Comets' Guy Williams will play in the halves with Matt Minto who replaces the injured Ian Webster

The team named by coach Wayne Barnett for the game with Wynnum Manly looks pretty strong despite the loss of half back/hooker Ian Webster and centre Jade Williams for the remainder of the season.

However, as in previous weeks there are number of players named who are yet to prove their fitness.

“Junior Auru is about 80% certain to play while Darren Mapp and Chris Beasley are still 50/50,” he said.

Add to that list co-captain Tyron Haynes who hurt an ankle on Saturday against Northern Pride and the list begins to look a little less formidable.

The good news is the return of experienced winger Dallas Williams who was concussed during the match with the Burleigh Bears, chipping a few teeth in the process.

“Dallas has got a mouth guard made,” Barnett reported saying the winger had not used one.

Despite losing Webster and Jade Williams, plus the defection of Aaron Summers and Karl Johnson last month, Barnett will be happy to field the players named.

“It is a pretty good side, it is getting close to what we were putting out at the beginning of the season,” he said.

The coach paid tribute to his players who have battled through despite the losses of key members through injury and without collecting players from an NRL club.

“We are doing it on our lonesome – we have done very well with our local players,” he said.

Those local players will have to lift their game to another level if they are to beat Wynnum Manly, another visitor near the top of the ladder.

THE TEAM

The team to meet Wynnum Manly in Round 19 at Browne Park on Saturday is:

1: Junior Auru 2. Joe Collins-Soo 3. Tyron Haynes 4. Josh Bishop 5. Dallas Williams 6. Guy Williams 7. Matt Minto 8. Tim Glasby 9. Marc Fickling 10. Liam Anlezark 11. Darren Mapp 12. Chris Beasley 13. Mick Esdale 14. Guy Ford 15. Chris Gesch 16. Marc Webb 17. George Tuakura

Story courtesy of Alan Kennedy at The Morning Bulletin

Comets centre Jade Williams is not just a try machine but is also improving with his defensive duties.

This week, however, he has no such luxury.

Question marks hang over the heads of too many players, making it guesswork for the coach, who admits the remainder of the season will be about playing for respectability.

Barnett and his players are still recovering from the pounding they received at the weekend from the Burleigh Bears, when losing 50-18 at Browne Park.

“It wasn’t our strongest team,” he admitted.

Playing with two inexperienced wingers took its toll on the Comets. Barnett said Daniel Pickering and Joe Collins-Soo were both exposed.

However, the coach said both youngsters were against quality opponents and they would be better for that experience.

The youngsters were covering for automatic selections Junior Auru and Dallas Williams, and Barnett was unsure whether his top wingers would face the Northern Pride at Browne Park on Saturday.

Added to that list were second-rower Chris Beasley, who is still troubled by an ankle injury, Darren Mapp, who was injured against the Bears, and Alan Rothery, who seems certain to miss most of the rest of the season after being placed on report for a head-high tackle and then being sent from the park, giving away a penalty try in the process, for his challenge on a Bears try-scorer.

One piece of good news was that centre Jade Williams received only an “uncomfortable” injury against the Bears.

Williams is one of the few players whose form is improving as the season progresses. “He played well. His defence is getting better each week,” Barnett said.

A certainty to be named is young Chris Gesch, who put in a ton of work and showed pace with a great line break, which led to one of the Comets’ tries.

THE TEAM

The team to meet Northern Pride in Round 18 on Saturday at Browne Park is:

1. Matt Minto 2. Junior Auru 3. Jade Williams 4. Josh Bishop 5. Dallas Williams 6. Guy Williams 7. Ian Webster 8. Tim Glasby 9. Marc Fickling 10. Alan Rothery 11. Tyron Haynes 12. Darren Mapp 13. Mick Esdale 14. Chris Beasley 15. Chris Gesch 16. Lewis McPhail 17. Liam Anlezark 18. George Tuakura Joe Collins-Soo 19. Daniel Pickering.



Given the Comets’ recent form, facing competition leaders Norths Devils was set to be another one of those games where the side got close but just didn’t get across the line.

However, four magnificent tries to centre Jade Williams propelled the Comes to a 34-16 victory over the Devils and has ensured the Comets are a real threat to those sides vying for a finals berth in this year’s Intrust Super Cup.

While the Central Queenslanders are mathematically still a chance of playing finals football, the reality is the side has left its run too late.

With just six games remaining the Comets would need to win every game and would have to rely on favourable results in the other competition matches.

