Warriors blow huge lead in 32-all draw

BY ADRIAN PROSZENKO

Where do we begin? Penrith's 26-point comeback? The four tries to Joel Moon? Lance Hohaia's 83rd-minute field goal attempt hitting the cross bar? Stacey Jones retiring again?

This game should have been over at the 51st minute mark. At that stage the Warriors led 32-6, courtesy of four consecutive tries to Warriors utility Moon.

The Chocolate Soldiers had never recovered from such a deficit in their previous 999 games. No one has. The biggest comeback in Panthers history was against Wests Tigers, when they overcame a 31-8 deficit in round 18, 2000. But last night they produced something even more special. Four converted tries, to be precise, to level the scores at 32-all.

Perhaps it was a full Moon.

Panthers coach Matthew Elliott was asked if he had ever witnessed such a swift and savage swing in momentum.

''You shouldn't ask people with grey hair that's falling out and that colour,'' he said, pointing at his scalp. ''Look at that. There's your answer.''

He was also looking for answers after some questionable decisions by his players in golden-point time.

Like a third tackle field goal attempt. ''As I said to the CEO, we took our heads off and our pumpkins on tonight. It's a line I've used before, I know. It was Halloween.''

In those final, frantic 10 minutes of extra time, there were five field goals. One of them, an 83rd-minute effort from Hohaia, bounced off the cross bar. Unbelievable. Asked about that moment, Moon was almost totally lost for words.

The best he could offer was: ''Uh, you don't see that often.''

Indeed.

The last half an hour was some of the most extraordinary football you will ever see.

When Michael Jennings scored in the 75th minute - and the try was converted by Michael Gordon from the left-hand corner, the game was deadlocked. It was fitting that, when the golden-point period ended, that the stalemate remained.

This was a big day for the Warriors in many ways. Stacey Jones retired. Again.

This time, The Little General assured us, it was for the final time. The evergreen Kiwi halfback, the oldest man on the field in the absence of injured bookends Petero Civoniceva and Steve Price, was instrumental in setting up a 20-6 half-time lead. When the gap was extended to 26, it was a margin no team in 101 years of football had overcome.

However, the hosts scored three tries in the space of 16 minutes to cut the lead to just eight with 10 minutes remaining. They were throwing the football around with what Warriors coach Ivan Cleary described as ''gay abandon''. And then Jennings struck to send the 12,677 crowd into a frenzy.

''My initial reaction is disappointment,'' Warriors coach Ivan Cleary said afterwards. ''With a lead that big we should win those.''

 

- © Fairfax NZ News