Albury-Wodonga Steamers back to winning ways against Tumut Bulls

In front of a decent crowd at Murrayfield, they came out of the blocks fast against Tumut Bulls and were 17-5 up by half-time.

Two tries in the first five minutes of the second half extended the margin to 24 points but the visitors, to their credit, refused to buckle.

A penalty try, awarded when the Steamers collapsed a scrum, was followed by two pushover tries as the powerful Tumut pack went to work.

The home side eventually wrapped up a 36-22 win - their third in four SIRU outings.

"It was very pleasing to put another win on the board," said Steamers coach James Kora.

"We played pretty well but lost our way late in the second half. Some ill-discipline came in and we fell away from our structural play.

"We got off to a good start, which was pleasing. The first half was pretty good, we built pressure, got momentum and things went our way.

"At half-time the message was that we needed to be patient, do the basics well and be disciplined.

"We did that for about 20 minutes in the second half and that's what got us three good tries but after that it went out the back.

"Tumut dominated us up front and they dominated us at set-piece, which is what we've got to work on the most going forward."

Benn Reid marked his return to the Steamers team with a try, while Ryan O'Sullivan and Aiden Woodford-Smith also touched down.

Woodford-Smith was left with a simple finish right at the start of the second half after Reid had cantered clear following a messy scrum.

But the biggest cheer was reserved for Koresi Waqanivalu, who barged his way over to the right of the posts midway through the second half.

That capped an impressive double shift by the big Fijian.

"He played in the twos earlier on," revealed Kora. "Our scrum was getting a bit of a hammering so I had to try to put some strength out there.

"Koresi always starts off the bench. He wants to play in the first grade but he needs to do a bit more work first."

Steamers remain undefeated at home and the coach is pleased with their progress.

"We've just got to keep turning the page and get these little basic things right, like our scrum, and then we should be right," Kora said.

"Once we get that sorted, we should be a top team."

The returning Blake Le Cornu dislocated several fingers just 10 minutes into the game, while Mosese Baleidrokadroka is expected to be fit to play within three weeks.

IN OTHER NEWS:

Steamers are back at home on Saturday when they entertain Waratahs.

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