The youngsters were expecting a torrid encounter and were not disappointed.

Already on the back foot with four players unavailable, the Breakers’ task was made even harder when Wingham scored early.

Luckily, this stirred Port City into action.

Fullback Jesse Gleeson crossed out wide after receiving a great ball from five-eighth Ben Hyde. Hyde’s successful conversion, one of seven, locked it up at 6-all.

Back-rower Luke Turner then touched down and the Breakers were in control of the match.

Wingham had no answers to Port City’s brilliant attack.

While the Tigers were very aggressive in defence, they could not match the Breakers for skill or speed.

Soon after, Turner crossed for his second of the afternoon.

With time running out in the first half, the Breakers kicked to space.

Jarid Bruen-Ansell contested the ball in the air then, with just the fullback in front of him, he was able to use his speed and score next to the posts. Following a slow start, the Breakers held a 24-6 lead at the break.

Port City’s second term was a fantastic team effort.

Wingham, not having learnt from the first period, conceded way too many penalties and the Breakers put them to the sword.

The forwards, working as a unit, punished the Tigers with fantastic ball running.

Gleeson crossed for another two tries, and Turner also found his way to the line again.

Further four-pointers to Sam Watts and Zac Alyward allowed the Breakers to record an impressive 50-6 margin with 10 minutes remaining.

Port City now tested its luck on almost every play - some passes stuck and some went to ground.

From a Breakers’ error, the Tigers were able to mount some pressure, which resulted in a try next to the posts.

With time running out, Wingham posted its third four-pointer and a 50-16 scoreline.

While the Breakers had many good players on the day, hooker Matt Johl produced his best game for the season, as did Dylan Eggins.

Under 16 star Zac Alyward, in his debut, was fantastic too.

Playing on the wing for the first time, he was mistake-free in attack and defence.

Fellow under 16s Brent Antilla and Ethan Hyde also continue to impress.

The players’ player award was shared between Mitch Fowler and Gleeson.

**

Port City Breakers Junior Rugby League Football Club

PORT City Breakers U7 Navy - You played as a team, concentrated for the whole game and listened to the coach, well done. From the kick-off our game started with a bang. Man of the match Cameron Davis scored in the first minute for one of his three tries. Some impressive dummy half work from Kelly Williams resulted in him scoring two tries. Kelly again topped the tackle count with 10 and earned himself the coach’s award. Most improved was Scott McWhirter, who was on a mission this week with three great runs and showing he has what it takes by moving of the line quickly in defence. The Taree side found Laban Martin a hard man to put on the ground with his strong runs up field carrying many of the opposition on his back. Chris Mill’s effort was not missed with fine darting runs resulting in two tries. Zac Hawkes, Lachlan Edwards and Lucas Edwards all put their hands up for work throughout the game and gave their all with every run and tackle.

Port City Breakers U7 Sky - All the boys played well and are a joy to coach and to watch. Jackson and Kyle’s combination at dummy-half and halfback is getting stronger every week. Their passing has seen a huge improvement and they are hitting the runners on the chest every time, eliminating the dropped balls. Jesse Gill had a top game this week, making a lot of metres up the field and using his palm to keep the opposition at bay. Jesse’s tackling improved in this game, using his shoulder, he pulled off some great hits. James Lee also had an impressive game running hard and making some useful metres. James caught the defence napping with a blind side run from 15m out and was unlucky not to score, being caught just a metre or so from the line. Blake Ahearn had some good runs this week, showing the opposition his pace. He ran past the defence on numerous occasions and was rewarded with a try in the second third of the match. Oscar Churchwell was in good form again, showing us what he is capable of. Oscar made some good runs, but none better than when he stepped through most of the Rovers from half way and scored a well deserved try. Brock Condon was outstanding in defence once again rushing up and catching the Rovers on their line on numerous occasions. Brock was rewarded with his first try on the weekend for all his hard work. The best player on the field at the weekend was Sebastian Pankiewicz. Sebastian has picked up a lot of points in the last few weeks and is a frontrunner for best and fairest at the end of the year. With three players all within three points of each other this will be worth watching to see who comes out on top. This week Sebastian managed to make many great runs, taking us down the field into good position every time he touched the ball. He showed a lot of pace running from near half-way to score a try with not a Rover in sight and topped the tackle count for the first time with 14. This week we travel away to Wauchope to play the Blues.