One bonus for the club is that they play four of their last six games in Rockhampton with one other game in Gladstone.

In order to start their run, the Comets would have to overcome the Burleigh Bears this Saturday night at Rockhampton’s Browne Park.

Waiting on the fitness of winger Dallas Williams and front rower Gerard Parle, at this stage Comets coach Wayne Barnett has made no changes to his top 17.

Comets team to take on the Norths Devils at Rockhampton’s Browne Park at 7pm on Saturday, 17th July:

1. MATT MINTO

2. JOSH PICKERING

3. JADE WILLIAMS

4. JOSH BISHOP

5. DALLAS WILLIAMS

6. GUY WILLIAMS

7. IAN WEBSTER

8. TIM GLASBY

9. MARC FICKLING

10. ALAN ROTHERY

11. TYRON HAYNES

12. DARREN MAPP

13. MICK ESDALE

INTERCHANGE

14. CHRIS BEASLEY

15. GUY FORD

16. LIAM ANLEZARK

17. GERARD PARLE

COACH: WAYNE BARNET

Comets' Alan Rothery will make his return tonight from suspension. Photo: Chris Ison

Deaves missed the Redcliffe clash with what was thought to be a cork, but medical staff have since been forced to re-assess that injury and now believed it was a cartilage problem.

Daniel Pickering has been brought back into the starting line-up and plays on the wing.

“Everything is on track,” Comets coach Wayne Barnett confirmed, while naming his team for tonight’s clash against Norths at Browne Park.

That might sound odd as the Comets still have a few injuries but Barnett is being realistic as the team he named on Tuesday is still the one to go into battle tonight apart from Deaves.

One of the standout players for the Comets has been fullback Junior Auru, who was again in excellent form against Redcliffe, looking particularly strong under the high kicks opposition halfback Michael Roberts sent in his direction.

Unfortunately he is nursing a strained groin muscle and misses the Norths clash.

Hard-running Alan Rothery returns from suspension and that is a massive bonus for the Comets as he is one player with drive who can attack a defensive line while still releasing the ball with clever off-loads to maintain his team’s momentum.

“I’m very happy to see Alan back in the side,” Barnett admitted.

The skills of Rothery are evident but the forward has incurred the wrath of match officials too often and that has resulted in him facing disciplinary actions.

The Comets had three players placed on report at Redcliffe but Tim Glasby, Darren Mapp and Jade Williams escaped suspension after producing an early guilty plea.

If the Intrust Super Cup ladder is an indicator of how the game with Norths will be played out, it might appear the Comets stand little chance as Norths sit in second spot, while the Ipswich Jets is the only team below the Comets.

That side is made even stronger with the inclusion of forward Scott Anderson.

The 111kg prop comes into the side having played most of the season with the Broncos and previously for the all-conquering Melbourne Storm.

Another problem the Norths Devils have scored the most points in 2010 while the Comets defensive record is one of the poorest in the competition.

THE TEAM

1. Matt Minto, 2. Daniel Pickering, 3. Jade Williams, 4. Josh Bishop, 5. Dallas Williams, 6. Guy Williams, 7. Ian Webster, 8. Tim Glasby, 9. Marc Fickling, 10. Alan Rothery, 11. Tyron Haynes, 12. Darren Mapp, 13. Mick Esdale.

Interchange: 14. Chris Beasley, 15. Guy Ford, 16. Liam Anlezark, 17. Gerard Parle

Story courtesy of Alan Kennedy at The Morning Bulletin

Early guilty pleas have ensured they do not miss a game after all three players were charged with dangerous tackles in the shattering loss to the Redcliffe Dolphins on the weekend.

Glasby has been one of the real finds of the season for the Comets and the front rower went very close to man of the match honours in a losing side on the weekend.

The 21 year old front rower scored two tries and worked tirelessly throughout the match.

This weekend he will be reunited with front row partner Allan Rothery who returns to the Comets side after serving three weeks suspension.

Comets team to take on the Norths Devils at Rockhampton’s Browne Park at 7pm on Saturday, 10th July:

1. MATT MINTO

2. NICK DEAVES

3. JADE WILLIAMS

4. JOSH BISHOP

5. DALLAS WILLIAMS

6. GUY WILLIAMS

7. IAN WEBSTER

8. TIM GLASBY

9. MARC FICKLING

10. ALAN ROTHERY

11. TYRON HAYNES

12. DARREN MAPP

13. MICK ESDALE

INTERCHANGE

14. CHRIS BEASLEY

15. GUY FORD

16. LIAM ANLEZARK

17. GERARD PARLE

COACH: WAYNE BARNETT



Major hails from Young in country New South Wales but has been playing with the Tannum Sands Seagulls side in the Challenge Cup competition for the last few years.

