Three big defensive plays in the last three minutes show just how desperate Orange Hawks can be according to prop Mitch Gallagher.
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Hawks held on to beat Bathurst Panthers 16-12 on a Wade Park pitch that resembled a pig sty in patches.
However with 25 minutes to go it seemed the home side had done enough when substitute Ben Blimka crashed over in the corner to extend the lead to 16-0.
But an inspired Panthers comeback fell just short with two turnovers and a contested kick close to Hawks' try-line with less than three minutes remaining sealed the two points for Orange.
Gallagher, who was caked in mud at full-time after a herculean effort, praised his teammates' fortitude.
"I'm pretty buggered," he said.
"We worked well in the middle and all over the park we defended really well today. It was a good, hard game of footy.
"It was pretty wet in the middle of the park on the cricket pitch but you have to do what you have to do.
"They really came out hard in those last 20 minutes but we defended well and held on to get the win.
"It's unreal, we are going well. We have a good team of boys here, good coach, good assistants. Everyone around us is really there for us this year. We are playing hard and we are going to give it a good crack."
A tale of two halves
Both halves were an arm wrestle with the cold and slippery conditions posing a challenge to any attacking footy aspirations.
Despite this Hawks went into the sheds with a 10-0 lead thanks to tries from lock Matt Boss (his third in two weeks) and Benjamin French.
When Blimka went over for the two blues' third Panthers were looking at a lonely trip back along the Mitchell Highway but the away side rallied.
![The middle of Wade Park on Sunday afternoon resembled a pig sty. Picture by Dominic Unwin The middle of Wade Park on Sunday afternoon resembled a pig sty. Picture by Dominic Unwin](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/131358433/9c45f929-6ece-4c26-be0f-47f35a1c4181.JPG/r0_0_4928_3263_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
A break from winger Jesse Limon was converted with an inside ball to McCoy White and in the 71st minute five-eighth Nicholas Tilburg touched down close to the sticks.
But Hawks would hang on in what was an arm-wrestle worthy of the two teams' third (Hawks) and fourth placings on the ladder.
'Horrible' conditions
Both coaches were happy with how their teams handled the mud pit that sometimes doubles as a cricket pitch.
"They did hang in there," Hawks coach Shane Rodney said.
"Conditions were poor for both teams. It's pretty chewed up out there and it looks horrible actually.
"It goes from being rock hard and then when the rain comes it gets muddy. But that's for every team."
"It was tough, the field was pretty sloppy," Panthers player-coach Jake Betts added.
"It probably showed with errors from both sides but was a tough, fast game of footy."
ORANGE HAWKS 16 (Matt Boss, Benjamin French, Ben Blimka tries; Ryan Manning 2 conversions) defeated BATHURST PANTHERS 12 (McCoy White, Nicholas Tilburg tries, Josh Rivett 2 conversions)
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