Weakened Blues Face Ferocious Forwards
Newcastle Herald
Saturday June 3, 2006
DEFENDING premiers Nelson Bay will field an understrength side against Macquarie in the Newcastle Rugby League match of the round at Peacock Field tomorrow.
All matches will be played tomorrow because of the Country Divisional Championships final today.The Blues will be without three star players in captain and five-eighth Leo Dynevor (back), representative centre Andrew Spicer (calf) and utility Brent Mulholland (ankle).Coach Robert Relf will have a nervous wait this afternoon as four of his other top players are involved in the country final.Prop Ben Murphy has not been able to back up for the Blues after representative matches this season, but Relf has asked him to tomorrow.The high-flying Blues were well beaten 30-16 by Western Suburbs last Sunday with Murphy missing and face a ferocious Macquarie forward pack tomorrow.Murphy is joined in the Newcastle team by hard-working Blues back-rowers Cheyne McIntyre and Ji Hill and experienced halfback Warwick Colley.Spicer has been ruled out of the Newcastle team, making him ineligible to play for his club side.The same will apply to Hill if he is ruled out of the Newcastle side today."I was going to use Ji at five-eighth to replace Leo, but if he's out, then I'll look at other options," Relf said."It gives other blokes a chance to step up and show me they can play first grade again."Macquarie will be hard to beat when we've got a full side, so with five or six out it will be a challenge."Macquarie's Briggs brothers, Scott and Jacob, were absent when Nelson Bay beat the Scorpions 20-16 at the Bay earlier in the season.Scott was the Newcastle halfback for the first game of this year's championship campaign before being replaced by Colley, a move which adds more spice to tomorrow's match."I keep hearing how good these Briggs boys are, but I haven't seen them play yet," Relf said. "I just hope it's against Wests or some other team in the next few weeks and not against us on Sunday."Tomorrow's other big match is the Coalfields derby between Kurri and Cessnock at Kurri Sportsground.Kurri have not won a match since round four, when they defeated Wyong 32-16, and they have fallen from first to ninth on the ladder.Lakes United will be hoping to maintain a share of the lead when they play South Newcastle at Townson Oval.Central Charlestown have an eye on their fifth win of the season against the struggling Wyong Roos at St John Oval.Raymond Terrace, who are in a three-way tie for the lead with the Bay and Lakes, play the winless Maitland Pumpkin Pickers at Lakeside.
© 2006 Newcastle Herald