IT wasn’t the first occasion Maitland had found themselves in a close encounter recently.
Actually, Saturday’s 24-22 victory over Western Suburbs at home continued a trend of sorts for the Pickers.
Four of Maitland’s last six games have been decided by a converted try or less. Three of those were wins, but not all as dramatic as the weekend with a a late try in the corner.
The Pickers also managed to edge out Macquarie 36-30 at Lyall Peacock Field on July 14 and the Goannas 22-16 in Cessnock on June 30. They went down 36-34 to Central last month after hitting the upright with a conversion attempt post full-time.
Across the entire Newcastle Rugby League competition, 30.3 percent of the 56 matches played so far in 2018 have recorded a margin of six points or under. That’s 16 in total plus a 22-all draw between Macquarie and Central in round 10.
There could be a few more tight tussles left in the last two rounds with the minor premiership, home semis, top-five spots and wooden spoon all still up for grabs.
* CESSNOCK’S black and gold ball won’t just make someone’s Saturday night, but potentially somebody’s season with a $10,000 raffle prize up for grabs. Tickets are $100 each with funds raised going towards the Strive For Autism charity.
* BEFORE last weekend one punter gave “Winx odds” to Luke Walsh making a cameo appearance for Wests despite the recently retired English Super League and NRL playmaker flying into the country on game eve.
Based on Wednesday night’s TAB, that’s a 12-cent collect for a one-dollar investment.
