Hunters belt Cutters

THE SP Papua New Guinea Hunters roared back into the winners’ circle with a comfortable 36-16 win over the Mackay Cutters at BB Print Stadium on Saturday night.
Led by a flawless kicking performance from five-eighth and captain Ase Boas the visitors exorcised the demons of last week’s 32-18 home loss to the Norths Devils with a 20-point win in the Round 5 fixture.
Fullback Bland Abavu repeated his effort from Round 5 with a two-try burst in the first half as the Hunters ended up running in six tries to Cutters three.
The Cutters were looking to impress in front of a bumper home crowd after their last-start win over Wynnum-Manly; but a combination of fundamental errors and the inability to suppress the flamboyant attacking style of the Hunters cost the home side.
The Hunters got off to a flying start with Nixon Put, pictured, selling a dummy and shooting through a gap in the Mackay defensive line before evading several cover tacklers to score untouched beside the posts.
Mackay responded in dazzling fashion a short time later as Cooper Bambling toed ahead a wayward Hunters pass and soccered the ball downfield before regathering and offloading to Jordan Pereira who steamed into the clear and scored in the corner.
The joy was short-lived for the home side as Abavu made his presence felt, bagging two quick-fire tries for himself off the back of some excellent ball movement and second phase play that left the Cutters defence in tatters.
Nico Hynes brought Mackay back within touching distance as the halftime siren sounded. A quick show- and-go had him touching down beside the uprights to send the Cutters to the sheds down by eight.
The Hunters’ razzle-dazzle attacking raid continued after the break as the Cutters defence began to fall away.
Karo Kauna Jr found his way to the line as the muddy field conditions began to take a toll on Mackay’s big men.
PNG began to expose the home side’s defence around the ruck area, and eventually they poked their noses through, with an around the corner pass finding a flying Moses Meninga and he bustled his way over to extend the margin to 20 points.
The Cutters had been guilty of shooting themselves in the foot on several occasions over the course of the contest, and a dropped ball deep in their own half was all that was required for the Hunters to make them pay.
Watson Boas scooped up the ball up in full flight and scored the sixth try of the evening for PNG.
With the biggest crowd of the season behind them, the Cutters dug in for one last effort, with Johnny Faletagoa’i finding his way to the line in the final seconds of the game for a consolation try. However, the Hunters had well and truly done enough in consigning Mackay to their third defeat of the season, while two valuable competition points ensured they stayed in touch with the Intrust Super Cup’s competition leaders.
Mackay Cutters 16 (Jordan Pereira, Nicholas Hynes, Johnny Faletagoa’i tries; Nicholas Hynes 2 con) PNG Hunters 36 (Bland Abavu 2, Nixon Put, Karo Kauna Junior, Moses Meninga, Watson Boas tries; Ase Boas 6 con) at BB Print Stadium, Mackay.
Results: Sat, April 1 – Norths Devils 36 Central Queensland Capras 12, Townsville Blackhawks 22 Easts Tigers 35, Sunshine Coast Falcons 12 Wynnum Manly Seagulls 8, Northern Pride 18 Burleigh Bears 6, Mackay Cutters 16 SP PNG Hunters 36; Sun, April 2 – Redcliffe Dolphins 28 Ipswich Jets 20, Tweed Heads Seagulls 12 Souths Logan Magpies 44. – Qld Rugby League Media