Shute Shield round one results: Western Sydney Two Blues snap drought as Manly, Easts post big wins

The new tackle height laws, a deluge of rain, and a major statement by the defending premiers were all features of the opening round of Sydney’s club rugby competition.

But the highlight had to be Western Sydney’s drought-breaking win over Gordon at Eric Tweedale Stadium.

“We haven’t won a round one match since 2015, so we’re really happy to get that result,” Two Blues coach Sailosi Tagicakibau said of his team’s narrow 22-19 victory.

The Two Blues established a big lead and then fought off a raging comeback by Gordon to steal the points, with fullback Christian Papa starring in a man-of-the-match display.

“That was Christian’s starting debut, he came off the bench in the last game of last season against West Harbour, this is only his second year of union, he’s got a league background,” Tagicakibau said.

Papa’s bright opening performance gives the coach a selection headache.

Originally, Tagicakibau was going to name Abel Magalogo at fullback, but a raft of injuries in the midfield – including to Danny Solomona and Cardiff Vaega – forced him to shift Magalogo to inside centre, giving Papa his chance.

“As I’ve said to the players from the start, if you play well, you keep the jersey,” Tagicakibau said.

“We’ve got a number of quality players coming back in, but they have to prove they can step up to the plate.”

While the new sternum tackle law was introduced for the first time in a competition game in Australian rugby over the weekend, most felt the referees handled the calls well and there weren’t an avalanche of penalties.

Eastern Suburbs coach Ban Batger lost one player to the bin for a tackle above the sternum.

“We had an unfortunate one that was called as the player fell into it, but under the law it was the right call, and then we had another in the bin for cynical play, so for eight minutes in the second half we were playing with 13 men,” Batger said.

Nevertheless, his team prevailed 31-15 over West Harbour.

“To keep them to 15 points was the most pleasing thing, we were conceding 30 points a game last year so defence was a big focus for us,” Batger said.

“I’d say we’re 50 per cent of the way there. I’ve been lucky enough to have Brian Melrose come on board, he is a proven Shute Shield coach and he’s looking after defence, he’s put a lot of time and effort into that area.”

Easts’ No.8 George Gibson produced a monster performance, leading the runs and tackles in a starring role.

There was an increase in the number of penalties blown in round one, as expected due to the new tackle law, however it’s understood to be far less than what has been seen overseas when they first introduced the sternum-height tackle rule.

Refereeing consistency around the law interpretation was a concern for coaches.

“We’re pleased with how round one went, and the efforts made by the coaches and players were really positive,” NSW Rugby Referees Association president David Marshall said.

“It’s early days but we’ll continue to have open communication with the clubs to get the balance right for this important safety issue.”

The clubs will get the chance to front the referees’ association to address any major concerns.

Meanwhile, defending champions Randwick sent a statement to the rest of the clubs that they’re ready for a title defence with a thumping 64-17 win over Hunter Wildfires in Newcastle.

In an unexpectedly dominant win, Manly secured five points over Eastwood at TG Millner Field.

“You don’t often get five points at TG Millner so I’m delighted with the result,” Manly coach Chris Delooze said.

“But it is round one, and there are plenty of things to work on.”

Having named 11 debutants in round one against Hunter last year, which the Wildfires won 27-19, Delooze was far more conservative this time.

“I learned my lesson from round one last year, this time I only had two starting debutants, and a few off the bench,” he said.

“I went with more experienced guys who were armed with the knowledge of what round one of the Shute Shield feels like.”

Manly club captain Fraser Toohey provided spark on the wing, while Sam Daly came off the bench to secure three key turnovers while Karl Main also added punch off the pine.

Eastwood fielded seven first grade debutants in the game; Lachlan Frean, Dion Yazdani, Julian Zissis, Ben Dalton, Tom Goddard, Michael Stringer, Angus Blackmore, Reece Tapine and Lucas Vass.

The rain that swept across NSW flooded Forshaw Park, which meant the Souths versus Warringah match was postponed until Sunday.

The Rats managed to score an important 36-25 victory against the home side, with fullback Ben Marr bagging a double, while five-eighth Coby Miln and winger Harvey Elms also crossed.

Isaac Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens, Oscar Schmidt-Uili and Mark O’Reilly scored tries for Souths.

Sydney University started their 2024 campaign in positive fashion with a 35-29 win over Northern Suburbs.

SHUTE SHIELD ROUND ONE RESULTS

Western Sydney Two Blues 22 defeated Gordon 19

Eastern Suburbs 31 defeated West Harbour 15

Randwick 64 defeated Hunter Wildfires 17

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Manly 32 defeated Eastwood 17

Sydney University 35 defeated Northern Suburbs 29

Warringah 36 defeated Southern Districts 25