Albury-Wodonga Steamers women beat Leeton while the men draw away to Griffith

Despite not having their Victorians players at training due to the lockdown south of the border, the Steamers committed early in the week to playing their fixtures whoever was available.

So when restrictions were eased in regional Victoria, it came as a timely boost - even if the coaches were left with a few last-minute headaches.

"It was so nice just to have everyone together," women's coach Elyse Burns said.

"Than, in itself, was a win for us.

"We only saw the Victorians for the first time on Saturday, which made it really difficult. Like a lot of things with COVID, it's the total uncertainty around what is or isn't going to happen.

"You try to plan for 100 different things and people get anxious.

"We'd picked one team and then had to re-jig because we'd taught people to play out of position.

"After having such a disjointed week, it was a little sloppy to start with as we got used to each other again. It took a while for us to get going on the field but the second half was definitely more of a Steamers half, with a lot of flow and chat going on."

The Steamers, facing a physically imposing Leeton side, spent much of the game at Murrayfield on the back foot.

But with Jade Batten playing her first game in the front row and a huge collective defensive effort, they managed to keep the visitors scoreless.

When the Steamers did get the ball, they made Leeton pay with Kirra Burke running in two tries while Batten and Kaitlyn Mckay also crossed in a 29-0 win.

One of Burke's scores was a 95-metre dash after the Steamers had soaked up pressure, turned the ball over and taken a quick tap penalty.

"Leeton are very much a forwards-dominated team so we had to mix it up a little bit in terms of how we normally play," Burns said. "There was a lot of quick ball going out to the backs and most of our tries were from really quick hands through and then someone got the gap and ran the length of the field.

"Leeton are essentially eight props and two backs, so it was a huge ask for the likes of Jade but the girls did really well and held their own."

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Meanwhile, the Steamers men snatched a 24-24 draw in thrilling circumstances away to Griffith.

Trailing 19-0 at half-time, the Steamers scored three unanswered tries after the break with Joe Cass and Ryan O'Sullivan going over.

Griffith looked to have won it with their fourth try late on but there was jubilation for the Steamers when Liam Flanagan raced clear in injury time.

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