The CQ Capras held the highly fancied Easts Tigers to a 24-24 draw in their Round 18 match at Langland Park yesterday afternoon.
Easts Tigers were left disappointed by only securing the one point – but they should count themselves lucky after they let the Capras grab a 24-20 lead late in the match.
However, despite the Capras scoring first in the match through Aleki Falepaini, the Tigers held a four-point lead at the halftime break.
‘He looked dangerous with the ball whenever he got it’
They got out to an eight-point lead twice in the match before falling behind after back-to-back tries from the visitors.
Big forward Mat Pitman levelled the scores for Easts in the 78th minute with a strong run but a failed conversion from in front of the posts saw the teams share the honours.
However, Young Tonumaipea nearly snatched victory for the Tigers in the dying moments after breaking the line for a 40m run but no teammate was able to get on the end of his grubber kick.
Standout
Tonumaipea got the Tigers on their way with their first try in the 27th minute and was a standout performer at Suzuki Stadium for the home side.
“He was very good, you could see his experience and he looked dangerous with the ball whenever he got it,” Easts coach Scott Sipple said.
“He just probably needed more ball and he was a good influence for the younger guys, very strong.”
Storm recruit Shem Tatupu also played his first match at the Intrust Super Cup level.
The 20-year-old was solid in his first hit-out and the run will no doubt serve as invaluable experience moving forward.
Win drought breaks
For the Capras, although it was disappointing to let the Tigers in for the final try, the result put a stop to a three-game losing streak. Now on 15 competition points, they are just three points shy of the sixth-placed North Pride on 18 but in a congested ladder their for-and-against has pushed them into 12th position.
In Round 20 they will host the Tweed Heads Seagulls, while the Tigers will travel to Davies Park to face the Souths Logan Magpies.
See the full scoring details and final team line-ups for this game via QRL Live
EASTS TIGERS 24 (Mathew Pitman 2, Young Tonumaipea, Foisa Peni, Leon Ellia-Niukore tries; Young Tonumaipea, Brentt Warr goals) drew with CQ CAPRAS 24 (Aleki Falepaini, John Filipo, Adam Henry, Chanel Seigafo tries; Matt Minto 4 goals) at Suzuki Stadium, Langlands Park.
