As the rain pelted down, the red & black fans streamed into Bear Park to cheer on the team as they took on the Rabbitohs for NSWRL Magic Round, the first clash since the 2023 Grand Final. The crowd bellowed as the boys took to the field and from the first whistle we knew we were in for a treat. Very soon after kick off, Ben Stevanovic comes up with the ball after a kick, offloads very quickly to Ben Talty who hits the ball at pass and swan dives under the posts to light up the scoreboard. Kieran Hayman converts and the Bears lead 6 – 0. Less than five minutes later, the ball sweeps to the wing, Jake Toby sends a long ball into the arms of Allan Fitzgibbon who flies for the corner and the crowd goes wild! Hayman converts again and the lead extends to 12 – 0. Red & black still on the charge, Rua Ngatikaura puts through a short grubber that is pounced on by Jerry Key who rolls it over the white line. The sideline kick is waived away and the score stands at 16 – 0. Only three minutes following, and Toby makes a break, shrugging off Bunnies like flies, finds a supporting Talty who bags his second try of the match. Hayman converts and the score blows out to 22 – 0 at this point. With almost thirty minutes gone in the first half, the Bunnies find their attack and add two converted tries to the board within a five-minute period. Not done yet, a beautiful Toby pass meets a fast-paced Tui Katoa on the wing who drives across the white line. Again, Hayman converts and the boys hit the sheds up 28 – 12.
The second half started much slower and the rain got heavier. Almost 24 minutes passed with both teams holding their defensive lines strongly. Rabbitohs were first to break the stalemate with an easy try that went unconverted. A penalty inside the 10 mtr line saw Bears take the points as Hayman slotted the ball over the posts to push the score line to 30 – 16. With ten minutes left on the clock, the crowd were getting excited that a red & black home ground win was on the cards. Bunnies tried to quiet the stir with one last effort that saw another unconverted try go up on the scoreboard. Holding firm, the mighty Bears held on to secure a great win 30 – 20 and add the two points to the tally. With some round 11 upsets in the other NSW Cup games, Bears hold their position at 4th on the ladder, but sitting on equal points with second and only two points off first. The season is getting exciting!
Catching up with Head Coach Pat Weisner post-game, he stated “We flew out of the blocks and played some superb attacking football in the wet to get to a 22nil lead. In the 1st half we went 15 from 15 completions and really controlled the game.” He went on to comment, “In the second half the weather and a spirited Souths team made it more difficult, but the result was never in danger, and it was a good performance where we only missed 13 tackles in 80mins. We will need to tackle just as well this weekend vs the Warriors who are big, strong and in great form after their win against Penrith at Magic Round.”
This Sunday we head back to Bear Park for our last home game for 5 weeks, taking on the New Zealand Warriors. The Warriors defeated the ladder leaders, Panthers, on Saturday and a shaper up to be a formidable opponent. We will need all the red & black members and fans to come out and bolster the boys before they head off for a long stint on the road. Wear the Bear and fill the hill!
We will also be hosting our inaugural Indigenous Round with the team wearing the first ever North Sydney Bears Indigenous Jersey. See below for more info. We start the day with an U9s Gala Event, followed by a special indigenous dance performance, smoking ceremony and welcome to country address prior to the main game kicking off at 1pm. Be there!
This week we see Havi Tupouniua named in the NSW Cup team who has returned from a Grade 3 MCL injury and has been playing well in Ron Massey Cup with Hills Bulls. Regan Hughes is still managing a groin injury that was sustained earlier in the season. The Axis team are working with Hughes to manage his workload and ensure his strength continues to grow.
Riley Meyn was stretchered off the field in Saturday’s game but is back up and walking under instructions from the Axis team. We are still waiting scan results to know full extent of injury but feeling positive on a return soon.
Our long term injured players are progressing well with both players recovering from Lisfranc damage. Nathaniel Roache has started walking, progressing well through rehab and due for part 2 of surgery in a couple of weeks While Jack Boyling has also started walking and progressing well through rehab at this stage with hope of return in 7-8 weeks.
