Round 17 Vs Hunter Wildfires
The Pirates closed out their final home game of the season in style, battling through a high-intensity contest against the Hunter Wildfires at Concord Oval. After a back-and-forth opening 40 minutes, West Harbour found another gear after the break, holding their nerve under pressure and producing a composed second-half performance to secure the win. With the penultimate round now in the books, the Captain’s Log looks back on a physical afternoon, the moments that swung the contest and what it means for the Pirates heading into the final fixture of the season.
Head Coach Ben Rutherford reflected on the season so far, saying:
“With 25 first-grade debuts this season, building cohesion was always going to take time. We’ve focused on keeping things simple, with fitness a huge priority, along with our defence.”
“We conceded 43 points per game last season. This year, that’s down to 35, and that’s an area we’ll continue to improve next season.”
“Our goal at the start of the season was to earn respect. On reflection, we clearly left several games on the table, but those experiences provide valuable lessons for the group to bank and take forward. They should also ensure we remain hungry and motivated to keep improving and striving for more.”
Men’s 1st Grade 33 – 24
The penultimate fixture of the 2026/27 Shute Shield season saw the West Harbour Pirates host Hunter Wildfires at Concord Oval. The previous meeting in Newcastle saw Hunter come away with the win, but both teams had changed considerably throughout the season, with the reverse fixture seeing West Harbour arrive in a rich vein of form.
The Wildfires began with blistering pace, cutting hard lines into the Pirates’ defensive line and threatening the red zone early. A try-saving tackle from Hunter Hannaford stopped the initial chance, but the Wildfires quickly turned the ball over and ran in a try in the far corner only four minutes into the match.
From the kick-off, West Harbour looked to retrieve the ball immediately and play. The ball was knocked back and the Pirates recovered the bouncing pill, but a strong charge into contact was met with a high tackle. After the referee blew for 10, the ball was buried into touch. West Harbour secured the lineout and methodically worked their way across the field. Strong carries bruised the Wildfires’ line, but their defensive structure held firm, stopping an aggressive Pirates surge and eventually exiting from their try line.
Eamon McCoola claimed the drop kick and charged at the right flank of the Wildfires’ line. The centre was brought down within 10 metres of the line, before the ball made its way back towards the centre of the field. Another infringement at the ruck gave the Pirates another opportunity from the set piece. Rob Irimescu found Jack Bennett in the front pod and a maul formed around the lock. Hunter repelled the initial shunt, but West Harbour secured the ball and ran a tight phase close to the breakdown.
Expecting the ball to go wide, the Wildfires’ defence overcommitted to wrapping around. Jack Bennett spotted the eager defence, grabbed the ball and leapt through the ruck to score West Harbour’s first try of the afternoon and his fourth of the season.
Hunter’s fast-paced attack struck only a minute after the restart, scoring another try in the opposite corner despite a strong defensive effort from Bertie Alcock that forced the officials to deliberate over the decision. The try was eventually called, leaving West Harbour chasing the game once again.
Impressively, the Pirates recovered their own kick-off again and began another attack. They earned two penalties back-to-back after Hunter Hannaford broke through a half-gap in the defensive line and the retreating Wildfires couldn’t help but infringe at the ruck in an attempt to slow the ball down. Hunter continued to infringe, but a massive scrum penalty on their five-metre line relieved the pressure for the time being.
Possession switched hands several times as the scoring slowed, with both teams battling at the set piece. West Harbour were eventually able to clear their lines to halfway, but the Pirates quickly found another opportunity. The lineout was disrupted by Jack Bennett, and ‘Pistol’ Pete Samu intercepted the lazy pass at full tilt. The No. 8 charged down the pitch and scored in the corner before the Wildfires’ defenders could react, bringing the scores level.
Cruelly, Hunter re-established their lead only a few phases after the restart. An offside call on the Pirates’ five-metre line allowed the Wildfires to employ a well-worked quick tap play, scoring just to the right of the posts. West Harbour were forced to defend again as a poor kick gifted Hunter valuable field position, from which they showcased their impressive phase play.
The well-drilled attack eventually broke down the Pirates’ defence as Hunter strode over the line to take their biggest lead of the match so far. With the final minutes of the first half approaching, West Harbour needed to turn the momentum around and keep the game competitive.
The move started at the lineout. From the set piece, a launch play put West Harbour on the front foot and had the Wildfires retreating. The ball worked its way into the red zone, with slow and powerful carries edging the Pirates closer to the line. Drew Sellers orchestrated the attack, combining with the flyhalf and constantly shifting the point of attack.
