Sadly, the Goldies went down to Taralga on Saturday in Taralga by 33-0 in the minor-semi.

It was a very tough day at the office for the boys, playing into a very strong wind in the first half meant they couldn’t gain any momentum.

The scrum was under serious pressure and Taralga were building their momentum from a solid scrum.

The Goldies went into half time 19-0 down but would have been optimistic that with the strong wind in their backs they could get a few early tries and kick on for a win.

However, it was not to be.

They tried everything and at times were probably trying too hard and trying to force it too much.

They had 70% procession in the second but luck wasn’t on their side and couldn’t manage to break what was a very strong Taralga defence.

There were some stand out performances, most notable to Brad Rose who made several try saving tackles along with some monster touch finders.

Phil Maine also had a very strong afternoon, running hard and defending well as did Ryan Pelican Simpson.

Sadly James Green had to leave the field knocked out after making a great tackle.

In the forwards Friendy ran really well all day always getting over the gain line.

Captain Marty Corcoran who has been the back bone of the team all year also did well at the lineout and in broken play.

Sadly it just wasn’t the Goldies evening, they didn’t get a rub of the green.

They tried but no luck.

However if I told any of the players they would make it to the minor semi at the start of the season I reckon they would have all taken it.

A massive thank you to all the supporting fans who made it to the game and braved the cold and wind to cheer on the boys.

Massive effort and the players really appreciated.

What started out as a 17 man squad at the start of the season when registering, it has grown and the team on many occasions showed serious guts, determination, dedication and will to win.

It’s evident that this squad is on the verge of something great in the next year or two.  

When asked to comment, Club President Justin Fleming said, “We are disappointed not to have progressed a bit further because we had it in us. That said, I’d like to congratulate Marty Corcoran and the team on a great year. They put together some bloody good performances on and off the field. I’d also like to give a shout out to our supporters and sponsors. Their contributions are hugely appreciated”.

A huge shout out to Marty who worked tirelessly all year making sure we always had enough players for games, setting up training, running training and generally organising everything while always looking after the players.

Captain/coach is a thankless job that requires a huge amount of time and effort and most of it goes unnoticed.

Marty you are a great man and without guys like you and I, this club this wouldn’t function.

Irish Flem out.