Usually a halfback or five-eighth, the 26-year-old will provide another creative option for Comets coach Wayne Barnett’s new-look halves combination.

Barnett has named regular dummy half Ian Webster at halfback and utility Guy Williams in the starting number 6 jersey, while co-captain Marc Fickling will line up at hooker.

The Comets take on Redcliffe Dolphins in ABC’s 2pm timeslot in what is a must-win match for the side.

The club is hoping that they can repeat the effort displayed in their last on-screen performance in which they put on a near-perfect display against the higher placed Wynnum Seagulls running out winners, 30-6.

Comets team to take on the Redcliffe Dolphins at Dolphin Oval, Redcliffe at 2pm on Saturday, 3rd July:

1. DAMIEN MAJOR

2. JUNIOR AURU

3. JADE WILLIAMS

4. JOSH BISHOP

5. DALLAS WILLIAMS

6. GUY WILLIAMS

7. IAN WEBSTER

8. TIM GLASBY

9. MARC FICKLING

10. AARON SUMMERS

11. TYRON HAYNES

12. DARREN MAPP

13. MICK ESDALE

INTERCHANGE

14. CHRIS BEASLEY

15. GUY FORD

16. LIAM ANLEZARK

17. GERARD PARLE

COACH: WAYNE BARNETT



Along with Barnett, the Country side included two Comets’ players, lock Tyron Haynes and dummy half Ian Webster.

Both players performed exceptionally well with Haynes scoring his side’s final try of the match.

But it was Country halfback Daly Cherry-Evans who was the star of the show.

Cherry-Evans put forward a strong case for higher representative honours following his man-of-the-match performance in the clash against XXXX City at Gympie.

Cherry-Evans scored a great individual try in the second-half and combined superbly with skipper Brad Davis to guide Country to a comfortable 20-12 victory.

“His experience is just phenomenal and it makes my job a lot easier,” Cherry-Evans said of Davis.

After guiding Country to their fourth-straight win over City, Cherry-Evans is tipped to gain selection in the Queensland Residents team to play NSW Residents in a curtain-raiser to State of Origin III in Sydney on Wednesday week.

“This is my first senior rep side. I’d be really happy to go to the next level,” Cherry-Evans said.

Despite losing winger Obe Geia to injury, Country always appeared to be in control against a City team that tried hard all day but never really fired with the ball in hand.

Tries from Clint Amos and Shannon Walker saw Country go into the half-time break leading 10-0.

City breathed some life into the contest with a 90m intercept try to Josefa Davui shortly after half-time.

But when Cherry-Evans scored after a stroke of luck from a grubber kick, Country was back in control at 14-6.

XXXX COUNTRY 20 (Tyron Haynes, Clint Amos, Daly Cherry-Evans, Shannon Walker tries; Justin Hunt, Brad Davis goals) def XXXX CITY 12 (Josefa Davui, Brendon Gibb tries; Brett Kelly, Matt Seamark goals) at Albert Park, Gympie

Story and photo courtesy of the Queensland Rugby League & Warren Keir, SMP IMAGES

SPORT can be cruel and star CQ Comets forward Alan Rothery will have three weeks to feel the pain as he sits out the next three Intrust Super Cup games.

Comets' second rower Alan Rothery will be missed by the Comets for the next 3 weeks. Photo courtesy of The Morning Bulletin's Chris Ison

Rothery was a standout for the Comets against the Sunshine Coast, but incurred the disapproval of the match official for taking things in his own hands when an opposition player wouldn’t give him the room to play a quick play-the-ball.

The Comets have been made to suffer as the official not only gave Coast the ball from which they went on to score, but sin-binned Rothery for 10 minutes.

That was during the match and now the big forward has received two weeks suspension for a charge of “contrary behaviour” plus an extra week for the points he had accrued from previous offences.

Comets coach Wayne Barnett was not prepared to comment on the display of the match official, but did agree Rothery’s aggression can get him into problems.

“He is an aggressive player, but he does his job, sometimes he might go a little too far,” Barnett admitted.

The timing of the punishment for Rothery is especially cruel as Barnett revealed the big man was under consideration for the annual Country v Town game.

Despite the loss of arguably the Comets’ most consistent performer, Barnett has announced a very sound squad for Saturday’s match against Easts at Browne Park.