The flyhalf was first to exploit the space that had been created. He went into contact but wasn’t held and bounced back to his feet, earning vital metres and forcing the defensive line to readjust. Drew Sellers noticed the slow step, quickly snatched the ball and dove over the line to score his third try of the season.
The Wildfires’ brazen showboating soon knocked them back a peg, however, when a clear penalty at the ruck forced them to kick the ball away in frustration, undoing much of the ground they had just recovered. Cameron Orr then repaid the Hunter front row’s favour, rattling the Wildfire pack and winning a scrum penalty on their 22.
After the restart, Hunter conceded two penalties in a row, allowing the Pirates straight back into their 22. Again, West Harbour chose the set piece to try to break down the tiring defence, with the clock now in the red. A slogging assault on the try line commenced, with a hugely physical battle nearly seeing the Pirates crash over multiple times.
It was the space out wide that eventually brought the try. Drew Sellers found the flyhalf, who set up Hunter Hannaford and Eamon McCoola with a two-on-one out wide. McCoola finished the opportunity with ease, and Hunter Hannaford’s conversion was the final action of the first half as the players returned to the sheds.
The Pirates opened the second half with two attacking chances but couldn’t convert either. A scrum penalty got Hunter within five metres, but an unforced error allowed the Pirates’ scrum to turn the ball over.
The next 10 minutes were intensely physical and played at high pace, with smashing carries and clashing scrums setting the tone. Tensions rose when the Wildfires were awarded a scrum penalty after a late feed, despite being shoved back five metres. The Hunter players celebrated in the face of Cameron Orr, sparking the Pirates skipper into action.
Hunter continued to push the limits of the scrum laws, and it proved useful as another penalty call against West Harbour relieved the pressure and allowed the visitors to exit. But the hubris wouldn’t work forever.
A huge shove from the Pirates won the next penalty just outside the Wildfires’ 22. Hunter were then reduced to 14 players after a lazy high tackle. Despite West Harbour being unable to convert their chances immediately, the Wildfires remained trapped in their own half as the steady Pirates pressure refused to waver.
West Harbour kept Hunter pinned back, constantly searching for an opportunity to break through. The Wildfires struggled to keep their cool as the minutes slipped away. Moli Schaumkel was in charge of the Pirates’ tempo, and after more phases inside the Hunter 22, he released the ball wide.
The backline had pushed towards the right-hand touchline, and some blisteringly quick hands gave Jeremiah Raniga a few steps to reach full speed. The winger fired through the line and, with only two defenders to beat, stutter-stepped before working his weight onto the outside of the defender. He stepped around the Hunter winger and dived over rugby league-style in the corner.
Jeremiah Raniga secures the win for West Harbour against Hunter in Round 17 of the Shute Shield
Hunter Hannaford’s conversion was struck true, giving the Pirates a lead with 10 minutes remaining.
After the restart, the Pirates flooded back into the Hunter half. Jack Bennett combined with Pete Samu to release the lock forward down the left flank. Hunter struggled to bring the Englishman down, and Moli Schaumkel was quick to the ruck, sending the ball across and into space in the centre of the field.
Jarod Byrnes and Aidan Wearne made further headway, but Hunter managed to force a turnover. The Wildfires still couldn’t escape, however, throwing everything they had at West Harbour and desperately trying to force their way back into the match.
The Pirates turned over a scrum feed and won another penalty to seal the game. Hunter Hannaford calmly booted the ball into the stands, sending Concord Oval into celebration as the Pirates secured a hard-fought victory in their final home game of the season.
Head Coach Ben Rutherford now looks forward to round 18 against Easts and said:
“We need to stick together and continue to believe. The goal is to keep this group together and continue building. Belief is a funny thing — when you’ve been tested, found a way through and got the result, it changes your approach. That shift in mindset can be enormous. It gives the players confidence that what we’re doing works, and that belief can be really powerful as we continue to build.”
“It’s taken some painful lessons — including some very tight losses — to get us to where we are now, but our approach this weekend doesn’t change. Easts will finish as minor premiers, with their sights firmly set on winning the Shute Shield. What a great opportunity for us to finish the season by testing ourselves against them at Woollahra.”
Men’s 2nd Grade 66 – 49
The 2nd Grade team returned to Concord Oval and produced one of the highest-scoring games of the season. West Harbour found themselves a try down within the opening minutes before pushing back with some early attack of their own. Two penalties at the breakdown got the Pirates within five metres of the tryline, and Afa Moleli wanted to keep the ball tight. A quick tap from the flyhalf set up the forward pack to repeatedly crash into the Hunter line, and it was Nat Collado-McGregor who reaped the rewards. The prop rumbled over from short range, with the conversion levelling the scores in the sixth minute.
