Hospital Cup: Fittock hat-trick gives Bullsharks the edge over Norths
By TOM PRIMMER
A Joey Fittock hat-trick propelled Bond to a comprehensive victory over Norths in Round 1 as the Bullsharks confirmed they will again be a premiership threat in 2021.
The Gold Coasters opened up a 22-7 lead by the half-time break, with their potent attack proving too much for the young Norths outfit at the Canal, although the Eagles cut down the deficit in the second stanza.
Fittock was at his elusive best at fullback, while Liam Dillon picked up where he left off in 2020 with another assured performance at scrumhalf.
In the forward pack, Salesi Manu was a standout around the park and at set-piece time, a major work-on for the side over the off-season.
Bond captain Dan Boardman lauded his side’s defensive efforts in their first hit out of the season proper.
“We probably let them in the game in the second half with our discipline and errors but we kept defending which I’m very happy with,” he said.
“We will look to build on our attack systems and clean up on a few mistakes that were made and also our discipline around the break down.”
Norths head coach Pat Byron emphasised his side’s need to be more disciplined as they approach their Round 2 matchup with Jeeps this weekend.
“We need to control our own ball,” Byron said.
“That was a big focus going into the game, and unfortunately we didn’t do that. We gave Bond some really good opportunities through turnovers, and they were good enough to take them.
“I think they played well (Bond), obviously was their first game also, but I think they looked quite good for this time of year, and we know other teams are going to have a hard time beating them at home.
“I thought the effort from our players was generally good, but everyone needs to lift going into the next round v GPS.”
Bond will host Easts this weekend in a huge test of their premiership credentials.
Bond University 34 (Tries: Joey Fittock 3, Max Dowd, Liam Dillon, Dylan Row, Cons: James Abrosini 2) d Norths 21 (Tries: Kyle Foxwell, Liam Prendergast, Paulo Leleisiuao, Cons: Jacob Prideaux 3)