Bundaberg Rugby League - Round Three: Eastern Suburbs Magpies vs Maryborough Wallaroos

Game 1 of Round 3 saw a top-of-the-table clash between the Eastern Suburbs Magpies, who played host to the Maryborough Wallaroos. This was my game of the round, and rightly so - with both sides undefeated and in red-hot form, it was shaping up to be a fantastic contest.

The Roos were eager to get on top early and looked to shock the Easts pack with their physicality, aiming to set the tone from the outset. They played their usual hard, direct style of footy, but this game proved very different from their first two outings. Easts, one of the stronger teams this year, didn’t take a backward step. They muscled up in defence and forced a few errors from the usually steady Roos outfit. The Roos looked slightly out of rhythm, and the absence of front-rower Seth Laherty highlighted the importance of their middle. Despite not being at their best, they can take positives from the performance. The 12–8 scoreline - and the fact it could have been 12–12 if not for two missed conversions - shows they can match it with the competition’s top sides.

Easts played their typical direct brand of footy. With back-rowers like Trent Seeds and Tyrell Howard, it’s hard not to attack early down their lethal edges. They caused problems from the start and were difficult to handle, sending plenty of traffic at the Roos’ halves, which paid off multiple times. Tyrell also crossed for a try, further proving he’s a real weapon and someone to watch when coming up against Easts. While Easts got the win, they wouldn’t have been overly impressed with their errors and, at times, giving the Roos too much possession. Still, they managed to grind out the result and will know there’s an even better performance in them.

Both sides will likely feel this game could have gone differently, given the errors and penalties. They’ll be looking to improve heading into some tough matchups ahead. With the Anzac Day long weekend, we won’t see action for another two weeks, but these teams have already stamped themselves as competition favourites. I can’t wait to see them go head-to-head again later this season.

Tries
Easts – Tyrell Howard, Thomas Cox
Roos – Private, Will Dyer
Conversions
Easts – Tyrell Howard 2/2
Roos – 0/2