Only last week the Sydney Oilers inflicted an embarassing defeat on the Gold Coast Crusade, their second in as many weeks, to seal their place in the top eight. The bitter rivallry between these two clubs goes back to the very first year of the ASRL, and clashes between them never fail to bring out the best in both clubs. Tonight's game, do or die for Roger Bossert's Oilers, shapes as the clash of the round as far as Premier League goes.
Gold Coast Crusade Sydney Oilers
1 Brent Webb 1 Daniel Fitzhenry
2 Shaun Briscoe 2 David Hodgson
3 Tommy O'Reilly 3 Junior Pelesasa
4 Matthew Gidley 4 Steve Kefu
5 Luke Rooney 5 Amos Roberts
6 Scott Hill 6 Benji Marshal
7 Matt Orford 7 Craig Gower ©
8 Paul King 8 John Skandalis
9 Danny Buderus 9 Craig Wing
10 Joel Clinton 10 Jason Ryles
11 Ali Lauitiiti 11 Andrew Ryan
12 Vinnie Anderson 12 Chris Jack
13 Andy Farrel © 13 Ben Kennedy
++Interchange
14 Steve Simpson 14 Sonny-Bill Williams
15 Sione Faumunia 15 Steven Price
16 Karl Pratt 16 Willie Tonga
17 Carl Webb 17 Grant Martin
The game started up with the huge Gold Coast crowd well and truly behind the Crusade, and this seemed to demoralise Roger Bossert's chargers in the early going- with Sydney looking underdone in both attack and defence. With their opposition in such a state, it took Gold Coast very little time to capitalise, with Scott Hill starting a dangerous passage of play that saw the Crusade right on the attack only three minutes in. A penalty for offside gifted Andy Farrell with first points, giving the Crusade a 2-0 lead.
The Crusade continued to enjoy the better of earlier play, their new look backline causing havoc against an inexperienced Oiler backline. Twice the Crusade went close to scoring their first try of the match through their backline, both Shaun Briscoe and Matthew Gidley threatening but repelled. Sonny-Bill Williams' injection into the game looked to stabilise the Oilers somewhat, but Matthew Gidley still managed to slice through in the 12th and cross. The video referee found a problem in the grounding of the ball, unfortunately for Crusade fans, and the Oilers were still in the game. Williams' presence gradually steadied the Oilers' boat, with Steve Kefu going achingly close to putting Sydney in front before Craig Gower landed a penalty goal to even the ledger.
Sydney's heavily weighted bench soon began to come into play, with Willie Tonga and Steven Price's entry into the game really shaking things up. Some promising passages of play around the twentieth minute signalled the Oilers' intentions, with both their offence and defence taking it to the minor premiers. The 25th minute saw Sydney take the lead for the first time in the clash, Ali Lauititi penalised for a swinging arm on Amos Roberts, allowing Gower to make it 4-2 in favour of the visiting side. The standard of play remained intense, with end to end football as the game wound towards halftime. Whether it was a memorable Brent Webb linebreak in the 30th, or a Oilers' backline movement that saw the football go from side to side and back again, the attack was world class. Defensively, both sides showed why they're two of the game's premier clubs. With two gifted attacking units on deck, it was perhaps surprising that the first try didn't come until the 33rd minute, and it was fitting that Matthew Gidley was the man to set it up. The NSW centre and centre of the year winner continued to cause nightmares for the Oilers' defence, and punished Amos Roberts for a missed tackle when he made a break and then flicked it inside for Steve Simpson to run it in under the sticks. Andy Farrell made no mistakes with the routine conversion, giving Gold Coast an 8-4 lead going into halftime.
The Oilers weren't demoralised by being the first side to concede a try, and actually lifted as a result of Simpson's effort. The defensive intensity of Sydney doubled, and big hits saw the Crusade drop some ball. When Shaun Briscoe was monstered into touch by Steve Price, the Oilers had one last chance to score before halftime. The Crusade looked to have caged the Oilers in their own half, when Matt Orford was questionably penalised for not being square at marker. Crusade fans booed as Gower was able to boot his side into good field position, and only moments later Amos Roberts picked up where he left off last week, sprinting onto a Benji Marshal long ball to dive over in the corner. Craig Gower didn't let the pressure of a sideline conversion get to him, sending the ball between the posts after the halftime siren to give his side a morale boosting 10-8 lead.