Port City Breakers Clarry Anderson Sheet Metal U9 - A courageous effort by the young boys, who never stopped trying right to the very end despite being decisively beaten 32-14. Charlie Finnerty got the Breakers off to a flying start with a strong finish to score after some good team work provided prime field position in the opening minutes of the game. The Rovers rallied quickly and were next to score a good try of their own. Both teams were then locked in an entertaining tight defensive battle which was finally broken by Jack Churchwell, who continues to grow in confidence and skill. His try gave us an 8-4 lead at the first break. The second period was a grim affair with our boys defending as if their lives depended on it when they found themselves right on their own goal line. Tom Kelly, who has taken up the leadership role in the past few games, was rewarded for his great game with a try that gave us the lead yet again. A series of unfortunate events then conspired against us including a Rovers’ try well after the hooter to see our lead overtaken with interest with the Rovers 20-14 ahead. The last period of play saw the game slip from our grasp. Taree posted a quick try from the kick-off and we found ourselves having to play catch up football. While all the boys achieved by getting involved in the tackling, it wasn’t enough to stop the Rovers who scored 2 more tries.

Port City Breakers Macquarie Seafoods U10 (2) - The local derby was on for the U10s, Breakers versus Sharks, is always a hard fought battle. Drop ball and poor options in attack spoilt several scoring opportunities early in the first half. One lapse in defence let the Sharks go into the break 6–0 up. Several line breaks from Brady Taylor had the Breakers at the right end of the field giving the boys every chance of scoring. Harry Pensini was moved from the wing and into the second-row and revelled in his new position topping the tackle count and scoring our try levelling points with only seven minutes left of play. Solid performances from Zac Smith and Sam Frecklington held the opposition to zero in the second half. Possession changed repeatedly for the rest of the game until Sam Gleeson crossed the line in the very last minute. Jack Stienmetz converted the try as the final hooter sounded to give Breakers the win. Breakers 12 – Sharks 6.

Port City Breakers Old Lake Joinery U11 - Another game where we failed to hold onto the ball. Down 16-6 at half-time, we just could not get hold of the ball in the second period. Blake Travers had a whale of a game and scored his first ever try. Young Jeremy Maher played his best game since starting league and got the three points for the team. Ryan Milroy was again very solid in the front row and tried his heart out. We also had a number of U10s play and all went very well against the older and bigger team of Rovers. A special mention to young Shaun Hurley who organised very well at halfback.

Port City Breakers Aylward Transport U12 - The Alyward Transport Breakers U12s showed they are a real force in this competition after going down 14-12 to the undefeated and clear favourite for this year’s title, Taree Red Rovers. Many thought the size and experience of the Taree lads would prove to be a daunting obstacle for the Breakers' boys but solid defence proved to be a feature of their play throughout the match. Jake Kelly could be found around the legs of bigger opponents all game and he was ably supported by diminutive halfback Jordan Foster. Taree scored early but after this setback the Breakers' defence held firm and the boys went to the break 4-0 down. In the second session an early turnover of possession saw Ty Foster step through the Taree line to score under the posts. Connor Cheeseman converted to put the Breakers in front 6-4. Taree regained the lead with their second try mid-way through the half before a barnstorming run from Jake Jones saw him score and the conversion by Jordan Foster put the Breakers in front 12-8. The Breakers' lads had been gaining in confidence as the match progressed and their non stop tackling was a feature. Nick Goodfellow, Murray Kedward, Jesse Travers and Sam Collins all put in gutsy performances with impressive tackling displays. With only minutes remaining the "Big Bopper" in the Taree pack did his stuff once again and pushed through the Breakers' defence for his third individual try. The successful conversion saw Rovers hit the lead 14-12 which proved to be the final scoreline.

Port City Breakers Buckley and Buckley U13 - Although we were beaten by quite a large margin against Forster Tuncurry this week, we were still able to put some points on the board in the first half with both Nathan Lo Monaco and Jordan Crozier getting the ball over the line. Most of the opposition’s tries were made out on the wing. We play Camden Haven this week, so we need to train hard and work together on our attack and defence. Forster Tuncurry 62 defeated Port City Breakers 8. Special congratulations to our halfback Aaron Shepherd who played his 100th game for the Breakers on the weekend.

