Braidwood Redbacks lose agonising game to Crookwell Dogs

On one of the hardest road trips in the competition, the Redbacks went to Crookwell with one of their smallest available squads of the season.

With eight players out through injury, the Redbacks had to call on old boys Nick Blackmore and Damien Bigg to make up a four-man bench for the tough assignment in Crookwell.

Missing key backs Riley Turner, Justin Dariol, Bill Hatzis, Will Northcott, Joshua Southwell-Nobs and Steve Newsome all through injury, coach Box Hayes had to completely reshuffle his back line with Ben Howard moving to fly half, Harry Shoemark to fullback and Robbie Bell from Flanker to outside centre.

However, led by inspirational captain and vice-captain Jake Holland and Cade Graff the Redbacks finished strong against the Dogs, having kept them scoreless in the second half but unfortunately came up three points short.

Crookwell started the game strongly and posted two quick tries and two penalty goals which saw then shooting out to an 18 point lead.

Things were looking ominous for the Redbacks who were finding it hard to cope with the positional changes and the large penalty count that was building up against them.

However, late in the first half, led by the forwards, the Redbacks started to work their way into the game and were rewarded with a fine try to fullback Harry Shoemark.

This marked the turning point in the game. With strong halftime words from coach Box and captain Jake Holland the Redbacks started the second half with renewed vigour.

The forwards started to take control with strong controlled ball carriage that allowed the backline to execute a number of set moves that kept Crookwell on the back foot.

With the Redbacks scrum now dominating the Dogs and the penalty count starting to even up Braidwood were rewarded with a try to winger Will Shoemark which left the Redbacks only eight points behind at 18-10.

With the pressure now fully on the Dogs, the Redbacks continued to attack the line with and again were rewarded when halfback Simon "Kiwi" Hopkins, from the back of a ruck, slipped through a small gap in the Dogs defensive line, totally bamboozled the defenders with a dummy and a sidestep, and ran 30 metres for a fine individual try.

When five-eighth Ben Howard missed the conversion, the game was set up for a grandstand finish with the scores sitting at 18-15 to the Dogs. The remaining 10 minutes saw some great Crookwell defence which denied the Redbacks to what would have been a memorial victory over one of the comps toughest sides.

Coach Box Hayes said after the game how proud he was of the team, especially the passion and guts all players showed in working there way back into the game at 18-0 down.

This game was a great example of where the Redbacks are at present as a rugby union side, and the camaraderie, strong culture and depth within the squad that allows the team to put in such a great performance with so many injuries.

The coaching and management team have never been more proud of the boys than they were at full time on Saturday and also want to thank the Braidwood travelling supporters for making the long trip. Three points went to captain Jake Holland, Two points Kiwi Hopkins and one point each to Harry Shoemark and Cade Graf. Players player went to Ben Howard for his out of position performance at fly half.

This weekend sees the Redbacks back at home against an in form Jindabyne Bushpigs. Saturday is also the inaugural Braidwood Redbacks Ladies Day where the club will recognise the important role women play in the rugby club and the community in general.

All ladies (whether they like rugby or not) are welcome the Rec Ground this Saturday from 2pm for complimentary nibbles and drinks which will include lucky door prizes donated by some fantastic Braidwood businesses.

After the game on Saturday the Redbacks and supporters will be venturing to the Royal Mail Hotel for a "Retro Footy Jumper, Jeans and Joggers" night. So pull out your old footy jumper (or raid your Dad's wardrobe), put on your jeans and joggers, and head to the Royal Mail for a night with the Redbacks and some great 80s music.