This year's Newtown
Jets NSW Cup team is proving to be a model of inconsistency. After beating the
competition leaders Canterbury-Bankstown on the 1st of May, the Jets travelled
to Wyong last Saturday and were thrashed 48-26 by the NSW Cup's cellar-dwellers,
the Central Coast Centurions. The Centurions are the Newcastle Knights reserve
team and they scored most of their nine tries from breaks made down the left and
right edges of Newtown's defence.
The Jets had led by
18-12 after 35 minutes but conceded two tries in as many minutes just prior to
halftime, going in at the break 22-18 in arrears.The result was still in the
balance with Newtown trailing 30-26 just ten minutes from fulltime, but the
Centurions laid on a barrage of three converted tries to claim their second win
of the season by a most convincing margin.
Newtown had fielded
a considerably changed team from the previous weekend, with Sydney Roosters
players Martin Kennedy, Tom Symonds and Steve Naughton returning after layoffs
through injury, while Johnathon Ford and Russell Aitken formed a new combination
in the halves. The Jets' completion rate for the match had been in excess of
80%, usually an indicator of a team with sufficient possession to take charge of
a game. The Centurions found and exploited defensive lapses on either edge of
Newtown's defence with maximum impact, scoring several long distance tries in
the process.
Coach Greg Matterson
pinpointed his side's backline defensive problems, adding that the Jets needed
to work harder and to communicate better as a team. He was adamant that the Jets
were in the right frame of mind prior to kick-off and that they had not treated
the road-trip as two points there for the taking. Matterson nominated back-rower
Tinirau Arona as being the Jets' standout player, and he also singled out Tom
Symonds and Luke Towers for praise. The quicksilver Towers is proving to be one
of the season's finds with his dashing runs from fullback.
The Newtown
Jets have announced the release of big front-rower Charlie Leaeno to take up a
full-time playing contract with the English Super League club Wakefield Trinity,
and the club wishes Charlie and his family all the best for the future. The Jets
will be back at Henson Park next Saturday (15th May) for a 10th round NSW Cup
match against Cronulla-Sutherland, timed to start at 3.00pm.
Central
Coast Centurions 48:
Kevin Naiqama 3,
Simon Williams
2,
Adrian
Davis,
Jack
Fairweather,
Joel
Taufa'ao,
Joel Edwards
tries;
Adrian Davis
3,
George Ndaira 2
goals,
Jimmy Fawcett 1
goal
defeated
Newtown Jets
26:
Luke Towers
2,
Brad
Barrett,
Tinirau
Arona,
Chris
Tuatara-Morrison tries;
Chris
Tuatara-Morrison 3 goals.
Half-time:
Central Coast
Centurions led 22-18.
This match was
played at the Morrie Breen Oval, Wyong.