Haynes tries not enough for Comets 19/04/2010

TWO  tries from captain Tyron Haynes was not enough to stop the CQ Comets crashing to their fourth Intrust Super Cup defeat in a row.

Coach Wayne Barnett was disappointed again with his team’s inability to retain the football in the 12-20 loss to the Burleigh Bears at Brisbane.

“I think the score was a pretty good reflection of the game,” he admitted.

“We held less than 50% of the ball.”

The match was played in wet and windy conditions, something the Comets failed to fully cope with.

Surfacing as a major problem for the Comets is who will play at fullback.

Jade Williams is down on confidence and played the match on the wing, replacing the injured Dallas Williams.

The plan was for Guy Williams to add defensive stability in the fullback role.

The move was not a success.

During the match Williams was taken out of fullback and moved to his preferred place in the second row.

Barnett then tried out Ben Hunt and Ian Webster in the troublesome position, without fully gaining the result he had hoped for.

The coach is unwilling to admit it is a time to panic.

The Comets have good players and they don’t become bad players overnight.

However, Barnett said he got the playing group together after the match to discuss the situation so it can turn things around before the season’s finals get beyond them.

“We had a chat and set a few things straight,” he said.

“The frustrating thing is they (the players) have the experience and the talent.”

Back into the selection mix for the Comets will be Dallas Williams and Karl Johnson.

Ironically, Haynes took over in the centres from Johnson and put in the Comets’ man-of-the-match display with his two tries and some excellent defensive work.

The problem for Barnett is that he will be missing Alan Rothery for next week’s match, against the Northern Pride at Cairns, because he has a family commitment that weekend.

On a more positive note, the two youngsters on the Comets interchange, George Jarrett and Lewis McPhail, both got valuable minutes on the park and impressed Barnett with what they did.

Apart from the standout Haynes, Barnett was also happy with the work his forwards provided.

“They went well, although the score doesn’t reflect that,” he said.

Next week’s opponent, Northern Pride, defeated Mackay Cutters 20-16 in Cairns.

The Stanwell Corporation Junior Comets (under-16s) were beaten 46-16 in their Connell Cup semi-final by Norths at Brisbane on Saturday.

Story courtesy of Alan Kennedy at The Morning Bulletin.