Molong Magpies Walla Update 31 July 2023 Canowindra

The Molong Magpies Wallas made the journey to Canowindra for a classic winter’s morning of Walla Rugby with the entire Central West descending upon the Canowindra Sports Ovals.

U6 drew Wellinton Red and White, U8 Canowindra and Cowra, U10 Cowra and Bathurst Gold.

Our Team in Review this week is the Mighty Under 6’s lead by Michelle and Gordy….

Our under 6 Magpies have just experienced two fantastic weekends of Rugby, and they clearly recovered well from their first gala day home game. The gala day held the previous weekend in Molong was a special occasion as it marked the 70th anniversary of the Molong Magpies Rugby Union Club. It’s exciting to think that when the club reaches 100 years, many of these under 6s will be in their mid-30s, having played countless more games for the club.

On Sunday, our under 6s travelled to Canowindra for backto-back games against Wellington Junior Redbacks. Doting grandparents were in full force supporting their grandchildren and were proud to see their wonderful sportsmanship on display as they helped out the opposition by donning their jerseys. Kudos to Maverick Barrett and Paddy Murphy, who both volunteered to help out Wellington in the first match.

The first half saw the Wellington Redbacks crossing the line on multiple occasions, and it was hard to tell from the sideline if our young Maggies were still waking up or still learning the ropes of staying on the defensive line. A miscommunication between the Hobbs boys got the team going, but one of our most junior players, Ryan Murphy, showed the seniors of the team how it’s done by scoring the first try for Molong. This wasn’t the last we saw of Ryan, as he followed the coach’s instructions to stay on the line and played rarely offside.

Quinn Butler, who took on the responsibility of half-back, put on an absolute clinic, listening to Coach Mike Murphy’s instructions and ensuring everyone had a fair go with the ball. Quinn almost scored in the second half but was tapped just short of the line. With Ryan taking a welldeserved break for a sideline Curly Wurly, Rhys Morley dominated the second half with quick play-the-balls, finding the line, and scoring for Molong. Morley has come a long way since the start of the season, and we can’t wait to see what he brings to next week’s gala day in Bathurst.

Budda Porter had multiple breakaways, surprising the opposition with his speed and agility. Even an intercept by teammate Paddy, who was helping out the opposition, didn’t dampen Budda’s spirits. Our other speed demon, Henry Hobbs, once again ran circles around the opposition, often creating gaps and forcing errors.

A long break between games saw our juniors settled in for a sideline picnic of sausage sandwiches, sour straps, Sunkist, and snakes. When asked about what they enjoyed in the first match against Wello, some of the team shared their thoughts:

Alex: “passing the ball and sharing it around.”

Ollie: “running straight into the people.”

Ryan: “the whole bit.”

The second match saw Molong facing off against Wellington Redbacks RED. Henry Haynes was a standout for both Molong and Wello, displaying speed and crossing the line multiple times. His huge kick-offs were impressive, and well done to Henry for helping out the opposition by donning their jersey.

Multi-try scorer Isaac Hobbs is working hard on staying on the line, listening well and confusing the opposition with his handy side stepping and speed.

Oliver Townsend’s fancy footwork and tactical plays saw him finding faults in the opposition’s defense and crossed the line for Molong on multiple occasions, along with Alex Barrett, who was tapped just short of the line. Barrett should be commended on his consistent plays and passing game which gets better every week.

Luke Mackenzie dominated the defensive line, being fast off the mark on every occasion, and baffling the opposition with his double touch, leaving no one unmarked. Luke has even learnt the art of the hand-off, showing the side how it’s done, palming off the defence who just so happened to be team mate, Issac who was playing for Wello.

The player of the match deservingly went to Ryan Murphy, who showed up and played back-to-back games with no sign of tiring. He listened well to the coach’s instructions and has come a long way since the beginning of the season. Well done, Ryan.

The legendry Players of the Gala Day were:

- U6 Ryan Murphy

- U8 Leo Wilson and Mitch Redfern ‘Best Magpie’

- U10 Guy Shannon with Sebastian Mullins ‘Toughest Player”

Thankyou again to Canowindra for hosting the day. Next week sees the club travelling to Bathurst for the final gala day of the year and supporters are always welcome.

The Magpie