GUNNEDAH snuck into the top tier on the back of another strong second half at Barraba on Saturday.
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The Red Devils ran in 22 unanswered second half points to claim a 34-5 victory and climb above Narrabri and into fifth.
Their destiny was in part out of their hands, but after playing Scone the previous week Red Devils coach Jason Waerea said they were quietly confident that the Brumbies could roll the Blue Boars, which they did.
The Red Devils still had to beat Barraba, and the points didn’t come easily.
“It was a struggle in the first half,” Waerea said.
Renowned as a good spoiling side, the Rams really caused the Red Devils some problems.
“Their game slowed us up a lot,” Waerea said.
“We found our feet the last part of the first half.
“We found out where to try and attack, which was between the 10 and the forward pack, and the midfield.
“Bend them rather than go around them.”
For the first part of the game they were guilty of trying to go wide too early, and consequently there was only a try in it at half-time.
One of the most pleasing aspects of the performance was the way the set pieces, particularly the scrum performed in the face of several changes with Matt Pardesi and Isaac Scholes both out.
They then lost Josh Leys early in the game to a broken nose.
“We ran quite light in the front row,” Waerea said.
“We did well to keep pushing through.”
He said where they had their success in the second half was “straight up the field”, attacking in and around the posts and then going wide.
“Forwards running off the 10 a bit more rather than the nine,” he said.
They also “stuck to their guns” and were committed to doing the clean up work at the ruck – whether they were a forward or a back.
One of their goals for the season, by making the top five the Red Devils are assured of playing finals.
“You don’t want to go into the second tier playing desperate teams,” Waerea said.
“Everything is do or die.
“We’ve got room to breath.
“It’s all about now the next goal and hosting a final.”
They’ve got Moree this Saturday.
The two shared the points when they last met, and Waerea highlighted discipline as the thing they most need to turn around from that encounter.
