The Bega Roosters ruined the Narooma Devils home opener on Saturday, scoring three tries in the final 15 minutes to steal a 26-18 victory.
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A big crowd formed at Bill Smyth Oval in cool conditions for the 5pm kickoff, but they were silenced by an early try to John Parbery.
Bega’s Scott Fuller put up a high, spiraling bomb that Devils fullback Koorin Campbell couldn’t deal with, leaving Parbery free to ground the ball.
James Bower-Scott converted the try to give the Roosters a 6-0 lead with less than four minutes on the clock.
The Devils fought back from the early mistake, as they started to get on top in the territorial battle.
Anthony Thomas took advantage of the dominance with a four pointer which Ryan Norris converted to level the scores.
The first half turned into an arm wrestle from that point, only broken by a lower-leg injury to Michael Apps. Apps required assistance to get back to the bench, and took no further part in the game.
Narooma would take the lead into the sheds thanks to a couple of under 18s players. Durramah Parsons managed to force a mistake on a cross field bomb, one Matthew Parsons jumped on for the try.
You have to turn up and play footy, or you’re not going to get the two points.
- Bega Roosters coach Ryan Apps
Ryan Norris once again converted to give the Devils a 12-6 halftime lead.
The start of the second half was similar to the first, as an error from a kick allowed Yuin Campbell to score Narooma’s third try.
The Roosters failed to deal with a rolling ball, and Campbell planted the football in the ensuing confusion. Norris hit his third conversion to take the lead out to two converted tries.
The Roosters hit back only three minutes later, with a series of offloads leading to James Duncan finding space on the edge.
It was a sign of things to come for the Devils, whose fatigue from the first two games started to show. They bravely held on for 20 minutes, but their defensive line was gouged when Mitchell Carter strolled through a yawning gap to score under the posts.
That would end the Devils resistance, as the Roosters scored two more tries through Callum Bower-Scott and Thomas Picker to complete the comeback victory.
We’re a side that traditionally makes some silly errors. We cleaned that up well tonight, which put us in front for a long time.
- Narooma Devils coach Todd Ayers
Roosters captain-coach Ryan Apps praised his sides performance.
“It’s a great team effort,” he said. “Credit to the Narooma boys today, it was a close match.
“Every game we play this year is getting harder, and I think across the board, the competition is pretty even.
“You have to turn up and play footy, or you’re not going to get the two points.”
Narooma captain-coach Todd Ayers said the team still has some work to do after a third straight loss.
“Overall I’m pretty happy with the game,” he said. “We’re a side that traditionally makes some silly errors. We cleaned that up well tonight, which put us in front for a long time.”
Ayers believes the tough opening to the season could shape a late season push.
“It’s affected us, whether it’s negative or positive I don’t know yet,” he said. “It’s probably a good thing to get it out of the way early, and, being a smaller side, it’s a positive for our fitness.”
Next weekend’s game against the Moruya Sharks may be on Saturday rather than Sunday. Check the Devils Facebook page for updates.