ALBURY Thunder snapped a four-match losing streak with a 30-18 victory over Tumbarumba at Greenfield Park on Saturday.
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While Josh Cale was disappointed with his side for “switching off” in the final 20 minutes, the three-time premiership coach said the win was a step in the right direction.
“We had our lapses but I thought we did OK,” Cale said.
“I thought it was good for the boys’ confidence to win again after a pretty tough couple of weeks.
“It’s a start.
“We played well in patches but made some mistakes and I think we were looking at the scoreboard in the last 20 minutes.
“You can’t do that against the really good sides.”
Experienced pair Jon Huggett and Levi Freeman led the way for Thunder.
Huggett was a tireless worker in the forwards while Freeman directed play well at five-eighth.
“They were really good,” Cale said.
“’Huggy’ got through a lot of work and Levi controlled it well even though he’s in a new position.”
Ben Taylor continued his strong season and Daniel Johnson and Daniel Jacobs scored two tries each.
Thunder’s Mac Daly started brightly at fullback before injuring his wrist and being forced from the field.
After leading 14-10 at half-time, the home team produced its best form of the match with Trenten King, Freeman and Bronson Meehan scoring to push the scoreline out to 30-10.
While Cale was disappointed with the final 20 minutes, he paid tribute to Tumbarumba.
“Robbie Byatt has a pretty handy side,” Cale said.
“It’s the best team I’ve seen at Tumbarumba for a while and I think they’ll be hard to beat in the second-half of the season.
“They played pretty well in patches.”
The victory saw Albury Thunder retain fifth position on the ladder after 11 rounds with a crunch match against Temora at Greenfield Park looming.
They then take on Brothers in a fortnight which will determine their season.
Meanwhile, Gundagai belted Cootamundra 76-12 on Saturday.
Playing against Cootamundra for the first time in his career, Luke Berkrey was in the thick of the action from the outset.
It was almost like touch football as Gundagai scoring machines Damian Willis and Dane O’Hehir each finished three tries each and Tyron Gorman and Noa Fotu grabbed two each as well.
Aaron Byrne suffered a suspected serious ankle injury in the 66th minute for the Bulldogs and could miss the rest of the year.