Hunter’s attack was well drilled, while further discipline issues in defence marched the Pirates back after the restart. A close-range lineout formed a maul before the Wildfires splintered right. The defenders couldn’t adjust quickly enough, allowing the away side to retake the lead. Hunter’s exit from the restart then went out on the full, giving West Harbour a lineout and space for the backline to attack. The ball was shifted to the left wing, where a half-break from Afa Moleli nearly put William Satala through a gap. The winger had support from Sevuloni Satala, who was first to react to the loose ball and strolled over the line.
A strong defensive effort from West Harbour slowed the scoring, but the hard work was immediately undone by an error at the set piece. The open field had the Pirates scrambling back to defend, and Hunter capitalised on the mistake, scoring in the corner. The ensuing kick-off was athletically claimed by Sevuloni Satala, and the winger linked up with the chasing Pirates as they quickly worked their way into the red zone. A few short phases squeezed the defence before the ball was fired to the backline. The No. 15 stepped against the grain and spun through contact to score the fifth try of the match.
The penalty problems continued for West Harbour, with back-to-back penalties putting Hunter back on the front foot. Slick hands through the centre channel re-established the Wildfires’ nine-point lead only minutes later.
The match was end-to-end, with momentum seemingly shifting with every possession. West Harbour managed to break through an eager Hunter defence with some strong carries denting the line, forcing the Wildfires to defend within a minute of scoring at the other end of the field. The scrappy sequence was followed by a huge scrum penalty from the seven-man Pirates pack. West Harbour held onto the ball cleverly, playing safe and keeping the risk of turnovers low while the player advantage was still in Hunter’s favour.
William Spice kept the tempo high, while Afa Moleli had already planned his next move. The flyhalf dropped back into the pocket and released a huge cross-field kick which found William Satala in space. Satala stepped inside his defender and offloaded to a looping Senijiale Dawai, who glided over to once again bring the scores within four points.
The first-half scoring didn’t stop there. Loose hands from the Hunter Wildfires popped the ball to Nat Collado-McGregor, and the prop smashed through the scrambling Hunter defenders. Collado-McGregor was eventually brought down by three Wildfire players, but they failed to secure the ruck and Gruffydd John-Morris was first to notice. The hooker burst through the gap in the middle of the park and ran in untouched to swing the lead in West Harbour’s favour for the first time in the match. Afa Moleli’s conversion was the final act of the first half, leaving West Harbour defending a two-point lead.
The second half began with a long spell of Pirates possession. Powerful scrums bruised the Hunter players, while the fast-paced attack stretched the away side thin. William Spice had options left and right but chose to test the backline, which had an even matchup of numbers on the short side. Alisi Leao was in the centre channel and, once he straightened his line upon receiving the pass, he was too fast to catch before sliding over the whitewash. The conversion extended the West Harbour lead to 10 points.
The restart had West Harbour deep in their red zone, but the expansive attack was still on. Afa Moleli called the ball out and ran at his defender’s outside shoulder. A strong fend separated him from his opponent and the field opened up. William Satala ran a support line and chipped over the approaching fullback. Moleli recovered the ball before producing a basketball-style offload over his head, finding William Satala, who was at full speed and wasn’t impeded as he took his second try of the match.
The match remained physical and fast, with fresh legs on both sides reinvigorating the tempo. Hunter managed to score out wide after a stray kick fell nicely for their winger, closing the Pirates’ lead to within two scores. However, the away side’s troubles didn’t end there. A nasty shot in the breakdown reduced Hunter to 14 players and set up a scrum deep in Wildfire territory.
The Pirates piled on the pressure and eventually the halfback combination of Afa Moleli and William Spice combined around the ruck to open a huge gap in the defensive line. An inside pass to the replacement No. 9 was enough to break through the tiring Hunter defence, with William Spice breaking the 50-point threshold for West Harbour.
Afa Moleli got his own score only moments later when the Wildfires’ backline was slow to approach the Pirates and a dog-leg in defence was pounced on by the flyhalf. Moleli burst through the gap to secure the game for West Harbour.
Hunter were struggling to secure any possession, and a handling error gifted West Harbour another chance. After the turnover, the ball was kept alive, with Darcey Bush charging into contact and the defence swarming the ruck. The space was out wide, and the ball was shifted to John Callaughan. Callaughan dummied a pass, broke the line and ran through under the posts untouched by Hunter.
With only a few minutes remaining, Hunter finally kicked into gear, scoring two consolation tries and leaving Concord Oval frustrated by their second-half performance.
