From The Sideline. (Round 7 - Byron Bay and Yamba)

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A perfect winter’s day welcomed a large crowd for our last home fixture until the 17th of July. Unfortunately for the spectators, our Women’s 10’s won on forfeit with Evans River unable to field a team.

The Yamba Buccaneers barged over for an early converted try in the men’s Division II fixture to take an early 7-0 lead, before regulation play through the backs hands put Lachie Johnson over in the left hand corner. Similar plays followed from both teams eventuating in a further try apiece, this time Johnson scoring to the right of the sticks leaving the game deadlocked 12 all at oranges. With the aid of a second half breeze and a midfield defensive lapse, the Buccaneers gained a 19-12 advantage early in the second stanza. We were lucky to win a heavily contested scrum on our feed , and four phases of pick and drive play saw Ryan Hamilton burrowing over leaving Ballina two points adrift. Despite numerous errors from both sides in the final 20 minutes, persistent pressure resulted in two late tries and a deserved 29-19 victory to the Seahorses. Al Barrett breathed a sigh of relief when the match ended, glad to have gained two points and remain on top of the ladder. For his tireless efforts up front Nathan Groves was awarded player’s player.
A hastily reorganised division 1 backline took the field against a new look Byron Bay XV, and soon found themselves trailing 7-0 when Byron’s inside centre carried two defenders over the line for a converted try. Brett Johnson secured possession in a keenly contested ruck and quick hands saw Lachie Anderson score in the corner.
The match appeared evenly balanced with the scores locked 12 all at half time, due to a win against the feed resulting in Wilson Lovokuro scoring from a chip and chase. Poor defence marred our effort in the second half, allowing Byron in for three further tries against one to Will Aisake and a final scoreline read 29-17 in Byron’s favour. Coach Chris Hickey was disappointed with the fact that his team couldn’t string together three consecutive phases of play with the ball during the match, and the defensive performance of his team from set pieces.
A wounded team returned to the sheds post match. The gloomy atmosphere lifted when our Fijian players and their growing posse of supporters broke into song. Dejected heads lifted, clapping commenced and smiles returned to faces. They remained that way long into the night as the club celebrated its first Pacifica round with a roast pig on the spit and an introduction to Island culture and Kava.