By Stuart Teather
ENDEAVOUR Hills took the points in both games of its Victorian Rugby Union second-division double-header at Frog Hollow Reserve on Saturday, but not in the way it would have liked.
The B-team’s scheduled clash with league heavyweight Maroondah was a no-go, as the visitors had to forfeit due to a nasty bout of flu making its way through the player ranks.
As a result the Hills were awarded a 28-0 win, boosting them to sixth on the ladder.
The A-team had more luck in its clash with Monash University, dominating the game to take a 26-12 win.
“It was a bit of a slow game – but we were on top from the start to the finish,” coach Jeff Lemalu said.
Monash Uni got on top early and held the lead up until the dying minutes before half-time, when Endeavour Hills ran a try home to tie the scores at 12-all.
The third quarter remained tight before the Hills broke away in the final quarter.
Junior Salesulu was the player of the day for the Hills, making the jump from his usual role as a back-rower into the forward pack for the clash, where he ran through a try and was important all day.
“We moved Junior from the backline to the forwards to the number eight – and he had a very good game,” Lemalu said.
The Hills were missing Loni Folau, whose cousin Tevita TuFunga died during the week and number-eight Lata Matiasi who was out with injury. TuFunga was an under-16 player at the club and had previously filled in for the seniors and Lemalu said the players dedicated their win to their fallen teammate.
“The win was kind of for Tevita – he did play a couple of games for us, he came up and played some minutes when we were short against Melbourne Uni, he was kind of a part of the team, you know,” he said.
Endeavour Hills now sit in second position on the ladder, two points behind the undefeated Geelong and the A-team should continue its good form when it takes on the lowly Powerhouse outfit this Saturday.
The B-team will get back on the park when it faces Eltham, the early game in another double-header at Frog Hollow, with kick-off at 1.30pm.
