By MARK CASHMAN

Round Nine of the Shute Shield competition has been run and won and the big winners were Northern Suburbs and Eastern Suburbs.

Gordon remained on top of the competition table but Norths jumped from fourth to second with an emphatic 46-17 win over Randwick in the 7TWO TV match of the round on Saturday.

Easts’ win over Uni was significant in that it marked them as true contenders and also pushed them into the top six for the first time this season.

Eastwood kept their season ticking over with a 45-27 win over Manly while the Hunter Wildfires had a morale boosting victory over the Two Blues.

In the other game West Harbour were too strong in the middle stages of their game against Penrith at Nepean Rugby Park.

Here’s how all the games panned out.

NORTHERN SUBURBS V RANDWICK

Northern Suburbs have gone under the radar for much of the first couple of months of the 2020 Shute Shield but they made a massive statement of intent with their 46-17 win over Randwick on Saturday.

The Galloping Greens, who a fortnight ago were sitting on top of the competition table, couldn’t come up with any answers to the six tries that the Shoremen were able to put on.

The win sees Norths jump to second place on the ladder with four rounds left before the playoffs begin on October 17.

Ironically Randwick got on the scoreboard first when a kick in midfield from Norths was charged down and that led to the elusive Maurice Longbottom cantering over under the posts.

Norths dragged themselves back into the contest with a couple of penalty goals from Angus Sinclair and they then put on the after-burners with tries from Harry Burey, Hugh Sinclair and Brad Hemopo.

The Wicks did apply some pressure in the minutes leading into halftime but the accuracy of Norths offloading and their ruck speed was a joy to watch and they just did not cope.

The score at halftime was 27-10 to Norths and they continued to put on the pressure with tries from Nick Duffy, who is in career best form, and Cam Clark.

Clark had a fine all round game and managed to lay on two other tries to team-mates on top of the one that he scored himself.

Norths coach Earl Va’a liked the way that his side’s defence had come together.

“It was a lot better than the week before against Eastwood,” Va’a said in reference to the 38 points Norths leaked in Round Eight.

“We connected a lot better as a defensive unit and that enabled our attack to score some good tries.

“I particularly liked our catch and pass game under pressure which I am sure will get a good workout against Gordon who will be a huge test for us.”

Randwick coach Ben McCormack was impressed with the 80 minute shift that Norths delivered on Saturday against his side.

“They were impressive,” McCormack said in the wake of the game.

“They used the ball really well, passing and offloads we’re crisp and the speed of ruck ball had us on the back foot for much of the game.

“We just didn’t mount any pressure – I think we failed to get past one phase on our first six structured possessions so we never really asked many questions of their defence.

“You can’t compete at this level giving away possession that easily.”

NORTHERN SUBURBS 46 (Brad Hemopo, Hugh Sinclair, Nick Duffy, Harry Burey, Nathan Russell, Cam Clark tries; Angus Sinclair 5 conversions, 2 pen goals) d RANDWICK 17 (Maurice Longbottom, Brooklyn Hardaker tries; Ben Donaldson 2 conversions, pen goal).

EASTERN SUBURBS V SYDNEY UNI

Eastern Suburbs coach Pauli Taumoepeau reckons his side got lucky in their 22-14 win over Sydney Uni on Saturday, but there’s no way that he’s going to hand back the spoils.

The Beasties scored three tries to two and have now forced their way into the Shute Shield top six for the first time in 2020 after a clunky start to the season and now look destined for a spot in the final six and the playoffs.

“I’ve got to admit that we got lucky in that game,” Taumoepeau said.

“Every one of our three tries was scored against the run of play and to be honest with you I would have liked to have got some pay off the opportunities that we actually created.

“But that’s the way things go at times and errors on our part mixed in with Uni’s solid defence in their red zone meant that we weren’t able to convert.

“Our front row got through a heap of work throughout the day. That was a huge challenge for them and I felt they did well.”

Easts had a wealth of Super Rugby talent on their way back from the Waratahs with Tom Staniforth, Lalaki Foketi and Alex Newsome all available for this game.

Taumoepeau said in the lead up to the game that he wanted his regulars to lead the way in this game as they acclimatised to the way of the Shute Shield.

The Beasties jumped out of the blocks well with tries to Richie Woolf and Lalaki Foketi seeing the home side in this ladies day fixture jump out to a 14-0 lead.

But Uni as we know are Uni and they managed to work their way back into the game with tries to first scrum half Banjo Travers and centre Will McDonnell pulling them back into the game.

That was the way that the game sat for much of the two middle quarters until first Dan Donato kicked a crucial penalty goal and then Newsome iced the game with a crucial try.

Uni coach Michael Hodge said late changes to his side had had an effect on their performance.

“We weren’t at our best,” Hodge said.

“A few late changes disrupted our flow, but it was our execution at set piece and first phase launch that let us down.

