RUGBY CHRIS COGDALE Marist 79 East Coast 14 Too big, too strong! That was the blunt assessment of East Coast coach Guy Williams as his side were put to the sword by a rampant Marist on Memorial Park No. 2 on Saturday. Although Williams was disappointed his players didn’t turn up, the reality is that most teams would not have lived with Marist, given their attacking mindset on the day.
The home side’s intentions were clear in the first two minutes when they moved the ball from deep inside their own half, and a big midfield bust by winger Hayden Cooper set up his fellow winger Parau Ellis to score wide out. The Coasties fought back in typically gutsy fashion but failed to capitalise on numerous phases close to the Marist line, and they were made to pay for their wastefulness when Marist fullback Soli Malatai, who created havoc with his pace throughout the 80 minutes, burst clear inside his half and spun the ball wide for Cooper to cross for the first of his three first-half tries. A further two tries gave Marist a 24-0 lead after 24 minutes before the floodgates burst open in the last six minutes of the half when the “green and whites” ran in three more five-pointers for a 41-0 lead at the break.
Two quick tries early in the second spell saw Marist crack the half-century, and then the Coasties finally got some reward for their endeavours with tries to tireless flanker Thomas Williams and Dan Edmonds. But that was as good as it got for the visitors as Marist ran in anoth.
