The old fella providing a running commentary, while sat in a camping chair on the tree-shaded hill at Farrer's picturesque John Simpson Oval, got it wrong.
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With time almost up in the round three Laurie Daley Cup clash on Saturday, February 17, it turned out that a surging Northern Tigers could conjure a minor miracle.
Dylan Keane's sweetly struck penalty goal, after the full-time siren, secured the home side an unlikely 26-26 draw against fellow undefeated outfit the Central Coast Roosters.
The draw keeps the Tigers atop the Northern Conference with two rounds. remaining.
But wind back the clock roughly 28 minutes from when Keane composed himself behind the ball about 15 metres to the right of the posts and 20m out. That was when the Roosters established a 26-12 lead after winger Cooper Dean-Potaka dived over in the corner.
Certainly, there was enough time for the Tigers to prevail, as the mercury hit 30 and the sky was blue. But to do that, they needed to reverse the game's momentum.
You get the sense that started to happen when gifted Tigers No. 1 Reece Josephson, a smooth mover like Gary Belcher, fielded a kick deep in his own half and then sliced through the defence - his explosiveness and elusiveness arresting.
The Farrer year 11 student was brought down inside Roosters territory. But seven minutes later, he would not be denied: a set play from a scrum 20m out from the Central Coast's tryline resulted in him breaking a tackle and then once again utilising pace and deft footwork to bamboozle the defence.
Keane - who did not miss a kick all day - slotted the simple conversion and the Roosters led 26-18 with just over 10 minutes remaining in the match.
They stuck it to us, and we stuck it back to them.
- Tigers No. 13 Braydon Allan
And then, with just over five minutes left on the clock, Tigers winger Keandre Johnson-Vale crossed out wide and Keane converted. It was now 26-24 - with Keane's heroics nigh.
"It wasn't the prettiest we've played, but we definitely worked hard for it," said Tigers No. 13 Braydon Allan, the scorer of the match's first try.
"They stuck it to us, and we stuck it back to them," the Tamworth-based apprentice butcher added. "So yeah, it turned out really good."
The Roosters led 22-6 at half-time.
NORTHERN TIGERS 26 (Braydon Allan, Jayden Seckold, Reece Josephson, Keandre Johnson-Vale tries; Dylan Keane 5 goals) drew CENTRAL COAST ROOSTERS 26 (Zahn McKay 2, Sam Gillespie, Cooper Ausburn, Cooper Dean-Potaka tries; Gillespie 3 goals)
Mark Bode
I’m passionate about writing stories that resonate with people. And I’m genuinely interested in the people I interview; I want to know about them and present their stories in a meaningful way.
I’m passionate about writing stories that resonate with people. And I’m genuinely interested in the people I interview; I want to know about them and present their stories in a meaningful way.
