One-point win sends Tigers on

EVEN with two tries and a matchwinning field goal to his credit, a battle-hardened Scott Evans refused to accept any praise.

With the Townsville and District Rugby League decider on the horizon, he believes there is nothing to celebrate just yet.

Evans and his Centrals Tigers desperately hung on against a fast-finishing Herbert River, but the 17-16 triumph was enough to book a grand final date with Brothers.

A high-flying Zac Sillis got the Crushers within a point, but two failed long-range field goal attempts ended their fightback.

Evans’s influence was crucial from the outset against the wounded Crushers, who were missing halfback and coach Mitch Seri, five-eighth Aaron Solari and fullback Aaron Adcock.

But the skipper and halfback instead paid tribute to the Tigers bench, which brought a ferocity that Herbert River could not match.

“I didn’t have to do much,” Evans said. “I just did my job and the boys did theirs. We started with a tactic there to really bring some energy and tempo off the bench.

“A few injuries messed with the game plan but tempo off the bench was what we wanted and we executed well.

“We were a bit weary going into this, and we needed another week for a few key players, but I think we’ll gain a lot of confidence from that.”

A crestfallen Seri spoke proudly of his side, which was walking wounded heading into the clash.

“We’ve had our fair share of injuries like every club,” Seri said. “We did our best to get some key positions filled with blokes who haven’t played much there before.

“In the end, it came down to too many errors. But I’m really proud, and it’s something I’m not really shocked by (how close we came).”