Madden field goal secures thrilling 21-all draw
By Jason Hosken
NSWRL
Game summary
In a clash befitting their century-long rivalry, a final minute Jock Madden field goal has seen the last-placed Western Suburbs Magpies finish level with the high-flying Newtown Jets 21-all in a thrilling Knock-On Effect NSW Cup match at Lidcombe Oval.
On a day when Magpies legend Tom Raudonikis was honoured by the renaming of the Lidcombe Oval grandstand, Wests showed they were up for the occasion with the inclusion of several NRL stars including David Nofoaluma and Tyrone Peachey.
Despite missing regular prop Thomas Hazelton, who made his NRL debut for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks the night before, the Jets didn’t skip a beat when replacement Caleb Uele crashed over from a trademark Jayden Berrell short ball in the 13th minute.
Peachey and lock Fa'amanu Brown weaved their magic for Wests, and it was the former Gold Coast Titan who put centre Livai Saukuru across to level the scores following a long range bust by fullback Junior Tupou.
Berrell’s outstanding start only got better; in a magic seven minutes the hooker crossed twice to send Newtown clear 18-6. First, he pounced on his own grubber kick before wrapping around big forward Franklin Pele to crash over next to the posts in the 29th minute.
Not to be outdone, Tigers hooker Jacob Liddle struck back from dummy-half with a try of his own to get his side back within six points.
A Mawene Hiroti penalty goal extended Newtown’s lead to 20-12 at half-time but some more Peachey magic saw Wests hit back when winger Trey Peni dived into the left corner two minutes after play resumed.
Chasing just their second win of the season, Nofoaluma started to assert his authority with the game on the line and his try saw Wests draw level with 16 minutes left to play.
In a hectic end-to-end final 10 minutes, both sides had opportunities to ice a victory and it looked like it would Newtown’s day when five-eighth Rhys Davies calmly landed a field goal in the 73rd minute.
But on the back of a Jets turnover in what appeared to be the final set of the match, it was Madden who stepped up to earn Wests a well-deserved draw.
Talking points
Having defeated the Magpies 40-10 in Round Five, the draw proved enough for the Jets to win the annual battle for the Tom Raudonikis Cup.
Coming off a 42-0 loss to Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, the inclusion of Peachey proved a masterstroke for the struggling Magpies. The five-eighth proved a handful and with a bit more luck Wests may have got the points had several of his busts been finished off.
Wests will consider themselves unlucky having scored four tries to three while for the Jets, it was the accurate boot of Mawene Hiroti from the tee that prevented the loss.
Key moment
Lachlan Miller stood out for Newtown on return from his NRL debut last week and his quick-stepping raids tested Wests defence as the clock wound down.
With Newtown just needing to maintain possession in the final minute of play, it was Miller’s uncharacteristic turnover inside the Jets half that offered Wests one final opportunity.
What’s next?
Wests are away to South Sydney Rabbitohs in Round 13 when they chase their second win on Saturday at Ironmark High Performance Centre, Redfern while the Jets quest for another win continues when they head to Canberra on Sunday for a clash with the Raiders at GIO Stadium.
Match Highlights - CLICK HERE
Round 13
NSWRL Knock-On Effect NSW Cup
Sunday, 5th June 2022
GIO Stadium, Canberra
Canberra Raiders v Newtown
Kick-Off: 1.45pm.
Photo supplied by Mario Facchini, mafphotography
