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• Norths v GPS

Norths withstood a late comeback by GPS to secure a hard fought 37-31 victory and claim The Caxton Cup, in Round Three of Queensland Premier Rugby, at Shaw Road.

In an intense and physical match, Norths set up a commanding 24-12 lead going into the break and seemed to have sealed the match when QR Reds’ and Norths’ bolter Blair Connor ran in a scorching 90 metre try off an intercept.

However celebrations were short-lived as minutes later GPS’ winger Matt Garland intercepted a stray pass that saw him score a near identical try down the other end of the park to put the Gallopers right back in the game.

In the end poor discipline from GPS led to several blatant ruck infringements that gifted Norths’ two late penalties, enough to put the game beyond the Gallopers’ reach and give Norths a morale boosting win.

Norths assistant coach Lew Price praised his team’s hard work and camaraderie.

“It was a real team effort, we dug deep and showed a lot of patience, in the end that’s what got us through,” he said.

“Ryan Shultz had a top game, as did Evan La Motta, but again everyone pulled together.”

Price said sticking to the game plan was crucial after Norths’ 36-27 loss to Souths in round two.

“It was disappointing last week, but we knew that in playing against GPS we’d have to keep our discipline.

“You can never say you’re safely over the line, we lost a couple of scrums and gave away some penalties.

“You’ve got to keep your discipline the whole time,” he said.

The Gallopers played themselves out of the match through a lack of concentration at the breakdown, which led them to waste possession and territory through unstructured phases, lateral attack and poor decision making.

Norths allowed GPS back into the game during the second half through some uncharacteristic lapses in defence.

However their forwards worked tirelessly at the breakdown and were consistently rewarded for their attacking efforts, winning crucial penalties and using territory to their advantage.

GPS coach Matt Pini was blunt about the Gallopers' inconsistent performance.

“We played as individuals and we got what we deserved. We should have been beaten by more, frankly,” he said.

GPS were forced to make substantial changes to their squad before the match, going in without breakdown master and captain Steve Miller and experienced centre Donovan Slade, both among numerous casualties from their successful battle against Brothers in round two.

However, Pini did not use that as an excuse.

“We got two bonus points out of it, so I’m pleased with that, but our game management today was poor and we’ve got to work on that,” he said.

Norths 37 (R Schultz, B Connor, M Bond, U Maninoa, E La Motta tries L Samoa 3 con 2 pen) bt GPS 31 (L Tomiki 2 C Franks, S Poole, M Garland tries, M Garland 3 con)

Match report by Kieran Creagh