Sydney University’s first division rugby league team have been narrowly defeated 30-28 by UTS in the clubs first NSW Tertiary Rugby League competition game in two seasons.
The weekend marked an exciting new chapter for Sydney University Rugby League Football Club (SURLFC), with the boys in blue kicking off the first game of the season on it’s home ground, Henson Park!
The return of Sydney Uni to the football field created great interest in the rugby league community, with the first division game being called live by Steele Sports.
With perfect weather, both the SURLFC second and first Division sides kicked off, with the Newtown Jets playing shortly after against the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs in the NSW Cup.
The firsts played an excellent game, losing narrowly to the UTS side UTS 30-28, after being behind 18 -10 at half time. The performance of the team demonstrated a strong work-rate, teamwork, and a great never-say-die attitude in the side. The boys showed emphatically that they are a first grade team. They were unlucky overall. Having taken the lead with eight minutes to go with a great try, a second try was disallowed somewhat controversially. UTS came over the top on the back of two errors by Sydney University, scoring a late game winning try.
In all, the first division side showed they were a team to be reckoned with, and can take a lot of stock from this performance.
Special congratulations must go to the Kobe Jones Man of the Match in first division, Adam Sarkis. Sarkis will receive his $100 gift voucher courtesy of Kobe Jones.
The second division team was involved in a tight contest for the first 20 mins of the match, before UTS scored its first try.
Sydney Uni fought back however to end up leading the 12-4 at half-time, only to perform commandingly in the second half, taking control early and winning by a convincing a 32-4 margin.
The second division team showed plenty of competition and resolve, with a number of players earmarked for future first division call-ups. Special congratulations and mention go to Kurt Lewis, who was the Kobe Jones Man of the Match in second division. Lewis also collects a $100 gift voucher courtesy of Kobe Jones.
Sydney Uni first grade tries: Adam Sarkis 3, Gideon Mzembe, Tom McCarthy, Andre Rossini, goals: T McCarthy, 2
Sydney Uni second grade tries: Alfred Fifita 2, Stephen Tsiotis, Matthew Mack, Graham Harris, Kurt Lewis, goals: K Ngatai 3, A Fifita 1
