By David Nagel
They didn’t quite get the chocolates in their NRL Victoria Second Grade Men’s clash – but the Pakenham Eels can finally hold their heads high after a battle with ladder-leading Casey Warriors this season.
The Eels, smashed 50-4 in the season opener against the Warriors, and walloped 62-6 at Casey Fields in round six, showed far more resilience in a 26-10 loss at Comely Banks Recreation Reserve on Saturday.
In a typically passionate affair between the two clubs, the Warriors started in fine fashion before the Eels raised the intensity in the middle stages of the match.
Both teams had players sent off, with Atueta Daulava being despatched for the Eels in the 22nd minute of play, before the Warriors lost Jeremy Broughton just 17 minutes later.
The Eels, coming off back-to-back wins against Eastern and Waverley, capitalised on Broughton’s dismissal, with Damascus Lota scoring a short time later – after 40 minutes – with Dominko Tuau judging the strong breeze well to send through the conversion.
And when Siale Kautai crossed just three minutes after Lota, the Eels had a real sniff of victory.
But fine margins can make the difference between the good times and the bad.
The Eels had opened up the Warriors defence once again, and looked set for a game-levelling try, before a forward-pass call from the line judge brought the ball back into the Warriors possession.
This gave momentum back to Casey, against the run of play, with the visitors scoring quickly from the restart.
The Warriors capitalised even further with two more tries kicking the margin out to 16 at the final siren.
The Warriors head to third-placed Waverley this week, while the Eels will look to bounce back strongly with another home match against Sunshine Cowboys at Comely Banks Rec Reserve at 2.20pm this Saturday.
It was a tough day for the Eels, with the under 18 and under 16 teams both suffering defeat at the hands of Truganina.
The 18s were no match for the Rabbitohs, losing 44-6, while the 16s were far more competitive in a 26-6 defeat.
Results R9: Pakenham Eels 10 v Casey Warriors 26, Truganina Rabbitohs 8 v Sunshine Cowboys 24, Eastern Raptors 6 v Waverley Panthers 42.
Ladder: Casey 16, Sunshine 12, Waverley 10, Eastern 8, Pakenham 8, Truganina -2.
Fixture R10: Pakenham v Sunshine (Comely Banks Recreation Reserve, 2.20pm), Waverley v Casey, Truganina v Eastern.
