Roosters late surge shows there is hope in season 2009
April 11th 2009 06:48
The Roosters inept ability to keep their defensive line intact cost them dearly against the Brisbane Broncos on Friday night. But coach Brad Fittler should be proud of the way his side came back in the last ten minutes to nearly reel in a 28-12 deficit and cause the upset.
After a first half which saw plenty of tries bombed from both sides, an error from Willie Mason gifted Broncos fullback Karmichael Hunt a four pointer for a six nil lead heading into the break.
Although Brisbane came up with a lot of errors, the Roosters in the first half arguably produced their best forty minutes in defence, given the class of the opponents they were up against
However in the second half, the Roosters defensive frailties once again came to the fore, in particular on the edges, where the likes of Steve Michaels, Karmichael Hunt and Antonio Winterstein were allowed to wreck havoc.
Indeed Hunt and Winterstein each scored two tries, taking full advantage of a Roosters defence that currently has more holes than the lungs of a heavy smoker.
Winterstein’s first try in the second half was a wonderful individual effort that set the platform for Brisbane to once again dominate a side they have beaten on the last five occasions at the SFS.
It allowed Brisbane to make a mockery of the Roosters right hand edge defence, that looked pretty amateur at times.
Hunt’s second try in particular would have left Fittler fuming at the inability of his outside backs to stop a fullback from ten metres out from the tryline.
It also destroyed the momentum achieved from the tries scored by Braith Anasta and Sam Perrett to put the chooks back in the contest.
At 28-12, with ten minutes remaining, it seemed the Broncos would once again rack up a score against the Roosters.
But to give credit where it’s due, the Roosters did not lay down for one minute in a period where many teams would have been left disheartened.
A terrific solo try from Mitchell Pearce gave the home side the glimmer of hope necessary to spark their late revival.
With five minutes remaining, the Roosters once again pounced, thanks largely to the brilliance of Anasta and the power of Willie Mason.
Suddenly the match read 28-24 to the Broncos, and with ninety seconds remaining, the Roosters were finishing with a wet sail.
Although they failed to pull the game out of the fire, the Roosters would have answered many critics who questioned their enthusiasm and belief in matches.
To nearly beat a side like the Broncos after giving them an 18 point start, speaks dividends about the Roosters ability to keep their heads up when the chips are down.
It was certainly an improvement on their bad losses against both the Rabbitohs and the Tigers, where they folded meekly.
Although consistency remains their Achilles heal in season 2009, the last ten minutes of Friday nights loss against Brisbane shows that the Roosters do have the quality necessary, to challenge the best teams in the NRL this season.
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