Well, that was a nail biter! Certainly not the highest quality encounter but Wenty come away with the two points after reeling in a considerable lead.
Justin Hunt continues his impressive form at the back, constantly finding a way to put himself in the right places at the right times. Did alright with the goal kicking boot after relieving Pewhairangi.
Lee Mossop produced a solid return in his first game in Australia. There were some good carries, strong defence and a nice offload or two in what was a fair opening showing. It will be interesting to see how long he is given in this grade to get his match fitness up but there was certainly enough to suggest he can have an impact in the NRL.
Fellow Wenty debutante Ryan Matterson made a splash in his first NSW Cup game. Though not as dominant as his NYC efforts, the young half showed he could mix it with the big boys nabbing two tries and defending with intent. There were glimpses of his best with some of his passes to Ma'afu (on the left in the first half) and Morgan (on the right in the second half) but his kicking game was out of sorts for the majority of the match. He found the confidence to attack with his running game in the second half and looked genuinely dangerous when he took the ball in two hands to the line.
A pleasing effort on the whole though and much like Goodall before him, he will give the coaching staff plenty of food for thought about a follow-up game.
Elsewhere Wenty were well served by Issac Maliota, who continues to be a revelation off the bench. There is a bit of Junior Paulo about the monstrous bookend and his stint from the bench turned the tides in the ruck. With Fui failing to provide the spark to compliment Mossop's workrate, Maliota meshed well with Alvaro in the second rotation giving Wenty the much needed go-forward.
