once again. He is a workhorse who topped our tackle count again. He has been playing 80mins every week, so that’s a big performance from someone in the tight five. The lineout and scrum were pretty strong, and he was a key to that.
With Mick Heenan.
Colts 1
Bull Sharks won 19-7
Where it was won:
Defence was really strong and accurate. There were very few penalties on defence which was something we worked on during the week and we gave only 7points. The set piece was strong especially the scrum and we feel we should have been rewarded more for being dominant. Our reinforcements off the bench provided great impact.
The highlight:
A try from halfway from Oliver James on the back of a lineout was pretty special.
What made you happy:
Our defence was the best it’s been all season. We have been guilty of high tackles, and I thought for most of the game we did really well with the collisions and defence line connection. We looked comfortable and limited Sunnybank’s opportunities.
Bull Sharks Football:
We like to try and get the ball wide with the speed we have in Ieaun Cornelius and Hunter Robinson. We stretched Sunnybank which led to pressure and eventually penalties which placed us in good position often.
The work to do:
Accuracy with our passing game. A couple of times we should have hurt Sunnybank but had poor pass execution, Maul is a work as we let three try scoring opportunities go to waste.
Trademark Player:
Oliver James had a great game, scored a great individual try and tackled well throughout the match.
With Rico Gear.
Premier Women
Bull Sharks lost 38-12
Where it was lost:
They got over us out wide. Although our forward pack were able to nullify their strength up front, we did not have any answers in the backline. They managed to run through and around us. And we made poor decisions in attack and handed them far too much possession in our half.
What made you happy:
We were soundly beaten on the day by a very good Sunnybank side, however we never gave in and scored a couple of late tries.
The work to do:
It was a great game to find out where we are at and what needs attention. If we can put a consistent backline lineup out on the field week by week that will definitely help us.
Trademark Player:
Zoe Hanna was stand out in a well beaten side. Grace Baker worked tirelessly throughout.
With Shannon Symon