Skipper hauls Pirates to glory
ON the back of a star showing, at times fighting through injury pain, Tana Heron could well have his sights set on a first-grade berth in 2023.
The Bond skipper led from the front in his side’s 13-5 under-18s grand final triumph over Surfers Paradise, in what proved to be arguably the most gruelling encounter of the afternoon.
It was a dynamic test for both units across the opening half, with a Pirates penalty goal all that separated them at the break.
However, a yellow card cut the Dolphins down a man and at last the red-and-blue brigade were able to break off the shackles.
A brilliant deep clearance kick into the left corner orchestrated a race between the rival wingers, with Bond coming up with possession and crossing for the opening try.
It was Heron who then stepped up to slot the sideline conversion, even with an eager Surfers Paradise chasing closing in to charge down the attempt.
But the Dolphins never relented in the clash, making the most of a wave of possession to score at the death and set up a grandstand finish.
Only a couple of phases later, however, some clinical ruck work forced a turnover for the Pirates, with a penalty following soon after to clinch the contest.
Heron was full of praise for his troops at the end of the game, labelling it a crazy season in which they had overcome
a mountain of adversity and a slow start to the year to lift the trophy.
Prior to kick off, Pirates cocoach Jamie Bleakley lauded his captain and gun No.8 for the way he had led from the front, equipped with experience in senior football already from campaigns past.
Now, as Heron graduates from the junior programs, a tilt at helping Bond charge to the Phil Temperton Trophy looms for the youngster.
“He’s been fantastic for us all year. He’s got a really good footy head on him, he understands what we’re trying to achieveon the footy field as a team and individually he’s very strong,” Bleakley said.
“It would’ve been about three weeks ago when he got man of the match (that he really stood out). He was really strong over the ball and his carries were really good.
“Off the field he’s a really likeable, everyone gets on well with Tana – juniors through to seniors. We made him captain because of his footy nous as well as, individually, he’s a very good rugby player.
“He definitely leads from the front with his actions.”