FOR 53 minutes of Port Macquarie Sharks’ 12-4 preliminary final victory over Wauchope, the sin bin count led the scoreline.
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By full-time there were marginally more points scored than the total number of players cooling their heels for 10 minutes.
If only just.
Five players (three from the Sharks and two from the Blues) were sent to the bin and it could easily have been double that.
Evergreen forward Matt Shipway (53rd minute) and fullback Mitch Wilbow (57th minute) crossed early in the second half to provide two rare highlights in a match that never reached any great heights.
Sharks assistant coach Brett Avery labelled the match as “ugly” – and he was right.
“There was nothing pretty about it at all,” he said.
“But that’s what semi-final and grand final football is about.”
There were more sin bins in the first half than points scored and things only just improved in the second stanza.
Sharks captain-coach Jake Hawkins was sin-binned in the 10th minute for a late tackle on Kobi Hugen.
Blues centre Beau White and Sharks halfback Joey Cudmore then joined him for a 10-minute break five minutes later when an all-in-brawl spilled over the sideline.
Neither side managed to post a single point in an opening 40 minutes punctuated with niggle, errors and penalties.
It seemed fitting both sides finished the match with 12 after Sharks lock David Geary and Hugen came to blows and were given first use of the hot water with five minutes remaining.
There was nothing pretty about it at all, but that’s what semi-final and grand final football is about.
- Port Sharks assistant coach Brett Avery
“It was just a spoiling game of football; there was so much niggle in both sides,” Avery said.
When the teams settled down and played football after the break, fullback Wilbow was a constant threat while Matt Jones and Matt Shipway were strong for the Sharks.
Blues coach Anthony Boyd was disappointed to see his team fall one game short of a grand final.
“A grand final berth would have been great for the club,” he said.
“But we had a lot of injuries and blokes playing busted totally and we were in that game right until the death so (I’m) very proud of what they’ve achieved this year.”
He echoed Avery’s thoughts about the stop-start nature of the game.
“It’s not blaming referees, but it was stop-start and the game didn’t flow very well so it’s just frustrating for people watching and the players,” he said.
The Blues were among the also-rans last season and finished second last.
Boyd was confident they could build on a 2018 campaign where they could prove to be the only team to beat Port City all season.
“It’s been a great year to come from second last to third,” he said.
“(I’m) proud of what they’ve done, but hungrier for a little bit more now.”
The success we’ve had this year will mean players start wanting to play for Wauchope again instead of going to other clubs.
- Wauchope Blues coach Anthony Boyd
Boyd said the future of the Blues looked bright on the back of the club's success this season.
“The success we’ve had this year will mean players start wanting to play for Wauchope again instead of going to other clubs,” he said.
“I know we’ve got a hell of a lot of juniors playing in that Sharks side and we’ve got a lot of them playing for the Breakers too.
“If we can get a couple back knowing they’ve got a good club to come to, then I’m sure we’re going to be very strong in the future.”