Group 10: Orange CYMS knock-off Bathurst Panthers to leap to top spot

Having suffered two loses in their last three outings, Panthers were determined to hit back against Orange CYMS in Sunday's clash at Wade Park.

After a slow start it looked as if they might do just that, fighting back from a 20-point deficit to be ahead by eight with three minutes left on the clock.

But 18-year-old Addison Williams drilled a 50-metre penalty goal after the siren, giving his troops a breathtaking 34-32 victory over the defending premiers and top spot on the ladder

"As soon as they pointed to the post I just got in my zone," Williams said.

"With a breeze at my back, my max distance is about 55-60 metres. I can handle 50 pretty easily."

Prior to the match-winning penalty, Williams was an underwhelming three from six with the boot, making the moment even more special for him.

"They had faith in me the whole time, I didn't ever doubt myself," he said.

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Panthers' manager Danny Dwyer was disappointed after the contest, but knows when you go down 20-0 you can't necessarily expect to win after that.

"It was pretty interesting to start the game, we had very little ball," he said.

"We got back into the game by half-time and the boys were pretty confident they could go on and get the job done.

"It was a pretty close finish but I think the draw would have been a fair result."

Part of the problem for Panthers right now is the size of the injury list as Keelan Bresac, Jeremy Gordon, Josh Rivett and Willie Wright were among regular first graders who didn't play on Saturday.

"You can only do what you can do, there's still a lot of boys to come back into the side," he said.

"There's some boys who have come in and done a good job but at the back-end of the season we should be back to full-strength and we're looking forward to that."

The game will be remembered for what happened after full-time, but the 80 minutes prior were enthralling.

The home side exploded out of the gates as Daniel Mortimer shot off his own goal-line, intercepting a Panthers' pass and running 95 metres before eventually falling over in the corner.

Robbie Mortimer was next to strike as Williams found space down the left flank before booting it back in-field for the second rower.

With a 10-point lead and their tails up, CYMS struck twice more as they were keeping pace with the clock at 20-0.

Not a soul in attendance would have ruled the undermanned Panthers out of the contest and when they earned quality ball, Blake Seager crashed over the line to bring the scores to 20-6.

In the 27^th minute when CYMS were back on the attack, Williams struck again as he produced a miracle pass to Dom Maley after he was almost certain to be tumbled over the sideline.

But, tries to Bathurst's Ben Gunn and Malik Blenman brought the scores to 24-18 at half-time as Williams was just two-from-five with the boot.

Williams stretched the advantage to eight in the 50^th minute as Mortimer opted to take the two points from right in front, a decision that looked to have backfired after Panthers scored the next 14 points through Jedd Betts and Charlie Hutchings, the latter juggling the ball half-a-dozen times before scoring out wide.

With the scoreboard reading 32-26, the morale was low at Wade Park as it looked as though a draw would be the best possible outcome for the home side for three minutes left.

But when the green and golds received a penalty in attacking territory, Joe Lasagavibau caught Panthers off guard with a quick tap, powering his way over the line and bringing the scores to 32-all with 70 seconds to go.

The hosts worked their way down to the half-way line off the ensuing kick-off, and when the they received a penalty in the middle of the field, Williams casually marched to the spot and delivered the decisive blow.

"Two points is two points, doesn't matter how it comes," he said.

"We got a win under the belt and CYMS are on top now."

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