Redcliffe defeat Toowoomba 34-16

THE MERITS of the Wizard Cup were again on display on the weekend as Redcliffe?s aging warriors put the likes of Sam Thaiday, Neville Costigan and Ben Hannant to the sword in a 34-16 win by the Dolphins.

A week after Redcliffe was humiliated 40-18 by cellar dweller Wynnum Manly, the red-and-whites recaptured second spot on the ladder with a clinical display.

Although one wag suggested during the week that bookies ?suspend betting? when Toowoomba announced a side containing 11 NRL players, Dolphins coach Anthony Griffin said not once did he mention the Clydesdales? big names before the game.

?Our approach all week was not to worry about the opposition. I never spent any time on it from a coaching perspective,? Griffin revealed.

?We were all very embarrassed about the previous week and we just focused on ouselves. I think against Wynnum Manly we got what we deserved because we had a funny week at training and the boys realised perhaps they weren?t going as well as they thought they were.

?Then this week we got what we deserved as well, because everyone was terrific at training. The attitude of the players was a thousand times better.?

The keenly contested battle saw Redcliffe lead 16-0 at Clive Berghofer Stadium before an unusual period of play surrounding halftime. Toowoomba finally got on the board with a try in the 36th minute, but then from the resultant kick-off, the Clydesdales knocked-on and gifted a try to Dolphins speedster Ryan Cullen.

Then with Redcliffe leading 22-6 at halftime, Toowoomba snatched an intercept try after the break to narrow the margin once more.

Despite the injection of momentum on the scoreboard, in general the star-studded Clydesdales struggled to crack a Dolphins pack featuring Adam Starr, Troy Lindsay and Mark Shipway, all aged in their 30s.

The frustration showed on the younger Toowoomba team, with State of Origin hero Thaiday spending the final moments of the match in the sin bin following a stoush with Danny Burke.

?I wouldn?t swap my blokes for anybody,? Redcliffe?s Griffin said after the win.

?They may not be the biggest or most athletic forwards, but they sure do love a tough game of footy. It was good for them to go out there and compete against a side like that, because we won?t play a pack as skilled as (Toowoomba) for a while.?

Toowoomba?s woes were compounded by an ankle injury to half Ben Green early in the game, leaving it with just three men on the bench for the majority of the encounter.

Next Sunday Toowoomba plays Wynnum Manly at BMD Kougari Oval, while Redcliffe hosts Souths Logan the same day.

REDCLIFFE 34 (Adam Starr 2, Ryan Cullen 2, Michael Roberts, Grant Flugge tries; Greg Bourke 5 goals) d TOOWOOMBA 16 (Todd Parnell, Steve Michaels, Joel Moon tries; Todd Parnell, Denan Kemp goals) at Clive Berghofer Stadium.


Source: qrl.com.au