“Easts will admit they can be better too, but they took their opportunities, scoring all 3 of there tries on the back of our mistakes. They will be there and a threat during finals.

“We’ve only played eight games this season, but will need to be at a finals level of intensity for the next three weeks. We need to be better.”

EASTERN SUBURBS 22 (Alex Newsome, Lalaki Foketi, Richie Woolf tries; Daniel Donato 2 conversions, pen goal) d SYDNEY UNI 14 (Banjo Travers, Will McDonnell tries; Connor O’Shea 2 conversions, pen goal).

EASTWOOD V MANLY

Eastwood got their season back in some sort of order after their 45-27 win over Manly on Saturday but coach Ben Batger wants his side to show more killer instinct if they want to contend.

The Woods led 24-3 and 37-17 at different stages but let the Marlins back into the contest in what was an open and entertaining affair that delivered 10 tries.

Batger said it was a good victory but he called on his side not to let sides back into games, a habit they have been doing in recent weeks.

“Yes it was a good win. Our first half really set the tone for the afternoon and I think if we finished off our chances we could have put the game away by half-time,” Batger said.

“We led 24-3 and 37-17 so we need to learn to not let teams back into games.

“Having said that I thought we played a lot smarter than the game against Norths the week before.

“We exited well and our defence, despite conceding 27 points, had a lot more purpose so it was a step in right direction.”

Manly continued to bed in their halves combination of Harry Emery and Harley Attwater and got some pay from that with the Marlins No.9 crossing for a couple of tries.

Unfortunately Emery dislocated his shoulder in the second half and looks to be gone for the rest of the season.

A yellow card to Woods prop Willie Leoso opened the door a bit for the visitors at 24-3 and they put on a couple of nice tries to make the score 24-17.

But the Woods powered on once they had their numbers back and the scorer quickly blew out to 38-17 before another surge from the Marlins.

The game was the 100th first grade game for James Hilterbrand and it’s a shame it couldn’t end with a win for the Marlins.

Manly coach Matt McGoldrick said: “It was a poor first half from us with too many first phase errors and that allowed Eastwood to score some pretty easy tries without really earning it.

“We did get back into the game but again gifted them a couple of soft tries.”

There were some bright spots with Yool Yool working well off the ball and showing nice touch in attack.

“At the end of the day we didn’t play with any physicality and looked flat from the beginning,” McGoldrick added.

EASTWOOD 45 (Willie Leoso, Ed Craig, Ratu Tuisese, Matthew Gonzalez, Enoka Muliufi, Fabian Goodall tries; Tane Edmed 6 conversions) d MANLY 27 (Max Douglas, Alex Dazell, Harry Emery 2 tries; Harley Attwater 2 conversions, pen goal).

WESTERN SYDNEY TWO BLUES V HUNTER WILDFIRES

It was always going to be a tough ask for the Hunter Wildfires to make their presence felt in this year’s Shute Shield when you consider all the hurdles that have been thrown their way.

The Wildfires only got the green light to compete four weeks out from the first game of the season and the jump in class has been something that coach Scott Coleman has been trying to bridge ever since.

There have been the blowouts brought about by slicker teams making the most of the back end of games but Coleman has been bringing his side up to the level required game by game.

So the Wildfires 28-15 win over the Western Sydney Two Blues on Saturday was a major step in the right direction for the Newcastle based club.

Coleman said: “”For me, the win was right up there. I know how hard these guys have worked and the commitment they have made.

“Some of them travel distance to be part of it. The boys were just happy. They didn’t jump around or anything.

“They just filed into the shed and we had a chat about what we could have done better.

“None of them are getting a cent. You can’t fault their commitment and desire.”

One area though where Coleman will have to put some more work in is the team song, a ditty brought out and belted out after a win.

“I had to sing the team song on my own because no one knew it,” Coleman added.

“I hope everyone at home gets a bit of belief in the program. We have been competitive in every game.

“When we lost [31-21] against Easts before the bye, the boys were really disappointed. At the start of the year, that would have been a good result.

“Being competitive is no longer good enough.”

The home side came into the game on the back of their first win of the season after their effort against Penrith and they jumped out to a 10-0 lead early.

That came on the back of a try from Waratahs squad member and former Eel Tepai Moeroa and some nice work from Two Blues flyhalf Rory Garrett.

The Wildfires came back into the game with a try to hooker Phil Bradford but the Two Blues scored just before the break and went into the break 15-7 ahead.

From there though it was all Hunter and tries from Taulogo Lalago, Chad Northcott capped off a great half of footy for the visitors.

Wildfires No.10 Brendan Holliday contributed with the ball in hand and kicked well off the tee.

“When we held the ball, we were the better team by far,” Coleman said.

“At half-time, the boys were disappointed and knew if we hung on to the ball we could come home.”

