After a very uncharacteristic knock-on there from Blues (and former Australian sevens) star Emma Tonegato, the Maroons have wasted no time taking the ascendancy in Townsville. Tonegato’s former sevens teammate Evania Pelite has crashed through the middle and gets over for a four-pointer courtesy of some brute strength. Wonderful try and what a statement inside two minutes.
Lauren Brown converts. The Blues kick-off and will run left-to-right on your television screens (on Channel 9, of course). Blues fans are still on a high this morning after a comprehensive win in Melbourne.
Here’s what transpired last night at the MCG. Sky Blues coach Kylie Hilder has called on league powerbrokers to continue growing the women’s game by extending matches to 80 minutes to bring them in line with their male counterparts. As Hilder’s team prepare for Thursday night’s State of Origin decider in Townsville – the first time the women’s interstate series has been played over three games – she maintained elite female players were ready to make the step up from 70-minute matches at Origin time.
“100 per cent they are [ready for 80 minutes],” Hilder said ahead of the decider. “I think everyone wants it now.” “I know that they didn’t like because they thought the game sort of deteriorated in the last five minutes, but you’ve seen, these girls are athletes now, they train hard, they’re ready for it, I think they deserve to play [80 minutes].
” This year’s series has a.