Gutsy Dolphins go down by two to Jets
Redcliffe Dolphins co-captain Kyle Schneider is proud of the fight his side showed in their Round 10 loss to the Ipswich Jets.
In another nail-biting clash after last week’s victory over the Brisbane Tigers, the Dolphins this week came out on the wrong side of the scoreboard, going down 22-20 at Kayo Stadium on Saturday night.
The heated match came right down to the wire, with centre Will Partridge bursting through a gap with just two minutes left on the clock to bring his side within striking distance.
But a missed conversion stopped the Dolphins short of an incredible comeback, with the Jets taking home the two points.
Schneider said they knew they were in for a tough match but a few too many errors didn’t help their cause.
“Ipswich have been travelling pretty good this year and obviously we knew it was going to be a tough game today,” he said.
“It could have been anyone’s game at the end, so probably a bit unlucky there, but it was a tough-fought win for them.
“I thought we started really well. I thought our intent and energy at the start of the game was really good.
“But we gave away a bit too many penalties and errors in that sort of middle third of the game, which let us down a little bit.
“If we can build some more onto that start, then we’ll be able to put some more of those performances in.”
After an intense opening 12 minutes, Redcliffe were the first to break the deadlock, as fast hands saw winger Junior Tupou cross in the corner.
Fullback Zac Miles then extended the lead just four minutes later with a stunning effort, outleaping his opposition to score.
With impressive defence from the Dolphins, Redcliffe kept their opposition to zero until the 26th minute when Ipswich hooker Ollie Pascoe finally broke through from dummy-half to get them on the board.
Redcliffe carried their 10-6 lead into halftime but after the break, the momentum started to swing Ipswich’s way as a few costly errors and penalties helped them back into the game.
Centre Luke Maddaford crossed in the 48th to give Ipswich the lead for the first time at 12-10.
Tupou then scored his second just seven minutes later but the Jets kept coming, again through Maddaford and then through winger Ken Maumalo in the 72nd.
Partridge was the last tryscorer, but it was too late for the Dolphins.
While visibly disappointed with the result, Schneider said he was heartened by the fight the team have shown over the past two weeks.
“All pre-season, we worked on competing and having that initiative to compete to the end,” he said.
“I think that’s really coming out in our games and last week clutching that win at the end was key for us.
“Obviously today didn’t go our way, but we need to continue to fight a bit more and hopefully those ones come off.”
The Dolphins will now head into a week off with the bye.
With no training scheduled for the Cup squad, Schneider said it would be good to get away and come back ready to move up the ladder.
“It’s probably a good refresher for mid-season, it gives the bodies a chance to heal and a bit of a chance to refresh and come at the back end of the year, go hard and hopefully make our way to the finals,” he said.