Round 4 vs Sunnybank Match Report
by Ben Mitchell
Round 4 – GPS vs Sunnybank
Saturday, May 1st, Ashgrove Sports Ground, Yoku Road, Ashgrove
GPS made their long-awaited return home after two hard-fought wins on the road. They matched up against a tough opponent in the Sunnybank Dragons, a team looking to extinguish the Gallopers red hot form to start the season.
Before fans had gotten seated and comfortable for the game ahead, GPS were off to the races. Centre Chris Kuridrani dished a timely offload to winger Emori Waqavulagi who blitzed through three Sunnybank tackle attempts and ran the entire length of the field for the first try of the match. The strides he took during his run looked effortless as he breezed his way down the middle of the pitch. Fullback Jason Hofmeyr quickly converted the try, and the Gallopers were up 7-0 after 5 minutes of play.
GPS kept the pressure on after the first score, as a scrambling Dragons defence gave up an offside penalty out in front of the posts. Hofmeyr wasted no time lining up the attempt and kicked it through for 3, giving the Gallopers a 10-0 lead 10 minutes into the match.
Sunnybank took a collective breath after the impressive GPS start, knowing they would need to calm the nerves to get back into the match. They controlled the tempo well for the next 10 minutes of play, forcing the Gallopers to commit two penalties in kicking range for fly-half Hayden Sargeant. He converted both of his kicks, and brought his team back 10-6 after 20 minutes, putting the pressure back on the GPS men.
The GPS scrum came alive after the Sunnybank push back, winning a turnover and a penalty to set up an attacking opportunity. A long cut out pass was delivered from fly-half AJ Alatimu to fast-moving Waqavulagi, who covered about 20 metres until he was tackled down 5 metres out. Gallopers forwards converged on the scene and ran several pick-and-drives to break through the Dragons defence. After several attempts, lock Oliver Bartlett was able to burst through two tacklers and place the ball on the line for a try, giving GPS a 15-6 lead over Sunnybank heading into half time.
The Gallopers came out in the second half with even more intensity than the first, applying heavy pressure to Sunnybank in their 22. Eventually, the Dragons defence caved, as the ball found its way out to Waqavulagi who stepped his way past the defender to walk in untouched for a second try. Hofmeyr made no mistake with the conversion and extended the Gallopers lead out to 22-6.
In the 50th minute, coach Shane Arnold made a complete front row swap to bring in the dangerous trio of Felemi, Mafi, and Burke. Alongside them, the Rebels duo of halfback James Tuttle and Wallabies star Dane Haylett-Petty came out onto the field as the fans cheered on. This is the first action Haylett-Petty has seen for 6 months as he has been resting from several concussion injuries.
With a rejuvenated front row and backline, the Gallopers were looking to deliver some more blows. The forward pack forced Sunnybank to concede two penalties shortly after the substitutions, stamping their authority on the scrum game.
GPS were able to steal the ball from a Sunnybank lineout and get it out quickly. The ball found its way into the hands of the dangerous Chris Kuridrani, who goose-stepped past his defender and delivered a beautiful no-look flick pass to reserve winger Niven Longopoa for an easy try in the corner. Alatimu was unable to convert a difficult kick attempt near the sideline, so the score read 27-6 with 21 minutes left in the game.
After two yellow cards were given out to both sides due to a quick scuffle, the ball found itself with GPS deep in their own territory. Reserve fullback Haylett-Petty received the ball from the ruck and booted a massive kick downfield as Sunnybank had nobody home. The ball rolled for 20 metres before it was fumbled by the Dragons reserve winger Connor Mulhearn straight into the hands of Haylett-Petty. He dished the offload from his knees to Longopoa who raced over the line for his second try of the game and the Gallopers 5th in total. The conversion was missed by Waqavulagi near the sideline and the score was pushed out to a commanding 32-6 lead for GPS.
Sunnybank still had some fight left in them in the dying moments of the match, as they drove a rolling maul through the Gallopers defence with relative ease to score their first try, number eight Jeffrey Faamausili claiming the honours. The score was left unconverted by fly-half Hayden Sargeant, and the lead was shortened to 32-11 in the 78th minute.
The score would remain 32-11 when the final whistle was blown by referee James Palmer as GPS secured their 4th win in a row, taking them to 4-0 on the season and second place on the ladder behind a high scoring University of Queensland team.
As is now the trend for the GPS side, the forward pack displayed their dominance in the scrum again, winning turnovers and penalties on attack and under pressure. Outside centre Chris Kuridrani was unstoppable with the ball in this game, delivering 3 try assists to his wingers and definitely deserving of a try himself. First-grade debutant Emori Waqavulagi was scary quick out on the wing, scoring a sensational first try to kick things off for the Gallopers, and earning a double on the day. A 100m sprint between him and the customary winger Josh Collins would be a sight all fans would love to see.
Last but not least, reserve winger Niven Longopoa found himself in the right place at the right time out there, scoring a double off tremendous individual efforts from Kuridrani and Haylett-Petty.
The GPS men are in for a tough match next week when they head to the Gold Coast to take on the undefeated Bond University men. Bond is coming off a bye, so they’ll be well-rested for this top of the table clash. If you are able to make it down to Bond University, any support would be greatly appreciated by your GPS men as they take on their toughest opponent so far!