Round 15
Redcliffe Dolphins 24 l. Ipswich Jets 36

2008 Wizard Queensland Cup Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats]

Location: Australia > Queensland > State/Metropolitan Level Competition: Wizard Queensland Cup

Adam puts best foot forward
Mon June 30, 2008
Source: www.qrl.com.au

Adam Boettcher concedes he will soon have to hand back the No. 13 jersey to Ipswich Jets milestone man Danny Coburn.

But Boettcher is hopeful of keeping a place in the Ipswich 17 when Coburn returns and on today's form, the Ipswich Brothers junior is a strong chance of being an integral member of the Jets' charge into the Queensland Cup finals.

Boettcher produced another strong display for the Jets at lock forward in their comfortable 36-24 victory over the Redcliffe Dolphins at Dolphin Oval today.

"Everyone that comes up doesn't want to let the other guys down and they step up," Boettcher said.

"It's good to get an opportunity. I'm loving it ? I spent a year in the wilderness.

"It's good to come back and get back into it again. The speed of the game is unbelievable when you come back up.

"It takes you a few weeks to get used to it but I'm feeling a lot more comfortable now."

Boettcher earned a Queensland Cup recall for Ipswich's round 12 clash with Wynnum Manly following Coburn's injury setback.

Coburn, a veteran of 217 Queensland Cup games for Ipswich, suffered a serious calf tear in round 11 against the Northern Pride and may still be a few weeks away from a return.

Any fears of an Ipswich slide down the ladder in Coburn's absence have been well and truly put to rest.

The Jets have now won three in a row.

But no matter how well he plays and how well the team performs, Boettcher knows he'll soon lose his starting spot.

"Obviously Cobes is going to retain his spot. He's an institution at the club," Boettcher said.

"But if I go back to FOGS I'll go back and rip in and try and work my way back. I'll do whatever I need to do."

Boettcher and fellow Ipswich juniors Todd Riggs, Dale Robertson and Dan Fullarton all had strong outings against the Dolphins today.

"It wasn't pretty but we lifted in defence and that's what is going to win you the game," Boettcher said.

"We had a good lead so as long as they didn't put any more points on us we weren't going to lose."

Ipswich scored the first three tries of the match to open up an 18-0 lead after just 15 minutes.

The first try was an absolute beauty.

After a strong forward surge the Jets kept the ball alive, spreading it from the left hand side of the field to the far right where Brendan Marshall crossed in the corner.

Aaron Sweeney crossed just minutes later after Redcliffe failed to clean up an Ian Lacey grubber kick in the in-goal.

It soon became 16-0 when Josh Lewis put a superb kick onto the chest of the flying Walter Imo.

Lewis converted the try for an 18-0 lead.

But Redcliffe showed plenty of fight to score the next two tries, both through the hard-running Chris Fox.

"At 18-0 we made a few mistakes and gave them a sniff," Boettcher said.

"But we hung in there I guess. That's all that counts at the end of the day - the two points."

Ipswich took a 20-12 lead into the break after Lewis slotted a penalty goal right on half-time.

Redcliffe appeared to be gaining the upper hand in the second half but a stray pass proved costly for the home side.

Lewis grabbed an intercept and raced 60m to score. The converted try put the game out of reach for the Dolphins, who have now dropped two points out of the top five after back to back losses.

Report Source: www.qrl.com.au

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