http://www.armidaleexpress.com.au/story/3858677/beating-the-blues/?cs=472

Beating the Blues

ARMIDALE Barbarians scored a double whammy with their win over reigning premiers Armidale Blues which earned them both the Charity Shield and Challenge Cup.

After a big win over Glen Innes the previous week, the Barbarians went into the match quietly confident they could topple the current champions.

Although the Barbarians took the game 36-7, coach Tom Bower said it was an arm wrestle early on, with the forwards laying a platform for the match, and it was a tough battle throughout the whole game.

“Both teams would probably say that the game was a little bit unstructured but there was a lot of enthusiasm and we were really happy with how hungry our boys were,” he said.

“We had a bit of a scare at the start with the Blues running down the sideline almost scoring.

“I think that woke our players up a little bit.

“For us, it was very much like an arm wrestle. “The score doesn’t really reflect how tough it was out there.”

Players’ player went to Manutuke Tauhai but Bower said it was hard to narrow down who was best on field.

“It was quite difficult for us to decide who were our best players,” he said.

“We thought it was a collective effort from everyone.

“Everyone really put in 100 per cent and that showed on the field.

Bower said the Blues were the benchmark team having been so successful in recent years.

“They have built such a great reputation over the years, they have been such a successful team,” he said.

“They have won a lot of premierships in the last few years so they are always a team that is up there as one you want to mark yourself against.

“They will only get stronger through the season as well.”

As for his team, Bower said they are still building toward the finish.

He hopes his team will be a contender for the title at the end of the season.

“We are still building,” he said.

“Grand finals aren’t won at the start of the season and there are still a lot of things we need to work on if we want to move forward through year.

“It is just building week-by-week and that is definitely what we want to focus on.

“From there we will just take it one step at a time and see what happens.”