By MARK CASHMAN

What a weekend of Shute Shield action. Gordon make a huger statement against last year’s grand finalists Warringah, the Hunter Wildfires grab a sneaky draw against Manly and Randwick continue on their way against West Harbour.

Elsewhere Sydney Uni coped with a Covid-19 scare in their ranks to beat Penrith while Southern Districts had one hell of a tussle against the Two Blues before getting the chocolates at Forshaw.

And in the other game Eastwood took their chances in a major win against Eastern Suburbs at Woollahra Oval.

Here’s the coaches thoughts on all the games.

GORDON v WARRINGAH at Chatswood Oval

They’ve tried to fly under the radar in the opening weeks of the Shute Shield but Gordon made an unmissable statement when they manhandled Warringah from the opening minutes to the very end of their 52-7 win on Saturday.

In scoring eight tries to one against last year’s grand finalists, the Highlanders showed that they will go deep into this competition and the fact that they will have a flow of stars coming back from Super Rugby at the start of September makes them even scarier.

Jack Dempsey, Charlie Abel and Joey Walton will come back from the Waratahs while Charlie’s brother Jacob, a very handy scrum half, is expected to return from the Western Force.

The key though for Gordon coach Darren Coleman is to work all this talent into a group that can work together to break the club’s recent run of outs.

That aside Gordon based their most complete performance of recent seasons on the back of a dominant scrum and an appetite for robust contact at the breakdown.

It all started in the opening couple of minutes when the Rats set piece came under pressure big time.

The Rats had seen this coming and tried to blunt the Gordon scrum by starting with Faavae Sila and although he tried hard the synergy and power of the Highlanders scrum was there for all to see and it took its toll.

The toll from the scrum work also sapped a lot of the energy from Rats skipper Sam Ward’s running game, an essential part of getting their lively back three on the front foot.

On top of that Rodney Iona’s kicking game consistently kept Gordon at the right end of the field and made Warringah have to work hard to get any sort of territory.

The score was 26-0 at the break and continued to build right throughout the second half and it was only in the final minutes that Warringah were able to get over the line through Tyson Davis.

Gordon coach Coleman said the scoreline was a nice surprise.

“Yes that was a result that we worked hard for. Those days don’t happen all the time so it was important the boys enjoy them when they do,” Coleman said.

“The Rats just had an off day. They’ll be back, there’s no doubt about that.

“We spent a lot of time on our maul and scrum this week in anticipation of the weather so it was pleasing to get pay.
“I’d been riding our forwards and staff hard as we hadn’t scored a maul try in three games so to get four tries off the back of it was pleasing.

“Rod Iona (flyhalf) and Harrison Goddard (scrumhalf) were solid again but Rhys Brodie and Brandon Faavae-Eli (props) are unsung heroes of the team.

Coleman added that the hard work was not over for his group.

“We must add to to our game in the consistency of execution and we have some work ons to get back to.

“No team ever won a championship in Round Four so there are lot of twists and turns to happen in this year’s Shute Shield yet.”.

Warringah coach Mike Ruthven said there weren’t too many areas where they were in the game.

“That was really disappointing and not part of the script (for this season),” Ruthven said.

“Our scrum was obviously an issue but we have a very good scrum coach and the lads will continue to work hard there.

“We found it very difficult to get any rhythm in attack and when we did we found ourselves executing poorly at our breakdown combined with simple handling errors.

“Every time we looked to be building some pressure we let them off the hook.

“Full credit to the Gordon forward pack who were physical in defence and competed hard for the footy

“I thought we scrambled really well at times and at no point did the team roll over – that was evident in their desire to be the last scorer of the game.”

GORDON 52 (Mahe Vailanu 2, Harrison Goddard, Rodney Iona, Brandon Quinn, Lucas Price, Ahmu Tuimalealiifano, James Widders-Leece tries; Iona 6 conversions) d WARRINGAH 7 (Tyson Davis try; Harley Attwater conversion).

