MACQUARIE coach Adam Bettridge has called on his players to show more patience when they take on Central in their Newcastle Rugby League clash at Toronto this Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Central defeated Macquarie 18-14 at Lyall Peacock Field on Saturday, in a catch-up match that had been postponed from Round 6.
The two teams will meet again – same venue, same time – this Saturday, in the Round 8 fixture, and Bettridge is keen for Macquarie to display better execution and wet weather smarts.
“We had opportunities to mount pressure and score later in the tackle counts but we pushed the final pass on a few occasions and took some wrong options,” Bettridge said.
We play them again this week at Peacock Field and it is a great opportunity for the players to reverse the result.
- - Adam Bettridge
“Having said that I could not fault the squad’s commitment against a very good side that was desperate for the win to arrest a two-match losing streak.”
It was the first match that Macquarie has lost at home in 14 premiership games. The last time the Scorpions were rolled at Lyall Peacock Field was June 27, 2015, when Lakes United won 22-18.
The loss means Macquarie has surrendered second spot on the premiership ladder.
The Scorpions led 14-6 at the halftime break.
Left winger Matt Hay opened the scoring for the home team when Macquarie worked a sneaky blind side rush from a scrum win on the Central 20-metre line.
Chris Hyde picked up the ball from the scrum base and passed to fullback Mitch Manson who swept down the grandstand-side edge before putting Hay into space to score in the corner.
Simon Allen was next to cross, after he was on hand to pick up the crumbs from a cross-field kick.
And when halfback Andy Sumner strolled through a hole to score under the posts shortly before the break, all of the momentum was with the home team.
But Macquarie could not score in the second stanza.
Central crossed for two converted tries, including the clincher from 70 metres out in the last five minutes.
Macquarie felt they squandered three or four clear try-scoring opportunities in the first half.
And they were disallowed a try in the second half when Scott Briggs popped a short ball to Manson who ran 20 metres to score, but the pass was ruled to be forward.
Bettridge said the return bout this Saturday can’t come quickly enough.
“We play them again this week at Peacock Field and it is a great opportunity for the players to reverse the result from last weekend,” he said.
