The West Sydney Pirates continued on their winning ways with a 28-16 win over U.T.S. Gridiron in Week 3 of the Gridiron NSW 2013 Division season.
Hot, dry, and dusty conditions greeted the Pirates for the Week 3 game against U.T.S. Gridiron at Blue Haven on the Central Coast. Both teams were coming off Week 2 wins and both are considered to be solid Playoff chances, so this game was an important test early in the season.
U.T.S. opened the scoring in the First Quarter with a converted Touchdown, but a solid Pirate drive was capped by a Marlou Tacugue TD run which was unconverted. That score brought the Pirates within a point as the opening period came to an end with the score at 7-6 in favour of U.T.S.
U.T.S. got on the board again in the Second Quarter but they were restricted to a Field Goal after some solid Pirate Defense held them out of the endzone. A long TD run by Tacugue was followed up by a lofted David Ward to Ash Best pass for another score. Both TDs were converted with 2 point attempts and the Pirates went to the half-time break leading 22-10.
The Pirates started the second half slowly and U.T.S. were able to capitalise for another Touchdown which was also unconverted. The Pirates were solid without being spectacular in the Third Quarter and the Defense in particular were good during this period as the heat started to take its toll. The gap narrowed to 22-16 with the Pirates hanging on to their slender lead.
The final period saw the teams trade drives but it was the Pirates who managed to make the best of it adding another score, this time on a David Ward to Dean Toskoski pass, to round out the scoring at 28-16.
As expected, it was a tough battle, and the heat and hard field added to the challenges on the day.
For the Pirate Offense it was the running game that was the foundation with Marlou Tacugue the standout. The Offensive Line laid a good platform and Tacugue and his running mates took full advantage of what was on offer. New Pirate, Reece Fitzgerald had a great debut, catching three passes and generally blocking well.
The Pirate Defense was tested often by the fast-paced U.T.S. offense and they generally responded well. Glenn Beardmore had two interceptions in the Second Half which severely dented the U.T.S. comeback. The Linebackers were also good with John Palavi and John Maumau making great contributions, as did James Forster at Cornerback.
A win against a tough opponent is always a good thing but the Pirates know that there are still issues to be addressed and they will need to work on them quickly before the season gets too much older.
