THE Coffs Harbour Comets went down 30-10 to the Grafton Ghosts last Saturday’s round two of the Tooheys New Group 2 Rugby League competition at Geoff King Motors Stadium.

The players, coaches and supporters paid their respects on the eve of ANZAC Day with a minute’s silence and a playing of the ‘The Last Post’ on the bugle.

The Comets flew out the blocks with a try in the opening minutes before the Ghosts responded with tries of their own to close out the first half with two tries each and the score finely poised at 12-10.

But it was the Ghosts who maintained the high intensity into the second half, scoring 18 unanswered points in a polished performance from the 2019 reigning champions.

Comets Coach Brandon Costin acknowledged the strength of the Ghosts who are likely to be this year’s benchmark.

“Very rusty performance from the Comets, Grafton Ghosts have proven themselves yet again to be a powerhouse within the competition.

“They are always the team to beat and they were definitely the better side, the Comets players were big on effort and energy but unfortunately were still not a match for the more skilful Ghosts.

“They play a fast and upbeat game which will terrorise many teams in the weeks to come,” said Costin.

The loss gave assistant coach Miles Fairbank a few things to take back to the training ground.

“We made it a tough afternoon by not completing our sets, we dropped the ball cold on the first tackle far too many times and when you do that against a side like Grafton they will punish you every time.

“Good job it’s early in the season so we have time to fix up a few things and hopefully get some consistency each week,” said Fairbank.

The Comet’s next match is another home fixture on Sunday 2 May at Geoff King Motors Oval against the South Grafton Rebels.

 

By David WIGLEY