The Bull Sharks are plotting back-to-back premierships after taking down the undefeated Sunnybank Dragons and progressing to the Women’s Premier Rugby grand final.
Bond scored three consecutive tries to close out the match 22-12 in a dominant second-half display.
The sides were evenly matched in the first half, both scoring a try each to give the minor premiers a narrow 7-5 lead over the Bull Sharks.
The Dragons started strongly after halftime, powering their way over to extend the lead to 12-5 but Bond’s fighting spirit never wavered and when Wallaroo Eva Karpani crashed over, the gap was reduced to two points.
As the much bigger Sunnybank side began to tire, the Bull Sharks lifted.
Electric wingers Dianne Waight and Charlize Ratu were able to capitalise on Dragons errors to score and deliver the knockout blow.
Bond heads to Ballymore for the grand final in a fortnight’s time aiming to secure back-to-back premierships.
What they said
Captain Elisha Godsiff was overjoyed with her team’s ability to stay in the fight against the undisputed form team of the home and away season.
“It was so physical out there which we expected but the way we competed and matched them up front was really pleasing,” she said.
After a stern talk at halftime from coach Lawrence Faifua, the Bull Sharks lifted the tempo in the second half and played their style of game.
“We made it hard for ourselves in that first half so we adjusted things in the second and used our fast girls on the edge and had great success when we did that,” Godsiff said.
First Grade men
The First Grade men didn’t have the same luck, going down to the defending premiers Wests 40-26. It leaves the Bull Sharks to take on Brothers next week for a place in the grand final.
How it unfolded
The Bull Sharks were on the back foot from the opening minute when the Bulldogs capitalised on a Bond error to score their first try.
Bond quickly found their groove and hit back when damaging centre Kali Nasoko picked up the scraps from a Spencer Jeans line break to dive over the line.
However, that sparked a point-scoring rampage from Wests. It started When Wallaby centre Hunter Paisami crossed to extend the lead and continued when the Bulldogs dished up a counterattacking special to score again down the edge.
Flyhalf Mason Gordon added a further two penalty goals to take the lead to 23-7 after 30 minutes.
It would take some magic for Bond to break through and it came from Tyler Campbell who made a break and delivered a deft kick ahead for Nasoko to score his second of the day.
The Bulldogs further extended their lead after a cross-field kick which found winger David Vaihu. Bond were able to make it a nine-point ball game with 30 minutes left to play when Hamish Roberts crashed over.
But the Bulldogs kept their foot on the pedal, scoring two more tries while always keeping the Bull Sharks at arm’s length.
Bond University showed fight to the very end and were able to score another try to bridge the gap, but the Bulldogs would prevail.
What they said
Captain Lachlan Connors was disappointed in the performance and the missed opportunities.
“The difference was our ability to execute our basic skills. We had plenty of attacking opportunities that went missing due to dropped ball and poor exits which we will learn from,” he said.
Bond will take positives out of the loss especially around their set piece and their physicality.
“Our scrum was awesome. We didn’t really get the reward for being the dominant team in that aspect but I’m really pleased with the physically that we brought right from the kick-off,” he said.
Finishing the regular season as minor premiers gives Bond a second chance and they will take on Brothers next Saturday afternoon at Yoko Road in Ashgrove.
“Our preparation for next week has already started and I think we are mentally in a great spot to move forward and really take it to Brothers next week,” Connors said.
Major semi finals:
First grade: L 40-26
Premier Women: W 22-12