The Brisbane Bulls have finally done what they've been aiming to do for years, playing the kind of football that their squad should. After storming up the ladder to claim third, the Bulls now find themselves up against a Northern side that has become a regular fixture in the finals in recent years. With Wellington already having accounted for Parramatta, Northern could still crash out of the finals with a loss here and a Sydney victory on the Gold Coast.
Brisbane Bulls Northern Cannons
1 Ben Hornby 1 Mat Rogers
2 Matt King 2 Trent Pariah
3 Paul Bowman 3 Michael De Vere
4 Josh Hannay 4 Phillip Elof
5 Ty Williams 5 Brett Dallas
6 Karmichael Hunt 6 Jason Hooper
7 Scott Prince 7 Frederick Michalak ©
8 Shane Webcke © 8 Mark O'Meley
9 Cameron Smith 9 Brody Raines
10 Ben Ross 10 Edward Hoartshire
11 Luke Williamson 11 George Smith
12 Luke O'Donnell 12 Dean Young
13 Trent Waterhouse 13 Ashley Harrison
++Interchange
14 Petero Civoniceva 14 Brent Kite
15 Adrian Morley 15 Awen Guttenbeil
16 Trent Barrett 16 David Lyons
17 Johnathan Thurston 17 Paul Wellens
The trend for one side gaining an ideal start in the finals continued in today's game, as Mat Rogers fumbled the ball on the first tackle following a solid opening twenty metre movement from the Cannons. A penalty for a lazy Mark O'Meley tackle on Karmichael Hunt earned Brisbane a penalty, and paying respect to Northern's defence- Josh Hannay took the two points on offer for an early 2-0 lead.
The opening exchanges were all Brisbane, with the Bulls making good ground in offence and holding Northern well within their own half in defence. Gradually the Cannons worked their way into the game, the solid work out wide by Trent Pariah and Michael DeVere finding inroads into the Bulls' territory. The first try was a long time coming, when David Lyons crashed across after a well timed George Smith offload. Trent Pariah converted, and after twenty three minutes of exciting play, the Cannons took a 6-2 lead. Northern were denied an opportunity to go even further ahead in the 27th minute, when Brent Kite was held up by some brilliant on line defence from an unlikely man, Scott Prince.
The Cannons continued to enjoy the run of play as the half wore on, and when Karmichael Hunt fell awkwardly in a tackle, it looked grim indeed for the third placed Bulls. Karmichael's injury allowed Trent Barrett to take the field however, doubling Brisbane's offensive capability. Cannons' trainers were quick to spread the word that the NSW five eighth was back on deck. The video referee again denied Northern in the 32nd, much to the relief of Brisbane fans, who had cried foul after an off the ball incident involving Frederick Michalak and Scott Prince.
The first signs of a Brisbane fightback came not long after this, with Barrett's more controlled kicking game allowing the Bulls to get better field position. Queenslanders went up as one when Ben Ross bashed his way across the line in the 39th minute, seemingly scoring a lead-stealing try. But once again the defence of one man was all that was needed, with Michael DeVere getting under the ball and denying Ross a crucial try. The halftime siren sounded, and the Cannons held a solid 6-2 lead after an intense half of football.
HALFTIME: Brisbane 2 trail Northern 6
The second half started much as the first did, with the Cannons on the back foot following some sloppy handling. The Bulls looked to have made them pay when Scott Prince was able to skip through the tiniest of gaps and go in under the sticks, but once again the video referee found a problem with the try, penalising Shane Webcke for shepherding. The Cannons were let off the hook, but a Frederick Michalak knock on put them right back on it. Paul Bowman wasn't going to let his opportunity go to waste, finishing off a fine backline movement and going over out wide for the equalising try. The fans went quiet as Josh Hannay lined up the difficult covnersion, and went up as one as he piloted it over the black dot to put Brisbane ahead by two, leading 8-6 after 45 minutes of play.
The nightmare start for Northern continued from the kick-off, with the Bulls difusing an insane short kick off from the Cannons and then making good metres to put themselves right back on the attack. Josh Hannay matched his centre partner's effort from only moments before, slicing through out wide to score the Bulls' second try. He again proved equal to the task of converting, and in a short space of time, the Bulls had seized control of the match with a powerful 14-6 lead.
Northern would have been perhaps forgiven for being disheartened by the sudden flurry of points from Brisbane, but their seven consecutive years of finals experience, coming achingly close to the big one in several of them, shone through as they worked their way back into the game without letting panic creep up on them. The men responsible for this were the veterans, men like Lyons, DeVere, and Harrison. Try as they might, however, the Cannons still couldn't find that try that would lift them back into the game. Inexperienced in the finals though they were, the Bulls' defensive line was as hard to crack as a pacecephalasaurus' skull.
However, with the weight of possession on their side, the Cannons were always going to score. A penalty for a high tackle put them on the offensive only ten out, and David Lyons capped off his superb game with a bollocking try up the middle. Trent Pariah wasted no time with the simple conversion, and it the game was well and truly on at 14-12 with twenty minutes of play remaining. With both sides defending so well, the game could very well come down to the next try.
The 64th minute saw Brisbane edge that little bit further ahead, Josh Hannay punishing Phillip Elof for his dangerous tackle on Ty Williams by adding a further two points to his tally. Some fans were bemused by the option to shoot for goal, when the next try would surely prove the difference maker come fulltime. With the final siren approaching, both sides were guilty of throwing caution to the wind and looking for that miraculous final try. As a result of this, both sides began to make some uncharacteristic errors, but the experienced head of Michael DeVere couldn't be denied- the former Australian centre breaking from a weak Ty Williams' tackle and galloping away to score a marvellous centre's try. The difficult conversion from Trent Pariah was waved away, and with ten minutes remaining, scores were locked at 16 apiece.
A 50/50 penalty on the ensuing set of six threatened to mar the game, when Trent Pariah opted to take the shot at goal to put his side further ahead. Fans roundly booed the call from Justin Hoy, but Pariah couldn't be denied- and the Cannons took a potentially match winning 18-16 lead with minutes remaining on the clock. The Cannons gave Brisbane plenty of chances to score a late try, their handling leaving a lot to be desired, but the Bulls continually squandered these opportunities. A late Trent Pariah field goal did nothing but confirm the result for Northern, an emphatic away win to keep their season alive. The Cannons had beaten the team many consider the favourites for this year's title.
FULLTIME
Brisbane Bulls 16
Paul Bowman
Josh Hannay
Hannay 4/4
lost to
Northern Cannons 19
David Lyons 2
Michael DeVere
Pariah 3/4
Pariah 1 fg
PoM Points
Michael DeVere...............3
David Lyons....................2
Scott Prince.....................1
Holy shit. That was nail biting. I was resigned to the loss.