Port City Breakers Coca Cola Amatil U14 - The boys went onto the paddock full of confidence. They started out strong with excellent running and off-loading from Jeremy and Hayden, the 22-0 loss didn't describe how the game was played. It was a tough and brutal encounter with injuries from both sides.

Port City Breakers C.N.W Electrical Wholesalers U15 - The C.N.W. Electrical Wholesalers U15s took on the undefeated competition leaders Taree Red Rovers on Saturday in a game that had a semi-final-like intensity. Red Rovers remained undefeated, winning a close encounter 12-10. The first half was bruising but it really was a mistake-a-ton with 22 mistakes in total from both teams. It seemed that there wasn’t a minute go by that there wasn’t a change over. The Breakers’ defence was as good as it has been all season but the Rovers scored a clever converted try in the 23rd minute to put them in the lead 6-0. But the unpredictable nature of the Taree team caught us napping on the eve of half-time when their halfback chipped over the top and we let the ball bounce, landing beautifully in his hands and running away to score as the siren sounded 10-0. The Breakers started well in the second period, dominating field position and scored 10 minutes through Liam Irvine and converted by Zac Bruen, 10-6 to Rovers. Dominant running in the forwards, great kicking by Bruen and fantastic chasing of the kick had the Breakers looking the better team in the second half and this was rewarded in the form of a try to Taani Seymore in the 20th minute. 10-10 with 10 minutes to go, the Breakers really were looking good. After some magnificent running of the football, Bruen was penalised for losing control in the tackle, giving the Rovers a much-needed break. We then defended our line under massive pressure from the other team, only to be penalised in front of the posts for being offside when the play the ball was 30cm off our try line. Needless to say that was the ball game, the Rovers kicked the goal to win 12-10.

Port City Breakers Parkers Plasterboards U16 – We fielded our best side to date this year, playing against last year’s grand final opponents, Forster Hawks. We scored nine tries, converting only two and kept the opposition scoreless to make the final score 40-0. A great win to the boys in what was a solid performance from all players. Special congratulations to Rhys O'Shea for playing his 100th game for the Breakers.

**

Port Macquarie Sharks Junior Rugby league Football Club

ROUND nine: Port Macquarie Travel U6 – Once again our attacking was great which was led by our captain last week, Zac with help from Blair Benny and James. The defence was also brilliant with try saving tackles by our player of the week Josh. Ryan and Jack and Pat also strong in the defensive line.

Port Macquarie Travel U7 - Game 1: Ryley Rampling was in fine form crossing for three great tries. Lachlan Knox , Justin Cooper and Andre Catabiano made some terrific runs downfield. Sam Nunan and Mitch Pollard caused problems for the Wauchope defence while Declan Coarse made some great try saving tackles. Game 2: Nick Flannery looked dangerous every time he touched the ball. Mitch Evans showed great speed to cross for two tries. Nate Davey and Dylan Forsyth played strongly with Riley Garvey charging into the Wauchope defence. CJ Baker , Rhys Wilkinson and Lleyton Wilbow were all heavily involved in defence and attack.

Port Macquarie Travel U8 - The Sharks U8s travelled to Wauchope to play the Blues. The boys came away with two hard-fought victories which came on the back of solid defence. Game 1: Jack Sheaves had a fantastic game saving several tries with his excellent cover defence while Mason Taylor scored two great tries against his former club. Bradin, Jesse, Jack and Macgregor all combined well in defence keeping the opposition scoreless. Rhyse was strong while Rowdy showed untapped potential with several straight, hard runs.

Game 2: Ben Adams and Ty Marchant both had fantastic all round games while Tom, Jed and Tommy all worked well together around the rucks. Jacob, Kyle and Joshua continue to show improvement each week.

