Midwest Cup: Ryan Dukes scores last minute try for Blackheath Blackcats to win grand final

Carcoar was the venue and Blackheath took the title 34-28 in an exciting contest with Kandos Waratahs.

Blackcats captain-coach Ryan Evans was the game's first scorer nine minutes into the game with a bustling charge to the line resulting in a 4-0 lead after the unsuccessful conversion attempt.

Then Aaron Kelso's converted try pushed the score to 10-nil and the Cats, with all the momentum, were looking to demolish the scrambling Kandos defence.

Five minutes later Waratahs' Cal Limon's first Kandos try, converted by Tommy Large, reduced the leeway to four points, and Kandos were beginning to settle into their rhythm, initially unsettled by the Cats' powerful start.

Converted Blackheath tries to Donovan Peters, then Elias Dukes, pushed the score to 22-6, and a big score for the Cats looked ominous.

Finding more cohesion while keeping their opponents' scoring opportunities to a minimum, Kandos scored the next two tries, to Tom Fraser and Tyron Reynolds, to close the gap to 22-16.

Blackheath were able to again keep the Waratahs at bay with Duke's second try, converted by Greg Alderson and, at 28-16, keeping the lead tantalisingly out of Kandos' reach.

Not to be denied however, Kandos winger Mitch McWhirter scored a converted try for 28-22 to cut the Cats' lead to six points.

At this point, late in the match, Kandos had taken back all the momentum and were closing in quickly.

Every time Kandos worked their way to the Blackheath line their big forwards created havoc, time and again taken down in tackles either centimetres from the line or held up over the line.

It had taken nearly all game for Kandos to claw their way back from their less-than-emphatic start, and when Lachie Large smashed through the Cats defence for Kandos to equalise at 28-all, the result was wide open.

Into the final minutes Dukes went across for the final Blackheath try, converted by Alderson, closing the game down and strangling any more scoring opportunities from their rivals.

Blackheath-Kandos title deciders don't come around every day, and in more than 50 years as rivals in the Midwest competition these two clubs have met in a grand final only twice before, Blackheath, with their 2023 win, now holding a two-to-one advantage over Kandos.

The earlier league tag grand final saw the same clubs compete for premiership honours, neither club having won a title in the nine years of the women's competition.

Kandos took the honours in an exciting game, their strong defence stifling a competent Blackheath attack, the game showing some good individual attack by Kandos and, late in the game, with the result in the balance and holding a 12-6 lead, Alex Knihinicki was successful with a penalty kick into the wind to give her side a 14-6 premiership win.

In the first two playoff games for third place Carcoar won the league tag game 6-4 over Portland, Carcoar also winning the first grade playoff 42-6.

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