After Tamworth Rugby Club held off St Albert’s College to score a six-point win on their old boys’ day, coach Peter Burke remarked: “You don’t know how special it is.”
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But one could make an educated guess going by the reaction of the coach, players and supporters.
When fullback Isaac Roebuck kicked the ball over the sideline after the siren had sounded to secure the 27-21 victory, the crowd roared its approval.
The Magpies jumped all over each other as they celebrated the win while Burke made his way onto the field embracing players – past and present – at every opportunity.
Those past players – many of them a part of the club’s 1993 first and reserve grade premiership-winning sides – and present then belted out the team song together.
It was the second time this season the Magpies first grade team had sung the song and Burke believes his players will have plenty more chances to do so if they continue to improve.
“We’re lifting. We’re on course,” Burke said.
“We’re not executing as well as we’d like and when we start to, I think it’s going to make a big difference in this competition.”
Both sides lost players within the first five minutes of the match to injury with Albies flanker Will Burke and Tamworth No. 10 Jacob Williams both leaving the field.
The Magpies were then first to score when flanker James Bracken crossed in the 15th minute.
However, Albies hit straight back via a burrowing Tim McDermott try to give his side a 7-5 lead.
In the 20th minute, Tamworth lost their second player to injury when No. 4 Alastair Doyle left the field.
A Magpies scrum play with six minutes left on the clock gave the home side the lead again.
The Magpies went down the blind to put Dylan Cross away down the sideline.
The winger then kicked ahead and won the chase to the ball to score.
But Albies once again responded almost immediately, this time through Ted Stuart, to hand the students a 14-12 half-time lead.
Tamworth came out firing in the second half and capitalised on good field position when Kieran McHugh scored. The Magpies kicked a penalty goal in the 59th minute before a Blake Clout try with 13 minutes to go saw the score sit at 27-13 in favour of Tamworth.
A Jack Lane try under the sticks in the 73rd minute reduced the deficit to six points and give Albies a chance to pinch the win. And with a scrum on Tamworth’s line after the buzzer, an Albies win was on the cards.
However, a knock on from the set play off the scrum saw Tamworth hold on.