Bel’s Bakery U9 - The Sharkies played two different Wauchope sides and, after the previous weekend off, the boys were really keen to rip in. However Wauchope had other ideas claiming a quick try off the kick off, so the boys knew they had to step up and they did just that. They hit back with a try of their own. Decklan and Connor had their best games of the year making a considerable amount more tackles, some of which were try savers. Declkan picked up a try and kicked a goal for his efforts. However it was Issac, Toby, Jacob, Luke and Zac who were leading by examples in the tackle department. The boys have been practicing their off loads at training and look to have paid off on the field through the likes of Jack, Jacob, Riley and Ethan. The Sharks would eventually win game one 50-20 and, in game two, the boys appeared to look a little tired and not quite switched on. Wauchope once again got the first try and it took some time for the Sharks to hit back. Both the Sharks and Wauchope defended really well and it appeared to be a quite close game. Will put in a strong performance with a lot of running up the middle of the field. He would go on to score two tries and convert one of his own. It’s really pleasing to watch the newcomers Connor, Decklan, Ethan, Jack, Blake and Toby improving each game. Sharks won 26-4.

Terry Sargent Builder and Trademark Hardware U12 - It was the new kids on the block showing the way as the Sharks put in a well-rounded performance against Wauchope at Lank Bain. It was the free-sprinting Alex O’Rourke covering many metres, a “PB” in defence for the ever improving Chris Spencer and the good hole-running of Rhys McCamley which impressed the coaching staff and spectators alike. In fact it was Rhys’ try that opened the scoring and it was well converted by Liam Longbottom. Two other forwards Jackson Dowling and Jack Austin crossed from close range. The Blues picked up a late try and the half time score was 14-4. The Sharks’ play was positive and strong defence coupled with good kick chases forced Wauchope into error. Jackson and Liam Longbottom both crossed following their powerful running and again Brendan Hogan showed his speed and quick thinking as he dashed in an excellent try from a kick off. Charlie Harris returned the ball well gaining much ground and Harry Sargent chipped in with a good all round game. Dylan Hemsley worked hard as usual and booted a good conversion as did “Mr Reliable” Jayden Bryant. It was also good to see the kicking improving this week. Unfortunately, both Liam Brien and Harry Towle were forced off with knee injuries and it is hoped they’ll be right this week. Sharks 30 (J Dowling 2, R McCamley, J Austin, L Longbottom, J Bryant tries. L Longbottom, J Bryant, D Hemsley goals) def Wauchope 4.

Beechwood Hotel U13 - The U13s tackled the Taree Panthers, the winner cementing second position on the ladder. The Sharks started poorly failing to move up and missing tackles on the much larger Panther side. Half-time saw the Panthers leading 36-0. The second half saw a more determined Sharks tackling as a team and stringing together several promising attacking raids. Second half tries went to Nick Cutler, Jai Kellet and Scott Grant. One goal went to Ethan McKenna. It was good to see that the young Sharks stuck to their guns in the second half keeping the second half score at 14-all. Final score went the Panthers’ way 50-14. Best and fairest: (3) Ethan McKenna, (2) Elijah Bisson, (1) Scott Grant, Harry Cain, Dean Gordon, Jai Kellett. Best defence: (3) Ethan McKenna, (2) Scott Grant, (1) Harry Cain. Players’ player: Ethan McKenna

Arro’s Bus Hire U14 - Both coaches, James and Dale, had high expectations of the boys, but they noticed prior to the game that their body language wasn’t very encouraging, however they did score the first try to lead 4-0. We lost the game 24-4 and unfortunately that was a fair indication of the game. There were some positives especially the debut of Sam Filetti who played at fullback and had an impressive game. Also the improvement in Josh Stuart, who is tackling like a demon and making the opposition think twice at running at him. The overall work rate among the forwards is also improving with the ever consistent Keegan Glavurdic leading the way in defence. We now have a three-week spell with a bye and then school holidays.

Ian Brown Sand and Cement U15 - No games for three weeks then two games in five days. It is hard to gain momentum with a stop-start campaign like we are having. It’s in games that we get those combinations working and our teamwork in place. Full credit to the boys for being able to maintain their enthusiasm in the down time and then to be able to perform at the level that they have over the last week. Saturday’s effort was a tradesman-like display, there were no stars. The boys did all the little things right and built up a score line that was just too hard to chase. Sharks 26 d Wauchope 6