The Souths Logan Magpies withstood some second half flair to record a 25-12 win over the Burleigh Bears at Davies Park yesterday.
The Bears scored three eye-catching tries in the second half, but after trailing 18-0 at the break, it was too much head-start to overcome.
Handling was the biggest issue for the Bears, as their low completion rate in the first half led to repeat sets on their line and mounting defensive pressure.
The Magpies took advantage of their opportunities and ran in three tries to set up a comfortable lead at the break.
Burleigh attacked well in patches, especially in the second half, but coach Jim Lenihan lamented his side’s struggle to hold the ball and build pressure.
“Whether it was forced or unforced, we just gave away too much possession, today,” he said.
“Plenty of times we didn’t have a choice in the matter, but then there were plenty of times where we did it to ourselves and would just drop it cold.
“If we held the ball better today, we’d give ourselves a real chance to beat a side that is probably a form side in the competition. It’s just frustrating how we find ways to lose at the moment.”
With co-captain Luke Page missing through injury, Matthew White had a massive game up front, hitting hard and running with gusto every carry.
The likes of Nathanial Peteru, Jesse Malcolm and Troy Leo impressed at various stages as well, but ultimately the Bears were their own worst enemy.
Souths got scoring underway in the eighth minute when Travis Waddell barged his way over from dummy half.
Scott Doyle showed plenty of strength to bump off a couple as he scored in the 19th minute, while Connor Toia straightened and sliced straight through to make it 18-0 in the 28th minute.
Burleigh hit back straight after halftime when Sami Sauiluma and Jamie Dowling combined to break the line in the 42nd minute.
The offload was deflected off Souths and Dallas Wells was on the spot to regather the ball and score Burleigh’s first of the day.
It was exactly what the Bears needed, but some errors soon after opened the door for Matt Minto to have a run from close range, taking the score out to 24-4.
Two pin-point kicks from Harry Siejka in the 57th and 64th minutes for Kurtis Rowe and Henare Wells respectively kept Burleigh in the hunt.
The first was a nice grubber in behind the defence, while the second was a beautiful chip kick which Wells ran onto to score.
Despite scoring those three tries in a relatively short period of time, the Bears were unable to put the Magpies under any real pressure due to an off day at the kicking tee.
The Bears missed all three conversion attempts and the margin remained at two converted tries.
Some heads-up play from Minto, who slotted an unexpected field goal in the 74th minute sealed the win for the home side.
See the full scoring details and final team line-ups for this game via QRL Live
SOUTHS LOGAN MAGPIES 25 (Travis Waddell, Scott Doyle, Conner Toia, Matthew Minto tries; Jamayne Isaako 4 goals; Matthew Minto field goal) def BURLEIGH BEARS 12 (Dallas Wells, Kurtis Rowe, Henare Wells tries) at Davies Park.
