New leaders in Illawarra Rugby League as Collegians thump Wests

A starring hat trick Sam McCann on the wing saw Collegians get home after going behind early in the match. With the win, Peter Hooper's side have now leapfrogged Wests into first on the table and in doing so, have beaten all their top four opponents away from home in consecutive weeks.

It was set to be a mouthwatering contest before a ball was even kicked.

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The fixture was a replay of the last two Illawarra League deciders, with Collegians winning back-to-back titles.

Wests were looking to bounce back from their first loss of the season last round against Thirroul, and needed to win to keep Collies at bay in terms of rising up the table.

The two sides had played each other once already in round five with Wests winning across the road at Collegians Sport Complex 22-10.

The Devils were hungry to make amends for that loss last week and came out of the blocks early with a try to Mitch Porter inside the first minute. A mistake from Collegians in possession led to Porter running half the field to score in the corner.

The wind played havoc on all sport in the Illawarra on Saturday and this match was no different. Whilst the five-eighth was attempting to convert his own try, the ball moved off the tee, making him shank his shot at goal and the score was 4-0.

It did not take long for the defending champions to strike back however. Intense pressure on Wests' defence saw the ball passed out to the left where McCann scored in the corner to make it 4-4.

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Both teams had moments of attack following the two opening tries but just could not find that final pass.

As the clock was ticking down on the first half, Collegians turned the game on its head. A great catch from Jerry Leremia saw the centre offload to Callum Gromek who ran the length of the field and scored under the posts to make it 10-4 going into the break.

The second half belonged completely to the visitors, with Clive Brett scoring in the first 10 of the half and then McCann crossing another two times to hand Collies the 26-4 victory.

Collegians coach Hooper said whilst he was pleased to be top of the ladder, the team would not rest on their laurels for the remainder of the campaign.

"Nothing is won in July," he said.

"We've still got another round so it can turn right around and I'm sure they'll have some players coming back by the end of the year. But we're not looking too far ahead of ourselves.

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"We've got Corrimal next week and they're a good team. If we allow some good footy against us we won't get the result. But we're going to enjoy the night tonight."

Hooper added that whilst it wasn't a textbook performance there were plenty of positives, including dealing with the wind.

"We probably didn't play our best footy today, but when you come to Parish Park sometimes they don't enable you to play your best footy," he said.

"I think defensively we were really good. We keep improving every week which is the pleasing part. We've kept them to four points.

"Both sides would be really pleased with their back three [because of the wind]. Sam McCann was great for us as well as Jay Watling, they start our sets well and I don't think we turned over one from a kick which is pleasing.

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"They've worked hard. Obviously we do some training for it, but when you're playing Wests it's a different kettle of fish and you can do all the training you want but when it comes to game day you've got to execute it."

As for the undermanned Wests, they have now lost two on the bounce after being undefeated prior to their last couple of results.

In other results in Illawarra League on Saturday, Dapto beat Thirroul 22-18 at Dapto Showground and De La Salle defeated Corrimal Cougars 26-10 at Ziems Park.

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