EASTERN SUBURBS V EASTWOOD at Woollahra Oval

The importance of taking your chances when they come in the Shute Shield was underlined as Eastwood defeated Eastern Suburbs 20-17 in a thriller on Saturday.

In a day when a draw may well have done both teams justice, the Woods scored three tries from their handful of opportunities and were able to manage having fullback Chris Bell and Michael Icely off the field for yellow cards at different times.

Late in the game Eastwood led 20-10 but the Beasts struck late with a try to Faalelei Sione which brought them back into the game.

“It was a classic wet weather football game where both teams tried to play territory. Easts probably did it better in first half while we probably did it better in the second half,” Eastwood head coach Ben Batger said.

“I think we might have had only four or five opportunities to score and we got three which was critical.

“Sione Tau was brilliant in his first game of Shute Shute in seven years, while Matt Gonzales scored a great individual try but it really was a team effort .

“To win at Easts playing 60 minutes with 14 men and winning only 50 percent of your lineouts takes a lot of character and again I think we grew as a team.”

Tau is an interesting story. He last played at the Woods back in 2013 with coach Batger (in his pump at that time at fullback for the Woods) and has spent the time since playing in France for a number of clubs including Agen and Bayonne.

His family has stayed here in Australia and he is keen to spend time with them as his daughter grows up.

Easts coach Pauli Taumoepeau tipped his hat to the championship qualities of his opposition.

“I thought we started well. It seemed like we had territorial advantage and it looked as though we about to get some pay from it. Then it turned,” he said.

“Eastwood did what championship teams do and took their opportunities when they were presented.

“I thought they (Woods) fought hard and kept us frustrated in patches of the game. They’re a great team with some great spark sprinkled around.”

Taumoepeau said Jack Digby, his backrower, was the best for the Beasts while Tane Edmed on the other side continues to show how good he will be.

EASTWOOD 20 (Matt Gonzalez, Lachlan Shelley, Rhys Sheriff tries; Tane Edmed conversion, pen goal) d EASTERN SUBURBS 17 Lindsey Stevens, Faalelei Sione tries; Nic Holton conversion, pen goal, Daniel Donato conversion)

WEST HARBOUR v RANDWICK at Drummoyne Oval

Good defence is the basis to any run at a Shute Shield title and Randwick continued to show that they are a team on the rise with their 22-0 win over West Harbour on Saturday.

The Wicks scored three tries to nil and impressively have only conceded 15 points (only two tries) in the first four rounds of the competition.

It was Back to Wests day at Drummoyne Oval and with rain about, conditions were expected to favour the home side, but they had trouble getting any sort of pay out of their endeavours.

The Wicks were ahead 17-0 at the break and continued to power on, although somewhat patchily in the second half.

Randwick coach Ben McCormack said his side’s habits in defence and scramble were great to watch on Saturday.

“We’re pleased to get another win but once again we were very patchy in our application of pressure and execution in attack,” McCormack said.

“I reckon we left the bonus point out there with three maybe four butchered tries.

“The most pleasing things was to keep a clean score sheet again, that desperation and determination to keep the opposition to no tries is a good habit to be in.

“Our lineout bounced back and had a good day but our scrum which has been very strong so far was penalised a number of times in the second half which was disappointing and a little confusing at times.”

Elsewhere McCormack liked the look of four of his team.

“Tom Piroddi was huge in the engine room for us, plenty of physicality in his carries and defensively he was outstanding,” McCormack said.

“Tyzak Jordan at scrum half started to find some form and Simon Kennewell and Dylan Pietsch were standouts on both sides of the ball.

West Harbour coach Mark Gudmunson said there were a number of positives that came out of the match from his point of view.

“We created five or six real scoring opportunities on Saturday, but were not patient enough in the last part of it,” Gudmunson said.

“We had no ball in the first half and that is when they put 17 points on us. Credit to our defence to hold them to 17.

“Week in week out we are on the wrong side of the penalty count and are receiving too many yellow cards.

