Pirates, Walcha and Inverell all showcased their potency as they hammered their respective opposition on Saturday.
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All three chalked up half-centuries, with Pirates downing Moree 68-33, Walcha disposing of Scone 52-nil, and Inverell brushing aside Barraba 54-14 in their Tier 2 clash.
Just getting over the line last time they met after Barraba staged a second half fightback, the Highlanders produced a dazzling second half, running in seven tries to one to post a 40-point win and keep themselves in the hunt for the remaining finals spot.
At Moree, Pirates stampeded the Bulls in the first half, the premiers charging to a 47-12 lead at the break.
Walcha similarly set their win up in the first half, piling on 35 unanswered points.
Back from holiday, Rams co-coach Barry Hoy was happy with what he witnessed.
“We played pretty well.
“The coaches must have done a good job while I was away,” he jokingly added.
He thought the forwards set it up for them.
“They scored the first two tries and that set the platform for the rest of the game,” he said.
What he was most impressed about from the forwards was the way they played as a team.
“They didn’t get caught out going one-off, their first up tackles were pretty good and they were disciplined around the ruck. They didn’t creep offside at the ruck,” he said.
Hoy also had a lot of praise for the front row.
“The first scrum it looked like we were going to go backwards all day, but then they held their own.
“That made a difference,” he said.
It gave them a solid foundation to attack from, although the backs were a bit off their game.
“They scored a few individual tries but didn’t combine that well,” Hoy said.
As happy as he was about racking up 52 points, it was the nil against he was most pleased about, particularly with the finals on the horizon.
“They worked hard to keep that at the end. They could have got soft and let Scone in at the end,” he said.
The forwards dominated the points with Henry King outstanding at breakaway.
Double tryscorer Sione Kamato was also strong, as was front trio Jock Fortescue, Ed Blomfield and Tom Hoy.