Knowing we were playing a strong team today, it was important that we got off to a strong start. We set our stall out from the start, and we're dominant in the breakdown. Some strong forward runs by the forwards created some space for Riley to burst through the middle for a deserved score. We had some really good periods in this game, there was so much commitment around the collision areas, and at times we had Darlington on the back foot. But, Darlington are a good side, boosted by some real athletes who when they got the ball in some space were really hard to stop.

The score really didn't reflect the game, and but for 4 Darlington players, the teams would have been quite evenly matched. Darlington also arrived with 26 players, but testament to our fitness levels, the lads played their hearts out till the end of the second period. We played a mixed game at the end for fun. Sparky took a horrific tackle in the second half, being dropped on his head and the Darlington player was rightly sent off.

Leo Ward was given mom, his commitment, tenacity and aggression at the ruck and in the tackle was amazing to see.

This will be the best side we play against this season, and the lads gave it a good go! Keep your heads up lads, great performance, we go again next week.