The Valleys Diehards have maintained their unbeaten run this season with a dominant 20-0 victory of the Central Queensland Capras at Browne Park this evening.
Dally M Medallist and Diehards captain Ali Brigginshaw showed why she’s rated one of the best players in the game, controlling proceedings throughout the match while also having a hand in two Diehard tries.
Brigginshaw’s halves partner Grace Griffin also had a strong game, beating a number of defenders on separate occasions to score two great solo tries.
While the Capras showed great resilience in defence to keep the Diehards at bay in the opening 20 minutes, they were unable to maintain it for the entire contest, with the away side proving just too good.
After neither side could make the most of their opportunities in the first 20 minutes, a Capras error on their own 30-metre line invited the Diehards into good attacking territory and Brigginshaw made them pay as she threw a short ball to powerhouse backrower Kody House who crashed over in the 23rd minute.
It was then yet another error coming out of their own half that cost the Capras dearly, with Griffin slicing through from the scrum to score her first try for the night in the 30th minute.
Leading 10-0 at half-time, the Diehards maintained control throughout the second half, ultimately proving too strong for a spirited Capras outfit.
Match: Capras v Diehards
Round 4 -
home Team
Capras
6th Position
away Team
Diehards
2nd Position
Venue: Browne Park, Rockhampton
Capras head coach Amanda Ohl was pleased with her sides continued effort and commitment throughout the contest, however highlighted her sides inability to train together during the week as one of the key reasons for some of the defensive lapses.
“Tiny lapses in defence was probably what let us down, we are getting better and better each week so we just put it down to our inability to train together to work on those defensive combinations,” Ohl said.
“I was really pleased with the effort, I put a test to the girls to have a really good first 10 minutes and we were able to keep turning them away when under immense pressure but we just couldn’t maintain that throughout the entire contest."
With Chelsea Baker moved to fullback in a forced change for the home side, Ohl hopes to see her return to her role of five-eighth next week in the hope for more points in attack.
“We are getting better and better each week, so now that our defence is starting to improve, I expect a little bit more out of our attack next week,” she said.
“We had to move Chelsea to fullback due to a forced change so we’ll probably look to bring her back to the No.6 jersey next week.”
The Capras will look to register their second win of the season when they take on the Brisbane Tigers next Saturday at Totally Workwear Stadium.
Match: Tigers v Capras
Round 5 -
home Team
Tigers
5th Position
away Team
Capras
6th Position
Venue: Totally Workwear Stadium, Brisbane
While the Diehards will look to maintain their unbeaten run when they face the Tweed Seagulls at Piggabeen Sports Complex.
Match: Seagulls v Diehards
Round 5 -
home Team
Seagulls
7th Position
away Team
Diehards
2nd Position
Venue: Piggabeen Sports Complex, Tweed Heads
In one of the other BHP Premiership games today, West Brisbane Panthers gun Lauren Dam got a double during her side's 26-6 win over Tweed Seagulls at West Mitchelton.
Match: Panthers v Seagulls
Round 4 -
home Team
Panthers
4th Position
away Team
Seagulls
5th Position
Venue: Frank Lind Oval, Brisbane
Next week, the Panthers will face Burleigh Bears.
Match: Panthers v Bears
Round 5 -
home Team
Panthers
4th Position
away Team
Bears
1st Position
Venue: Frank Lind Oval, Brisbane
