PORTLAND Touch Association has finally reached the end of yet another successful season, with the division one and two grand finalists for the 2022-23 season decided after four closely-fought semi-finals last Thursday night.
The two grand finals will be played tonight at Henty Park, with the division two matchup between Tiki Pirates and Atwells Angels to be played at 6pm, and the division one final between Cougars and Al-Tryeda set for 7.30pm.
There will also be a “dash for cash” hosted by the association in between the two events, with cash prizes available for the winners.
The semi-final results were as follows:
Division 1
Cougars 14 defeated Tiki Buccaneers 6
Hat tricks to Cougars’ Patrick Mahon, Charlie Keiller and Annabel Reeves proved to be too much for Tiki Buccaneers in this game with the game being out of reach at the half time break.
The scores at half time were 9-3 in favour of Cougars, and then the second half was the same story as Cougars would score 5-3 in the second half securing the eight-try victory.
Try scorers for Cougars: Patrick Mahon 3, Charlie Keiller 3, Annabel Reeves 3, Jock Keiller 2, Elijah Reeves 2, Jayke Cannon 1
Try scorers for Tiki Buccaneers: Stephen Arthur 2, Lydia Mackie 1, Zak Denham 1, Sean Fulton 1, Jenna-May Bristow 1
Al-Tryeda 8 defeated Mighty Mighty House Cats 4
This game was a story of two halves, with the first half being back and forth with Al-Tryeda taking a 5-3 lead at half time.
In the second half Al-Tryeda’s defensive pressure was the differentiating factor, as they held Mighty Mighty House Cats to a single try in the second half as they secured the win and will go on to have a rematch of last year’s grand final against Cougars.
Try scorers for Al-Tryeda: Connor Peters 2, Reece Williams 2, Rhys Weber 2, Ebony Stiles 1, Josh Edwards 1
Try scorers for Mighty Mighty House Cats: Stephanie Evans 2, Timothy Bourke 1, Jacob Amor 1
Division 2
Tiki Pirates 6 defeated Purple Razz 5
This game went right down to the final siren with both teams matching each other on both offensive and defensive sides throughout the whole game.
Purple Razz held a one try lead going into the half time break and then the two teams went back to trading tries with the momentum slightly shifting towards the side of Tiki Pirates.
Tiki Pirates held a 5-4 lead in the final moments of the game, but Joshua Mitchell scored to tie the game up with less than a minute left.
The final play of the game is where Mikey and Eleazar Meaola combined to score the game, winning right on the final siren, meaning that they secured the win and a spot in the grand final.
Try scorers for Tiki Pirates: Zakia Eichler-Onus 1, Eleazar Meola 1, Yonita Meola 1, Sandy Trace 1, Ceejay Durbridge 1, Kales Sciascia 1
Try scorers for Purple Razz: Kathryn Mitchell 2, Joshua Mitchell 2, Beau Stafford 1
Atwells Angels 12 defeated Thunder 11
This game was even closer than the first game of the division two semi-finals, with it going the whole way through regulation and then going to an overtime drop off game.
The two stars of this game were Rob Biadacz and Josh Atwell with both players having a head to head shootout of scoring in this high scoring affair, with Biadacz scoring six for the Thunder and Atwell scoring seven for Atwells Angels.
Atwell’s seventh try came in the overtime drop off period and was the try to secure the victory and to help his Atwells Angels side punch their ticket to the grand final.
Try scorers for Atwells Angels: Josh Atwell 7, Jack Cocks 3, Simon Merrett 2
Try scorers for Thunder: Rob Biadacz 6, Mitch Biadacz 2, Simon Trewick 1, Jorja Roll 1
