A STUNNING intercept try by Matt Forsyth has put the icing on a dramatic 36-30 win for the Cootamundra Bulldogs in their elimination final against the Wagga Kangaroos on Sunday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Leading 32-30 with two minutes remaining, the Bulldogs were put under pressure as their opponents made one final attacking push.
Seeing an opportunity, Forsyth managed to force a turnover deep inside the Bulldogs defensive half and cross over for what was his fourth try of the match.
Bulldogs coach Mark Elia, whose side had led by 22 points at one stage in the game admitted to having a few nervous moments towards the end of the match.
“Almost had a heart attack in those final stages,” he joked.
“Obviously the fact that we got off to a good start proved pivotal at the death. It ended up being pretty dicey but at the end of the day we got the win.”
It didn’t take long for the Bulldogs to draw first blood in the final with Grant Boyd scrambling over within the first three minutes to give them an early advantage.
Back to back sets saw them get over again not long after as captain Aaron Byrne converted his own try to make it 10-nil.
With the penalty count firmly in the home side’s favour and consecutive tries to Forsyth, a repeat of their 56-16 victory against the Roos a fortnight ago seemed on the cards.
The visitors eventually managed to respond in the 21st minute before scoring again to make the score 22-12 heading into half time.
They pressed the line again after the break but were let down by a series of handling errors.
In stark contrast to the first half, the penalty count swung in Wagga’s favour as tensions between the two teams ran high.
Coota was awarded a penalty and went for the kick but Byrne was unable to convert the chance.
Forsyth weaved through traffic to seal his hat trick before seeing his solo effort cancelled out almost immediately as the Roos managed to respond.
He then went from scorer to provider, setting up Chris Maher to make the score 32-18 with just over 10 minutes to go.
An altercation near the Wagga line saw a player from each side sent off with the Roos taking advantage of the disruption to score two quick tries and set up a thrilling finish.
The home side managed to regroup however and clinch a memorable victory.
Elia said the see sawing penalty count played a role in the momentum shifts within the match but commended his opposition on their effort.
“It seemed as though we got all the penalties early on but then they got a fair few later on,” he said.
“As a team Wagga looked good. We kept waiting for it to turn around but it never did. What Matt Forsyth did at the end was great and I though Aka Matapo and Stephen Chant defended well for us.”
The Bulldogs will now play Gundagai in this week’s semi final.
