Vikings unbeaten, play Gold in Shield Semi Final

The Canberra Vikings have topped Pool A and will host Perth Gold in the Australian Rugby Shield Semi Finals next weekend, while the Melbourne Axemen will host NSW Country in the other Semi Final after posting an historic victory over Perth Gold on Saturday.

Full match reports are below.

Cockatoo down Red Heelers for Semi Final place

NSW Country came from behind to defeat QLD Country in Dubbo on Saturday, clawing back a 17-3 deficit to take the game 23-17 and secure a Semi Final berth against Melbourne.

The Cockatoo's scrumhalf-flyhalf combination of Paul Elliott and Tim Rapp laid the foundation, while the goal kicking of fullback Josh Clift helped keep the points ticking over.

Clift opened the scoring with a penalty goal in the 15th minute, before QLD Country hit back 10 minutes later with a try to winger David Nolan for a 5-3 lead.

QLD Country Fran Lando, who had an outstanding match, landed two penalty goals before the break and another one six minutes into the second half to give the visitors a 14-3 lead.

In the 9th minute of the second half NSW Country lock Nick Leseberg was yellow carded for repeated infringements at the breakdown, and when Lando stepped up to slot the ensuing penalty, QLD Country were up by 17-3 and looking good.

However, having a man down seemed to fire up NSW Country, and minutes later they spun the ball wide to send right winger Elliott Toule in for a try. Clift's sideline conversion pegged the score back to 17-10 in favour of QLD.

Clift was in the action 10 minutes later with a clever grubber that was snapped up by Toule for his second try. The conversion was missed but a Clift penalty goal gave NSW Country an 18-17 lead with eight minutes to go.

QLD Country threw everything at their hosts, but NSW Country were not about to relinquish their hard-fought lead.

In the last play of the game NSW had a lineout close to the QLD line and drove a well-controlled maul over the line. Prop David Greig emerged with the try to seal the game and their Semi Final berth.

NSW County 23 (Elliott Toule 2, David Greig tries; Josh Clift con, 2 pens) defeated QLD Country 17 (David Nolan try. Fran Lando 4 pens). Half time: Qld Country 11-3.

Cornforth hat-trick highlights Vikings win over the Mosquitoes

Centre Tim Cornforth scored three of Canberra Viking's ten tries as they outplayed a courageous Darwin Mosquitoes to win 65-15 in Darwin.

The Darwin forwards worked well in the first half, matching the big Canberra pack. However it was the slick Canberra backline that did all the damage, creating line breaks at will and backing up well to score some good team tries.

The Vikings enjoyed a 22-8 halftime lead, with Darwin's plight not helped when Eugene Mullipona was yellow-carded for repeated infringements. However, during his absence, Darwin managed to get the ball over the Canberra line, although a "held up" ruling denied the home team a try and a possible 22-15 score line.

It was a turning point in the game, after which the Canberra backs cut loose, helping themselves to seven second-half tries, setting up a comfortable victory and a place in the ARS Semi Finals.

Canberra's best were Cornforth and his centre partner Matt Hawke as well as replacement back Josh Staniforth.

For the home side, flanker Neil Chapman was an inspiration, with the former Canberran and current NTRU development officer scoring a consolation try just before fulltime. Their Number 8 Tim Burr Burr and 18 year-old flyhalf-cum-winger Robert Butcher also impressed.

Canberra Vikings 65 (Tim Cornforth 3, Joel Russell 2, Matt Hawke 2, John Collignon 2, Josh Staniforth tries; Josh Staniforth 3, Ben Johnson 2, Ryan Evans cons, Ben Johnson pen) defeated Darwin Mosquitoes 15 (Neil Chapman, Robert Butcher tries; Robert Butcher con, pen). Half time: Canberra 22-8.

Axemen scores maiden win over Perth Gold

The Melbourne Axemen scored an historic first-ever win over the Perth Gold in Melbourne, putting them on top of Pool B and giving them a home Semi Final against NSW Country next weekend.

The strong Melbourne forwards laid the foundation for their victory with a strong set-piece, while Number 8 Moses Haukinima led the way from the back of the scrum.

Melbourne scored three tries in the first half, including a double to fullback Michael Brennan, one of which was a sharp intercept which saw him sprint 80 metres to the line.

The hosts were up 27-7 at halftime and were looking strong but Perth came storming back into the match. Their hooker Ryan Tyrell and scrumhalf Matt Shaw were outstanding, laying the platform for a strong comeback. Tries to centre Leon Felton and fullback Dwayne Grace pulled the score back to 27-21 and gave the visitors a sniff of victory.

However Melbourne stayed composed. When Brennan booted his third penalty goal he took his personal tally for the match to 23 points, but more importantly sealed Melbourne's 30-21 win.

Melbourne Axemen 30 (Michael Brennan 2, Basil Api tries, Michael Brennan 3 cons, 3 pens) defeated Perth Gold 21 (Tyler Edwards, Leon Felton, Dwayne Grace tries, Charles Norcross 2, Shaun Ashton cons). Half time: Melbourne 27-7.

Adelaide finish season on a high

Adelaide scored a convincing 49-10 win over newcomers Tasmania in their last Rugby Shield match of the season. Adelaide ran in 10 tries on a fine autumn evening at Hindmarsh Stadium, and could have piled on a couple more but for an occasional lapse.

Adelaide's openside flanker Matt Connor led the way in the forwards while fullback Andrew Farquharson had a solid game, contributing 14 points to the home side's tally.

Tasmania were outclassed, especially in the backs and found themselves down 37-3 at halftime. However they showed plenty of grit and were the first to score in the second half when replacement back Luke Niejalke crashed over. Their hooker Ben Chessum was the pick of their forwards while Tevita Polutele made a big contribution in the centres.

Adelaide was always in control however and added another couple of second-half tries to give them their first win for the season.

Adelaide Black Falcons 49 (Tevita Raikiwasa 2, Ben Hamer, Gareth Brown, Andrew Plimer, Andrew Farquharson, Declan Scragg, Kina Tavui tries; Andrew Farquharson 3 cons, pen) defeated Tasmania Jack Jumpers 10 (Luke Niejelke try; Kyle Holland con, pen). Half time: Adelaide 37-3.

2006 AUSTRALIAN RUGBY SHIELD POINTS TABLE

All start times listed are local.

Related Article:

Round Two - Gold and Vikings unbeaten after two rounds (Mon May 15)