Photo: Dylan Downey on the charge for the Brahmans.
The Binalong Brahmans have had a tough weekend in both the men’s and women’s George Tooke Shield grades, going down to the UC Stars in both games in round 12 of the season.
In the men’s first grade, the UC Stars proved too strong for the Brahmans at Binalong Recreation Oval, going down 40-6 to the visitors.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom early however, when Brett Boucher crossed the line for Binalong to register the first try of the game, with Dylan Arabin converting the try to give the hosts a 6-0 lead.
However, it was all downhill from there, with UC piling on the next 40 points and kept Binalong scoreless for the remainder of the match.
Ben Spencer, President and player for the Brahmans, said despite his side’s early efforts, it wasn’t to be enough to overcome the Stars.
“We got the first try, then they got one back pretty quickly after that and momentum began to really turn in the second half. The first half was pretty close but once they got the momentum we couldn’t swing it,” Ben said.
“The Stars have been a difficult side to come up against this year, they’ve been pretty consistent. They’re definitely an im- proved team over the last few years. They’ve got a few key players, their hooker was really good, as well as a good second- rower and five-eighth.”
Ben said young forward Dylan Downey was one of the few standout contributors for the Brahmans last weekend.
In the George Tooke Shield Ladies League Tag, Binalong put in a solid performance against the Stars. However, still fell to the visitors 8-0 at Binalong Recreation Oval. “The girls played well. UC got a couple tries in the first half but then it was scoreless in the second half. The Brahmans just had a few lapses of concentration in defence and they really upped their game in the second half, but just couldn’t put it together completely going forward,” Ben continued.
Following this weekend’s bye round across the whole George Tooke Shield competition for both men’s and women’s grades, the Brahman’s will host the Harden Hawks in round 13 on Saturday July 23. It is always a great spectacle disregarding how either side is situated on the ladder.
The women’s game will kick off at 1pm, while the men will commence at 2:15pm. “We’ve got the bye this weekend, which is good timing because we picked up a few injuries last weekend, but Harden will surely be a tough contest the week after. “We’re expecting a decent crowd with the close rivalry. It’s aways good when we play Harden, the local crowd keeps supporting us.”
Tim Warren