“We need to work with refs and see why we are not getting the 50/50 calls; when you’re losing, you seem to not get them at all.

“Believe it or not, we improved again this weekend and we will review and learn and prepare for the Rats at Rat Park.”

A significant gain for the Pirates is the presence of the Super Rugby experienced Jack Debreczeni who played the last 30 minutes after getting getting a clearance from Japan.

RANDWICK 22 (Dave Horwitz, Dylan Pietsch, Triston Reilly tries; Horwitz 2 conversions, pen goal) d WEST HARBOUR 0.

SYDNEY UNI v PENRITH at Uni No.2 Oval

Sydney Uni had to draw on their renowned depth in the midst a Covid-19 scare that saw 12 of their first and reserve grade sides stood down and self isolating before the 41-3 win over Penrith on Saturday.

NSW Health told the 12 to self isolate after they attended a venue in Newcastle which had been visited by a person who had the virus in the wake of the win over the Hunter Wildfires last weekend.

That saw numerous changes throughout the club’s top grades but they continued to power on against the Emus but maybe not as dominant as you would expect with a full deck of talent to draw on.

It was a busy week and it must be said that the administration of the club handled the situation extremely professionally.

They were touched by this earlier in the year when one of their players tested positive to the Corona virus in the wake of the Australian Cub Championship game against Uni of Queensland in Brisbane in March.

Uni coach Michael Hodge said it was far from an ideal preparation for the Penrith game.

“There were plenty of disruptions that’s for sure,” Hodge said. “After the game against the Wildfires it wasn’t the preparation I had envisaged at the start of the week.

“That said, we had full confidence in the young and inexperienced players who got their opportunity in both first and reserve grade.”

There were pockets of joy through the whole process with Blacktown boy, Tim Lililomaivava making his first grade debut at hooker in front of plenty of family and friends.

There was also the run on debut of Hugh Bokenham, who First XV skipper at St Jospeh’s College last year and played Australian Schools.

Bokenham got a taste for the pace and the power of Shute Shield earlier in the year when he came off the bench but according to Hodge was an absolute standout, stealing five lineouts and doing the rest of the hard yakka around the field.

“Bokenham can play lock or No.6 and certainly was not out of place out there,” Hodge said. “There is a very exciting future ahead for him.”

Others to star included Hamish Dunbar and Nick Champion de Crespigny who were physical all match.

Penrith coach John Muggleton said his side got worked over at scrum and line out time.

“But in general play we were competitive and I felt that we kicked away from possession when we were in good attacking positions,” Muggleton said.

“Defensively we really stuck it to them which from my point of view was very pleasing. There were some big hits in there that’s for sure.”

Best for the Emus were John Tuivaki, the new No.10 Dean Blore and Sosifa Funaki.

SYDNEY UNI 41 (Timmy Lilomaiava, Nic Champion de Crespigny 2, James Kane, James Armstrong tries; Kane 3 conversions) d PENRITH 3 (Dean Blore pen goal).

MANLY v HUNTER WILDFIRES at Manly Oval

Hunter Wildfires coach Scott Coleman walked away from the Village Green a happy man after their 29-all draw with Manly on Saturday, but lamenting what might have been.

The Wildfires were in this one right up to their boot straps and Coleman reckons that they could have had a crack at hitting the lead with seconds left on the clock, but a turnover jackel 40m out went unrewarded.

Earlier the visitors had hit the lead in the middle stages of the game but slipped behind as the Marlins got their act into gear.

The move to tie the game up was a single carry 15m out from winger Rob Buserau where the winger kept the legs moving in contact and managed to get over the line and get the ball down.

Flyhalf Michael Moloney then converted from adjacent to the post to come up with the final scoreline.

“That was good reward for the boys efforts over the first month of the competition,” Wildfires coach Coleman said.

“They now know that they can compete at this level and from the vibe on the bus on the way back to Newcastle on Saturday night they are certainly enjoying giving it a good crack.

“Manly let us back into the game at different stages and the copped a few yellow cards but we were good enough to take the chances when they came our way.