“On paper it looks like a good side,” the coach conceded, but pointed out the team got no points for good selections.

Probably the unluckiest player is Matt Minto, who returns to Yeppoon after two weeks at full back for the Comets.

“He didn’t have a bad game and with ball in hand was very good,” he said. “He is still a player coming through.”

However, Junior Auru is the Comets’ first choice fullback and he rejoins the team after injury.

Dallas Williams is named for one of the wing spots while the performance of Nick Deaves has convinced the coach he can do the job on the other wing.

One player who has failed to make the cut is Karl Johnson who is set to play in the Challenge Cup competition.

Barnett said Johnson was still not playing as well as he could.

“His defence is a part of the key,” the coach said.

Named in the centres is Jade Williams who marked his return to the Comets with two tries last week.

“Jade has had a tough month, but I congratulate the bloke on the way he came back,” he said.

Darren Mapp also comes back after injury to lessen the blow of losing Rothery.

Even though Easts arebelow the Comets on the ladder, Barnett will be telling his team to take nothing for granted.

“We go out thinking we are better than what we are, a team has got to work for the win,” he said.

Comets side to take on the Easts Tigers at Browne Park on Saturday night, 7pm kick-off.

1. Junior Auru

2. Dallas Williams

3. Jade Williams

4. Josh Bishop

5. Nick Deaves

6. Nathan Barraclough

7. Marc Fickling

8. Tim Glasby

9. Ian Webster

10. Aaron Summers

11. Tyron Haynes

12. Darren Mapp

13. Guy Williams

Interchange

14. Chris Beasley

15. Mick Esdale

16. Guy Ford

17. Gerard Parle

Despite the effort of Minto and just a few others, the Comets were completely outclassed conceding nine tries to two in their demoralising 36-point loss in Mackay on the weekend.

Minto was heavily involved throughout the match and featured in one of the few highlights for the side scoring a try from a Tyron Haynes offload midway through the first half.

Simple handling errors and poor decisions at crucial times cruelled the side’s chances of winning the match.

The Comets face a tough task in reigning premiers the Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles this weekend.

The Sea Eagles come off a big win over the Northern Pride in round 12 and will be looking to return to the form that saw them take out the competition last year.

Comets team to take on the Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles at Browne Park, Rockhampton at 3pm on Sunday, 13th June:

1. MATT MINTO

2. KARL JOHNSON

3. GUY WILLIAMS

4. JOSH BISHOP

5. DALLAS WILLIAMS

6. NATHAN BARRACLOUGH

7. MARC FICKLING

8. TIM GLASBY

9. IAN WEBSTER

10. ALAN ROTHERY

11. GUY FORD

12. MICK ESDALE

13. TYRON HAYNES

INTERCHANGE

14. GERARD PARLE

15. REECE BAKER

16. AARON SUMMERS

17. LIAM ANLEZARK

COACH: WAYNE BARNETT



Comets fullback Junior Auru is fighting to be right to take on the Mackay Cutters this weekend (Photo courtesy of Slice of Life Photography).

INJURY concerns has not stopped Rockhampton Leagues Club Comets coach Wayne Barnett naming Junior Auru at fullback for this Sunday’s match against the Mackay Cutters.

Auru strained his hamstring late in the second half of the Comets 15-14 win over the Ipswich Jets on Saturday night and had to leave the field.

The custodian has nearly been the Comets’ best since moving from the wing to fullback midway through the first half of the season.

The Comets face the Cutters in the third leg of the annual Meng Challenge local derby battle between the two sides.

Both sides have recorded a win with the Central Queensland side defeating the Cutters 20-10 in their last encounter in the first match of the season after Mackay won the annual pre-season trial match.

The Cutters come off a high scoring win over reigning premiers the Sunshine Coast Sea Eagles and have found some form after recording back to back wins for the second time this season.

Comets team to take on the Mackay Cutters at Mackay Juniors, Mackay at 3pm on Sunday, 6th June:

1. JUNIOR AURU

2. DANIEL PICKERING

3. GUY WILLIAMS

4. JOSH BISHOP

5. DALLAS WILLIAMS

6. NATHAN BARRACLOUGH

7. MARC FICKLING

8. TIM GLASBY

9. IAN WEBSTER

10. ALAN ROTHERY

11. GUY FORD

12. MICK ESDALE

13. TYRON HAYNES

INTERCHANGE

14. GERARD PARLE

15. REECE BAKER

16. COOPER NOBBS

17. GEORGE TUAKURA

COACH: WAYNE BARNETT