HALFTIME: Gold Coast 8 trail Sydney 10
The Oilers' made a great start to the second half when they forced Vinnie Anderson into touch after the Lake Heights' bound centre/back-rower went too close to the sideline. A penalty for offside gave Sydney an ideal opportunity to extend their lead, but the Oilers paid Gold Coast's defence respect when they opted for the two points on offer for a 12-8 lead.
Penalties allowed the Crusade to get back into the game, with Tommy O'Reilly earning excellent metreage with his long kicking game, and a forty twenty in the 52nd gave the Crusade their first real opportunity of the second half. The classy clubs don't waste their chances, and once again it was Matthew Gidley who was the man in the middle of it all- a trademark flick pass allowing Luke Rooney to cause some damage down the right hand side. On the next play, Matt Orford bulletted the ball into the arms of Andy Farrell, and the English captain crashed over beside the uprights. Farrell converted his own effort, and the Crusade were back in the lead, up 14-12 with twenty five minutes remaining. In the 59th minute, the Crusade were denied a possibly match winning try, when Danny Buderus was held up over the line after he ran it on the last. A seventy five metre return set from the Oilers had them in perfect field position to mount their own counterstrike, and Steve Kefu got one over Gidley when he palmed off the Australian centre on his way to a powerful individual try. Craig Gower's remarkable form with the boot continued, as he kicked Sydney to an 18-14 lead with only twenty remaining. Would Bossert's gamble of flooding the field with reserves pay off? Or would the Crusade's more conservative use of interchange give them a fitness edge as the game wound on?
There are moments when a player has a chance to make or break his career, and to Sydney's despair, Craig Gower chose tonight's match as the time to play perhaps the worst game of his career. It began in the 62nd minute, when Craig Gower threw a blatant forward pass and spoiled a two on one overlap. Shaun Briscoe was able to make a clean bust from the scrum, and forty seven metres later, threw it inside to the support of Matthew Gidley. Andy Farrell landed his most difficult conversion of the night, and just like that, the lead had changed hands again. Crusade up 20-18 with fifteen to go.
The Crusade defence continued to muscle up to Sydney, and in the 66th minute, Gower was again called up when his inside pass to Benji Marshal was ruled to have travelled forward. The 68th minute saw Gower knock the ball on from dummy half, and whilst the Crusade's own sloppy handling meant they couldn't capitalise, Roger Bossert looked furious from his perch on the sideline. The game moved closer and closer to completion, and it became clear that the next try would probably decide the outcome of the game. A Craig Wing knock-on only fourteen from his line seemed to seal the Oilers' fate, and Matt Gidley was the man to seal it when, on the last tackle, he darted into dummy half and danced his way to the try line. Andy Farrell missed the relatively difficult conversion, but the 24-18 lead could well be enough to seal victory- with Sydney looking more and more tired as the game wore on.
With everything to play for, Sydney needed their stars to lift, but when Craig Gower again dropped the ball (this time in a heavy Joel Clinton tackle) in his own half, the writing was well and truly on the wall for Sydney's season. Whilst Matt Orford set up for a field goal, Scott Hill cheekily sent the ball flying out wide, and with Sydney's defence set to block a shot at goal, there was no one to stop Tommy O'Reilly from stepping around Grant Martin and bringing it around for the easy conversion. Farrell duly added the extras, as Crusade fans relished a week off and the end of Sydney's season.
It was perhaps unfair, then, when Shaun Briscoe embarked on a dangerous kick-off return that lead to Gold Coast's sixth try of the match. Again chancing their arm on the last, the Crusade were able to put Scott Hill over out wide, and whilst Andy Farrell was unable to convert, the Crusade had done a number on Sydney- running out 34-18 winners after a close fought game. Coach Roger Bossert was furious in the post match press conference, even going so far as to say 'Craig Gower has played his last game in the Oilers' colours'.
FULLTIME
Gold Coast Crusade 34
Tommy O'Reilly
Matthew Gidley 2
Scott Hill
Steve Simpson
Andy Farrell
Farrell 5/8
defeated
Sydney Oilers 18
Steve Kefu
Amos Roberts
Gower 5/5
PoM Points
Matthew Gidley...................3
Scott Hill............................2
Andy Farrell........................1