“We’ve got Norths next weekend at North Sydney so we can’t wait to see how we go there – looking forward to it.”

Best for the Wildfires were hooker Steve Lamont, who played colts and a year or two of grade at Northern Suburbs, the centre Angus Brown and flyhalf Moloney.

Brown is an interesting story in that he thought his footy career was just about cooked after back surgery, but he recovered so well that he got the all clear a couple of months back to play and made his Shute Shute debut on Saturday.

Manly coach Matt McGoldrick lamented his side’s error rate and their inability to finish off opportunities.

“So many errors, we just aren’t clinical enough at the moment. Our own errors are limiting our growth,” McGoldrick said.

“BJ (Hartmann) pulled his calf in the first 10 minutes. He battled through but was very limited so the No.10 curse continues as we are down to our seventh due to injuries. Most season ending.

“We won’t quit though. Big week this week against Gordon. We will be ready to go.”

MANLY MARLINS 29 (James Hilterbrand, Max Douglas, Semi Camaisala, Yool Yool, Kotoni Ale tries; Yool 2 conversions) drew with HUNTER WILDFIRES 29 (Michael Moloney, Rob Buserau, Nimilote Qio, Chad Northcott tries; Moloney 3 conversions, pen goal).

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS v WESTERN SYDNEY TWO BLUES at Forshaw Rugby Park

Southern Districts overcame a 10-point deficit at halftime to beat the Western Sydney Two Blues 37-25 in a real arm wrestle on Saturday.

The Two Blues had their noses in front 20-10 at the break and had been playing some good structured footy, but the relentless nature of the Rebels’ effort shone through in the second 40 minutes.

The home side scored 27 points through three tries in that second period as the Two Blues succumbed to fatigue and the lack of any real oomph from their bench in there latter stages of the game.

Leading the way for the Rebels was their open side breakaway Harry McLennan who has come back to Forshaw after being contracted to the Newtown Jets rugby league side.

He just went for 80 minutes with his work over the ball and defence a key part of the home side’s effort.

The Two Blues were hampered by the loss of their two locks in the first five minutes but must have been buoyed by the fact that they had the chance to score a try at the death.

The three on one situation was there for the taking but the pass went into touch and the chance of a couple of bonus points slipped away.

Southern Districts coach Todd Louden lauded the Two Blues for their efforts on the weekend.

“I felt that we were never really out of control of the game but a few things went against us in that first half,” Louden said.

“The Two Blues are a good side and they will get better as the season rolls on. Harry McLennan and Will Latu were good for us and we got some real push from Nick Brown and Liam Dwyer when they came on.

“But I’ve got to pay tribute to the Two Blues as there has been a massive cultural change there and their coach Joel Rivers is doing a great job.

“It’s a long term project but you can see that the players are engaged in what they are doing. It’s a completely different club to what I have seen over the past four years.

“They are quite solid and are playing some good footy. They came at us physically and got some pay for their efforts.”

Two Blues coach Joel Rivers said his team had again made significant strides on Saturday.

“I thought we were going to get the win at one stage there on Saturday,” Rivers said.

“And the boys thought so too. It was a great effort and I just hope that the boys are patient and recognise that we are heading in the right direction.

“It wasn’t a win in the purest sense of the word but mentally for us it was. It was a good game of rugby, our attack went well and we are now scoring some tries which was great.”

The Two Blues also got some wraps for honouring the third half after the game and stuck around for the speeches and the traditional player and supporter coach ups.

They are headed in the right direction that is for sure.

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS 37 (Phil Potgieter, Viliami Latu, Liam Dwyer, Keitel Bramston tries; Christian Kagiassis 4 conversions, 3 pen goals) d WESTERN SYDNEY TWO BLUES 25 (Kalafi Pongi, Tuitakau, Jacob Delailoa tries; Rory Garrett 2 conversions, 2 pen goals).

NORTHERN SUBURBS had the bye

IMAGE: ANDREW QUINN / GORDON RUGBY