Rams prevail over QLD Country in a cellar-dweller thriller

The Western Sydney Rams shook the monkey off their back and claimed a thrilling 52-46 win eight minutes after the final siren to snatch victory from QLD Country, in a match that is officially regarded as the greatest comeback in NRC history. Well, talk about leaving it till the last minute…

The Match

And to think, those were the two teams at the bottom of the ladder!? Well, many in the Horned Army will be smiling tonight, but for 75 minutes of that game, they certainly were not. The Rams had drawn a big crowd to Concord Oval with the Pacific Islander rugby tournament, and there was a wonderful carnival atmosphere as Islander dancers and drummers welcomed both teams out onto the field. But it was QLD Country who came firing out of the blocks in the 4^th minute. Suddenly, the crowd fell silent, as they quickly came to realise that this game was not going to be as easy as they had first thought.

The battle at scrum time lived up to the hype, and Tyrone Viiga suddenly was thrust into the spotlight when he picked up the ball off the back of the scrum to give the Rams their first points. QLD Country had other ideas, and silenced the crowd again with Tom Banks and Tom Pincus crossing for tries in quick succession to take the score out to 22-6. The Rams were totally on the back foot and struggling to keep up, as Country slung the ball with great speed from one side of the field to the other in a brilliant display of attacking rugby. This is the Country we like to see!

Eventually Luke Smart scored in the corner for the Rams to cut the margin to 10, but Asquith was having a shocker with the boot, which was starting to hurt the home team. QLD Country’s forwards began to jump in on the action as well, with two quick tries to Casey and Scott-Young. Suddenly, the Rams were staring down the barrel of being behind 12-38. If it was the Rams of last year, they may have let it slide. But Asquith intercepted a flying QLD Country ball to run 80 metres, then convert his own try to have the Rams eighteen points behind at the break, 20-38.

Never in NRC history has a team come back from being eighteen points down. But whatever John Muggleton said to the Rams at halftime, they came out the more focused side. Brandon Paenga-Amosa continued his run as a try scoring machine, providing a brilliant individual effort to barge over the line at the 43^rd minute. This effort saw the Country lift and score a try of their own through Maclean Jones, with the successful conversion taking them out to a 46-28 lead. The Rams were struggling at the lineout, and were unable to string many phases together. At the 65^th minute, it was looking like an upset was on the cards, and it seemed all but sealed when Brad Thorn headed onto the field for Country to a standing ovation.

Then Latunipulu crossed over, and the Rams began to fight back. Suddenly the margin was 10 points, with thirteen minutes to go. The Rams forwards were beginning to show dominance in the scrum, but QLD Country was still holding firm, and stole the ball back on multiple occasions to hold on grimly. When Luke Smart crossed for his double, the margin was 4 points. 42-46. With 30 seconds left on the clock. Suddenly, the crowd were on their feet. The Rams can win this!

That final thirty seconds turned into eight minutes of thrilling rugby, as Country found themselves camped on their five metre line. Paia’aua stole the ball brilliantly and then undid his good work when he threw it into touch and the Rams were awarded a penalty for the deliberate infringement. In the dying moments, the Rams scrum delivered, with penalty after penalty coming their way. Finally, after the third scrum was reset and the Rams dominated once again, Amy Perrett had enough and awarded a penalty try. The entire stadium erupted! What an ending! The Rams were finally on the board!

For the Rams, for 75 minutes they were playing like a team that were far from deserving of that win. Their lineout was woeful, and their backs not matching up to QLD Country. But the scrum proved to keep them in the game, and they don’t call it ‘the championship minutes’ for nothing. If there was any game that encapsulated the ‘never-say-die’ attitude of the Rams this year, then this was it.

For QLD Country, I still cannot comprehend how they managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. (Seriously, I’m writing this a good four hours after the match finished, and I still don’t know). They led for the entire game, never looked like losing, and put together an outstanding performance in both halves. However, discipline let them down when it mattered most, making this loss a hard one to stomach.

The match capped off what had been a stellar day of rugby at Concord Oval, and one that will hopefully see many more people coming back to watch NRC games. The crowd were treated to a great spectacle of Islander rugby and the NSW Country-Spirit game even before the Rams-QLD Country match. Add to that some amazing long range tries, to Brad Thorn’s debut, to the Tongan Thor smashing his way into the highlight reel for NRC Extra Time next week and you couldn’t have asked for more. It was a day that showcased the best the NRC had to offer, and boy, does it have a lot!

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The Game Changer

QLD Country were dominant for the entire match, but Luke Smarts try in the 79^th minute signaled a huge turning point of momentum. The Rams has the wind in their sails, and QLD Country capitulated.[/one_third]

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The G&GR MOTM

Tom Banks was a busy man for QLD Country, producing a fantastic performance that really showed his skills as a dangerous full back. Add in a try to his efforts and he can be proud of his performance in a losing side. Special mention must also go to Tyrone Viiga for the Rams, with his ball carrying skills and dominance over the advantage line capping off a great performance in the scrum, and Duncan Paia’aua in the backline for QLD Country, who was instrumental in setting up many of their tries and maintaining fast running rugby.

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Oz Baabaa Watch

Seriously, who can stop Brendon Paenga-Amosa? The guy has been a revelation for the Rams, being handy off the maul and in general play. His performance at hooker though needs a lot of work given the woeful performance of the Rams lineout, but in the scrum and general play, the man is a freak! Mack Mason did a great job at flyhalf for QLD Country, and had a solid outing with the boot. I would seriously consider making him the starting flyhalf for next weeks game against the Eagles.

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The Details