After the weather played havoc with scheduling of the game, the young Rams headed off on Saturday morning to Weldon Park at Curl Curl, a 150 km round trip, for their 10:00 clash with Manly Wolves. With a few injuries, Penrith were able to field a full squad of twenty two with the help of Emu Plains/Glenmore Park 16's Jackson Swarbrick and emergency Shaun Stevens. Arriving at the ground we were informed that Manly only had sixteen players and as per AFL by-laws, the game was to be played sixteen aside, leaving a big bench for Penrith. The Rams looked to have the better form than Manly coming into the match, but history was against the visitors as they hadn't beaten the Peninsula team since 2001
After winning the toss and electing to run with the strong wind at their backs, Penrith got off to a flying start with great ball control and excellent delivery from the centre line. Goals from Ben Robinson (2), Hamish Mulligan, Jack Ponton, Daniel Schroot and John Spicer set the scene for a good day with a 37 point lead.
The second quarter was always going to be a struggle running into the stiffening wind. The coaching staff were looking at defending tactics to lessen the blow with the Wolves expected to make a comeback. To everyones surprise, Penrith continued their onslaught into the wind and went on to post another seven goals with Schroot and Spicer kicking doubles along with Justin Weller, Alex Bain and speedster Seth Harmer scoring his first "senior" goal to go to the big break with an incredible seventy four pont lead.
There was controversy at the half time break when Manly informed the Rams that they had some injuries and were not prepared to finish the match unless the Rams gave them some players or evened down even more. Not being aware of this scenario, Penrith agreed to even down as to not deny the team a full game after the long trek to Curl Curl.
Goals in the third quarter were added by Reece Johnson and Matty Stevens whilst Robbo, Schroot and Weller added to their totals, with a determined Manly added one to their score.
The final quarter saw many key players on the bench and a mini fightback by the home team who, with the wind at their backs, outscored Penrith with a four goals to three session to throw some respectability into the scoreboard. Nic Edwards and Matty Payne both opened their account whilst Hamish added another to his tally. At the final siren, it was a historical ninety two point victory for thr Rams.
Coach Kevin Tate was ultra impressed with the teams performance. "It was a confident team playing outstanding team football. They all played for each other out there today and the scoreboard told the story" he said. "Having to play with a big bench did interupt the game plan somewhat but the boys played outstanding disciplined football in the difficult conditions"
There were twenty two players all of whom could be regarded as the best. Harley Stibbard again was brilliant with his "pin point" deliveries to the forward line. Adam Sharp controlled the rucks and when outnumbered, outsmarted his opponents. Jack Ponton was a late acceptance in the team after his Under 16's match with the Swans was cancelled and was sensational all over the park. Jack was awarded the prestigious "Green Car" Award again for his performance. Veterans Reece Johnson and Ben Robinson also put in their typical team performance whilst Matty Payne controlled the defence with his usual aplomb. Alex Henry played his best game of the season and was the recipient of the "Red Cow Hotel" Dinner voucher.
Rams historian and statistician, Mark Spooner, went running for the record books after hearing about the victory. He came up with the following statistics.
In the Under 18's it was:
Penrith's highest score against Manly
Penrith's highest winning margin against Manly
Penrith's first win against Manly since 22/9/01
*Under 18/Under 20 grade's 11th highest score ever in the history of the club
It was also the second highest score and winning margin against Manly in any grade
With a 4-1 record so far this season, the competition hots up next week when the team take on Moorebank Sports at Greygums in the 10:00 AM clash
Penrith Rams 21.9-135 defeated Manly Wolves 6.7-43
PENRITH
Goal Kickers: D. Schroot 4, B. Robinson 3, J. Spicer 3, H. Mulligan 2, J. Weller 2,
R. Johnson, N. Edwards, M. Payne, J. Ponton, S. Harmer, A. Bain, M.
Stevens
Best Players: H. Stibbard, A. Sharp, M. Payne, B. Robinson, J. Ponton, R. Johnson