Lions will take it to Crushers
WESTERN Lions coach Josh Stowers believes a win over the powerhouse Herbert River Crushers tonight would be a massive boost for his side’s TDRL premiership aspirations.
The third- placed Lions have locked in a finals berth with two rounds left to play, but they are yet to snare a win over frontrunners Brothers and Herbert River this season.
The Crushers claimed a 22- 0 shutout in their first meeting followed by a 30- 14 victory last month and Stowers said now was the time for the Lions to start playing their best.
“If you want to beat anyone before semi- finals, River’s probably the team,” Stowers said.
“We’ve obviously gone down to them twice this year, but getting close to the semifinals we want to be hitting our straps.
“Once you get to those semis, they’re totally different to the round games, so it’ll be something that we need to do to get us mentally right for semis.”
Stowers admitted it’s been an inconsistent season for the Lions with niggling injuries, but he felt they still had a strong squad to take the fight to the Crushers.
“The thing with River is you’ve just got to do all your one percenters right. If you try and play catch- up footy you just get left behind,” he said.
“We’ve had a few niggling injuries through the year with some of our players, but this week we’ve got a good forward pack and a good, young backline so we should be ready to go.”
TDRL, Round 15: Today: Western Lions v Herbert River at Townsville Sports Reserve, 5pm; Norths v Burdekin at Peggy Banfield Park, 7pm. Tomorrow: Centrals v Brothers at Townsville Sports Reserve, 3pm.