At one stage during the under 18 Orange derby it seemed the mercy rule would be on the cards.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Orange Hawks raced out to a 20-0 lead before a second half fightback from CYMS fell just short 20-14.
Hawks winger Brodie Tarleton, who scored a double, said his side struggled to deal with CYMS after the break.
"It was good, I kind of just sat there on the wing but I got the job done," he said.
"We had a pretty good first half and we tried improve in the second but we didn't end up doing that," he said.
"We couldn't stick to our normal shape and defence but thankfully we had enough points on the board to get it done.
"In the second half they really gave it to us. They pushed up and we couldn't really run our shape or anything. They played pretty well."
The home side was ruthless however, shifting the ball wide and finding easy metres.
Tarleton scored his double in the space of just two sets and Hawks were showing why they were unbeaten in 2023.
CYMS finally got off the mark just before the break thanks to a Cruz Jordan effort in the corner.
The green and yellow picked up where they left off, scoring tries via Oli Maunder and captain Will Warner but ultimately fell short.
Tarleton said Hawks would now shift their focus to the final round against Bathurst St Pats and beyond.
"It's always a good game, the derby," he said.
"There was a bit of fire but it is what it is.
"We are feeling pretty good. Just getting to training every week and trying to get as good as possible."
Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.
