A Luke Dorn and Dane Tilse inspired Maitland Pickers ran over the top of reigning premiers South Newcsatle to open their season with a 36-16 win at Townson Oval on Saturday.
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Dorn had three try assists and was denied a try of his own when the referee ruled he had been held up by Souths defenders under the cross bar.
Tilse had crossed in the same spot earlier as the Pickers turned an error-riddled 8-12 half-time deficit into a 20-point win with a dominant second-half performance against the Lions, who were missing a number of leading players through injury.
But this wasn’t a two-man show the entire squad contributed to the victory with no let-up as the Pickers used their bench to great effect.
Wing Jackson Tynan, front-rowers Jacob Sinclair and Rob Mason, who both came off the bench, and halfback Blake Birch were among the best.
Only a superb defensive effort prevented Maitland from being further behind at the break with the Pickers completing just seven of 17 sets and continually giving the ball to the Lions in attacking positions.
But the Pickers managed to score on two of their limited raids into Souths territory and their forwards led by Tilse were giving the Lions defence all sorts of trouble.
In the rooms at half-time Dorn and coach Trevor Ott praised the team’s defensive effort and said if they could maintain possession the points and a win would come.
The Pickers responded and it was one-way traffic apart from a superb solo effort by Souths wing Lachlan Walmsley who caught a short kick-off and then raced 25 metres to score.
After being off-target with his two kicks in the first half Blake Birch slotted home six from six in the second.
The Pickers tries were scored by Liam Faughlin, George O’Brien, Jackson Tynan, Dane Tilse, Pat Robards and Michael Dent.