THE Aberdeen Tigers defeated traditional rivals Scone by 28-24 in a dramatic Group 21 Rugby League minor semi final at McKinnon Field, last Saturday night.
Aberdeen were away to a good start when centre Sean Tanner chased through a grubber kick near the Scone try line in the 11th minute, he managed to bat the ball across to second rower Mark Wilton who accepted and plunged over for a try.
In the 18th minute, the Tigers extended their lead when five eighth, Troy Goodwin slipped an excellent pass to halfback Josh Bell who scored near the posts.
Centre Andrew Nicholls converted the try for a 10-0 lead.
Scone hit back in the 28th minute when they scored a try that was converted after a grubber kick had rebounded off an Aberdeen player.
The Tigers were able to strike back immediately when Josh Bell scored a fine individual try under the posts after beating a number of defenders.
Andrew Nicholls converted the try to give his side a 16-6 advantage.
With five minutes of the first half remaining, the Tigers scored again with Josh Bell getting a pass away to second rower Jhi Tanner who crossed out wide.
Andrew Nicholls converted from a difficult angle to give Aberdeen a 22-6 lead heading into halftime.
The Thoroughbreds started their comeback just three minutes after the halftime break when they scored a converted try to narrow the margin to 22-12.
In the 48th minute, Aberdeen received a double blow when Sean Tanner and replacement David Roberts were sent to the sin bin leaving the Tigers with only 11 players.
Scone were quick to take advantage of their overlap with a converted try one minute later.
The Thoroughbreds went to the lead for the first time in the game when they scored another try in the 57th minute which was converted to give them a 24-22 lead.
Scone now had all the game’s momentum. However, Aberdeen were about have their full compliment of players back on the field.
On the next occasion Aberdeen had possession of the ball, Troy Goodwin kicked deep near the eastern sideline and Scone fullback Darren Albert was forced to knock the ball over the touchline.
Shortly after the ensuing scrum, the Tigers were over for a try via winger Nathan Cantor who scored under the posts following yet another determined run.
Fullback Shane Hasselmann converted the try for his side to regain the lead at 28-24 with 17 minutes left in the match.
Despite some anxious moments in the remainder of the game, Aberdeen’s defence held firm to keep their hopes of premiership honours alive.
Best players for Aberdeen were half Josh Bell who was very elusive, particularly in the first half.
Props Daniel Hagan and Brendan Hunt provided plenty of muscle in the middle of the field. Second rower Mark Wilton came up with a massive defensive effort. Fullback Shane Hasselmann and winger Nathan Cantor both got their team out of trouble on many occasions.
Aberdeen’s team was S Hasselmann, N Cantor, A Nicholls, S Tanner, A Parker, T Goodwin, J Bell, D Hagan, D Hoogerwerf, B Hunt, J Tanner, M Wilton, S Hinschen, E Gardner, D Roberts, J Standing, D Bowen.
In reserve grade, the Merriwa Magpies beat Aberdeen 25-24 with a field goal four minutes before fulltime.
The Tigers levelled the scores at 24-24 with six minutes remaining via a converted try to Sean Millwood but it was Merriwa who was able to work their way into position for the decisive field goal.
Best players for the Tigers were second rower Eddie Gardner, lock Jason Milton, prop August Poa, fullback Sean Millwood, centre Mark Paine and halfback Joel Bateman.
Aberdeen scored an 18-14 upset victory against Greta/Branxton in the under 18 match.
The scores were tied at 14-14 after regulation time.
Six minutes into golden point extra time, fullback Jake Riley scored a brilliant individual try to cause the boil over.
The Tigers were best served by halfback Brenton Thomas, second rower Max Buckney, lock Blake Ferries, hooker Ben Clark, prop Ian Reichel, centre Blake Carter and winger Kyle Smith.
This Sunday, ResCo Park, Singleton will be the venue for the Group 21 rugby league preliminary finals.
Aberdeen will play Singleton in Under 18s starting at 10.45am.
In the first grade clash, the Tigers will also take on Singleton starting at 2pm, with the winner to claim a position in the grand final against Greta/Branxton.
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