A pair of western area juniors made their presence felt on Thursday night as the NSW Country Eagles scored their first win of the National Rugby Championship.
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Wallabies Tom Robertson and Ned Hanigan returned to the side after being part of the Rugby Championship squad, and both played key roles in the Eagles’ 33-19 state derby clash with the Sydney Rays.
Dubbo Kangaroos junior Robertson added even more class to a front row already featuring former Wallabies Paddy Ryan and Tolu Latu.
Coonamble product Hanigan, packing down on the side of the scrum, was everywhere and got through a mountain of work in the breakthrough victory.
While the two boom recruits played key roles in the win, Jake Gordon was the hero and scored a hat-trick for the Eagles.
The scrum set the tone early, dominating so much the Rays’ Cam Betham was sin-binned.
Gordon scored the first try soon after and the Eagles wouldn’t trail throughout the game.
The Rays rallied in the second half and had a chance to get within two points but Hanigan stole the ball well to snuff out the try-scoring opportunity.
The Eagles take on the powerful Canberra Vikings this weekend in Armidale with Robertson and Hanigan again a chance to line up.
The pair will be hoping they do enough to catch the eye of Wallabies coach Michael Cheika after limited chances during the opening four weeks of the Rugby Championships.
Both have spent the majority of the competition on the bench.
But strong showings for the Eagles, combined with the Wallabies last-start loss to Argentina, could see Cheika change things up. The Wallabies take on South Africa on September 30.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
