Goulburn City Bulldogs continued their Canberra Raiders Cup reign with a 30-point victory in 60 minutes, but a season-ending injury for one of their own overshadowed the result.
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Winger Max Flack went down about 20 minutes into the second half with a dislocated, broken ankle to end the game 36-6 against the Yass Magpies.
The referees called the game as the Bulldogs player was left in-situ on the field waiting for an ambulance.
Captain and coach Tyson Greenwood said losing a player to injury was never good.
"It was a bit of a shake-up for the team but he's a good kid, he will move forward from that. He will bounce back and he'll be twice the bloke," he said.
"Everyone was there with him and he's got a lot of support behind him. So hopefully he comes out of surgery alright and gets back on the paddock.
"But in relation to the win, 3-0 for the start of the season is awesome for us. A lot of confidence with the boys moving into next week."
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Following two impressive wins in the opening rounds, the Bulldogs shot out of the gates early again to score seven tries in the first half to make it 36-0 heading into the sheds at Workers Arena.
Goulburn lost some concentration in the second half, conceding some errors to let Yass back into the contest.
The Magpies kept the Bulldogs scoreless for the shortened second half, and gained back a try of their own to make it 36-6 before Flack's injury.
Yass coach Cameron Hardy said the game's early finish lessened the scoreline blow for his side.
"It was just a tale of two halves, there was some silly errors right from the beginning and all the way through the first," he said.
"The positives were we came out in the second half and kept them scoreless for those 20 or so minutes."
The Magpies had a bye in round one and have been struggling to find their stride, with Sunday's loss making it 0-2 so far this season.
They will host the Gungahlin Bulls next week, and Hardy said he knew what his side had to do to get its first two points.
"We're going to need a bit more commitment, better attitude and less errors, really, at the end of the day," he said.
"I don't think we had an error in the first 20 minutes of the second half against Goulburn and, basically, it was 6-0 in the second half to us."
The Bulldogs, on the other hand, will look to extend their 3-0 start to the season and maintain their spot on top of the ladder against West Belconnen Warriors in round four.
The Warriors won their first match, and piled on nine tries to hammer Belconnen United Sharks 52-6 on Sunday night.
Greenwood said they would look to pull up a player from reserves to fill the void left by Flack's injury in their squad next week.
"There's plenty of depth," he said.
"So I'm more than confident in the boys that we have in the club to step up and take the opportunity."
AT A GLANCE
Canberra Raiders Cup round three results:
- Gungahlin Bulls bt Queanbeyan Blues 44-16
- Tuggeranong Bushrangers bt Woden Valley Rams 36-6
- Goulburn City Bulldogs bt Yass Magpies 36-6
- West Belconnen Warriors bt Belconnen United Sharks 52-6
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Isobel Cootes
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
