| Marlins leave it late to steal much-needed win By Adam Lucius |
| What: Shute Shield round 9 |
| Who: West Harbour v Manly |
| Where: Concord Oval |
| Result: Manly 24-19 |
| Manly is where on the table: Fifth (22 points) |
80 minutes in 80 seconds:
From getting a parking spot 50m from the front gate to having your choice of 17,000 spare seats at Concord, this game had a vastly different feel to the madness and excitement of the local derby. Manly coaches through the ages will tell you the match after playing the Rats is a huge mental and physical challenge, but the Marlins looked up for it early. Tries to Ben Crerar, Harry Emery and Jack Veitch gave us a handy 17-7 halftime lead. Running with the wind in the second half, there was a fair expectation we would clear away with things. But the second half stumbles that has afflicted the side in recent weeks again raised its ugly head and West Harbour took full advantage. The Pirates piled on 12 unanswered points to take a 19-17 advantage into the final 10 minutes. We were staring at a third straight defeat until sustained pressure on the Wests line saw Conor Davidson worm his way over with just 93 second left. We felt like apologising to Pirates fans on the way out but we’ll gladly take the five points.
Where it was Won:
With the Pirates down to 14 men for the last five minutes, the Marlins turned down several shots at goal to go for glory. The boys kept their composure and worked their way through multiple phases to score at the death, collecting victory and a four try bonus point.
Marlins' best:
James Hilterbrand, Alex Humfrey, Harry Emery
What they said:
“Our second halves are like talking to a girl in a nightclub – you can’t figure out what to do or say. It doesn’t feel like a win because we didn’t really deserve it, but the ladder doesn’t lie. It shows we won it and we get to keep the points.” – hooker James Hilterbrand
Worth a mention:
This match represents the halfway mark of the season so it’s assessment time. The Marlins have played eight games for four wins and four losses. Coach Brian Melrose has been unable to field the same team two weeks in a row so continuity and rhythm have been problems. Second half collapses have cost the Marlins wins against Randwick and Warringah and almost Wests. On the plus side, the boys are only six points off second place with half a season to play. With a few familiar faces hopefully back in coming weeks, there is no reason we can’t been in the thick of things come finals time.
Where to from here:
A tricky away trip to Concord Oval to meet West Harbour awaits the Marlins. It marks the halfway point of the season and we are starting to get into must-win territory.
