Surfers survive with 13 players

AS if extending their winning streak to 26 games wasn’t enough, Surfers Paradise took another confidence boost out of their 28-10 victory against Colleges.

For a period in the second half of their clash on Saturday, the Dolphins defended with only 13 players on the field and were still able to repel their opposition.

Having opened up a 21-10 lead by halftime, Surfers Paradise came under intense pressure from their 2016 grand final opponents in the second term – especially following yellow cards issued to Dalin Sharrock and then Aaron Enoka – but held firm.

“There was a few penalties in the 22, one of the guys (Sharrock) thought the ball was out so he went round and tackled the halfback which in the 22 is a yellow card because they’re on the attack,” captaincoach Kris Burton said.

“The other yellow card was from after that. In a ruck one of our guys (Enoka) got caught on the wrong side and it happened to be in the 22.

“They obviously want to set a precedent about penalties in the 22 so you have got to take it.

“(But) even down to 13 men we still held them out which was I think a good effort by the boys to back up, make their tackles, get up and make their tackles again.

“Hopefully it gives us confi- dence going into the rest of the year. We don’t want to be in that position but we know that we have done it before so we can try to hold teams out.”

Burton said the encounter was the most physical his side had faced this season.

Key to Surfers Paradise’s game plan in the slippery conditions was taking points at any opportunity early to apply scoreboard pressure.

It paid off, with Burton’s three first-half penalty goals helping widen the final margin to 18 despite it being a three tries to two contest.

The Dolphins are 10 points clear of their nearest rival on the ladder, Bond Pirates, who overcame the Gold Coast Eagles to convert a two-point halftime lead into a 40-13 win.

Helensvale crushed Coomera 68-7. The match between Coolangatta Tweed and Palm Beach Currumbin was moved forward to Thursday night, with the latter winning 39-3.