HUNTER WILDFIRES 28 (Phil Bradford, Taulogo Lalago, Chad Northcott, Hamish McKie tries; Brendan Holliday 4 conversions) d WESTERN SYDNEY TWO BLUES 15 (Tepai Moeroa, Michael Zakhia tries; Rory Garrett conversion, pen goal).

GORDON V SOUTHERN DISTRICTS

The Prime Minister Scott Morrison is a Southern Districts fan and their No.1 ticket holder but he must have come away from Chatswood Oval on Saturday impressed with the way that Gordon had picked his side apart.

The Highlanders beat the Rebels 56-21 in a fine all round performance that kept the home side undefeated and six points clear at the top of the competition ladder.

But ‘ScoMo’ and his minders got a first hand look at how good the Highlanders are in 2020 as they scored sevens tries and had the game pretty much parcelled up in the first 20 minutes.

The PM sat on the sidelines with a beer in hand and chatted with the Gordon ball boys who must have headed home with quite a story to tell.

Gordon coach Darren Coleman had been a bit twitchy about his depth at tight head prop after losing two the week before against Randwick but the home side scrum went okay and there will be reinforcements arriving soon.

Sean Dillon was yellow carded at one stage in the second half against a scrum that pretty handy but overall put in a good performance.

The scrums did go uncontested at one stage and that probably was decision that gave the Highlanders more pay than Souths.

The Highlanders led 42-7 just after the halftime break and that signalled a rally from Souths with a couple of tries but their cards were marked and tries to Robbie Abel and Mahe Vailanu gave the final scoreline.

Vailanu played in the back row and was continue throe in Souths side scoring two tries and putting on some great hits in defence.

Coleman said: “I was pleased with the clinical nature of our first 45 minutes where we led 42-7 against a team that I believe is very good.

“Souths were very physical and I’m sure if they had a few more of their key troops in there on Saturday the scoreline would have been a lot closer.

“Their scrum with Tetera Faulkner joining them now will cause headaches for other teams going forward.

“Once again Mahe (Vailanu), Harrison Goddard and Rodney Iona’s control were standouts and I can’t wrap their consistency enough.”

Coleman said It was great to have Robbie and Jake Abel back in the tartan jersey adding that Joey Walton had returned an even more accomplished player than when he left.

“It sets up what will be a perfect derby day next week against a Norths team that knows how to win,” he said.

Souths coach Todd Louden says that Gordon are the team to beat for the premiership.

“‘DC’ (Coleman), ’BM’ (Brian Melrose) and the coaching staff have them primed and very well organised around their halves,” Louden said.

“They have critical depth across their team outside of maybe props and our scrum started to make good traction until they went uncontested.

“We have just been riddled with injuries that has decimated the team since Uni.

“If we can get some consistency with team members and get some solid training we will start to make some headway in the last four games.

“The bright side is we have created a lot of depth moving forward into backend of the season and 2021 so depth won’t be an issue next season.

“The number of debutants we have had this year in first grade has been huge and rewarding.”

GORDON 56 (Brandon Fa’avae-eli, Robbie Abel, Mahe Vailanu 2, Ahmu Tuimalealiifano, Joey Walton, Oliver Smeallie tries; Rodney Iona 7 conversions, Reece MacDonald conversion) d SOUTHERN DISTRICTS 21 (Andrew Tuala, Daniel Bell, Laurence Tominiko tries; Chris Kagiassis 3 conversions).

PENRITH V WEST HARBOUR

West Harbour dragged themselves up the Shute Shield competition ladder with a hard fought 38-29 win over Penrith on Saturday.

Wests got out to a handy start scoring early through winger James Turner who continues to show increasing confidence and sound defence.

The two teams continued to go score for score for much of the next 30 minutes but it was a yellow card to Penrith’s Willie Tooala that saw the visitors get away to a 31-12 lead.

Wests coach Mark Gudmunson said the win was one of those messy ones that no one team would have been happy with.

“It always tough to go the Nepean Rugby Park and play because it was a big day for them,” he said.

“The aim we had in mind was to keep making improvements across all grades and of course the first grade side.

“The game was a bit all over the shop. It was a tough battle early and we knew it was going to be.

“We gained some dominance in the middle stage of the game and then took the foot off the gas.

“They stayed in the fight and came back into the game late, but it was good to close it out.”

Backrower Damien Flemming scored two tries as did Turner and flyhalf Patrick Pellegrini continued his good form.

Emus scrum half Terry Fanolua scored twice at critical stages for the home side and gave good service to his backline.

Dean Blore continued to show glimpses of his class and is sure to trouble the sides that the Emus play in the final four weeks of the season.

WEST HARBOUR 38 (Damien Fleming 2, Patrick Pellegrini, James Turner 2 tries; Pellegrini conversion, Tavite Gadeisuva 2 conversions) d PENRITH 29 (Ezekiel Seia, Terry Fanolua 2, Dean Blore, Temisi Charley tries; Blore 2 conversions)

IMAGE: KAREN WATSON