Woodbridge Cup and George Tooke Shield representative sides play out 22-all draw

Woodbridge's Tyrone Johnstone saved his side from a loss on Saturday, as his double put his side in front after originally being down 12-0 early in the game.

However, it wasn't enough as George Tooke Shield's Zac Patterson scored late to level up proceedings.

With combinations taking a while to stick, Johnstone said the team's attitude and a message from coach Adam Hall at half-time got them back in the game.

"We started off slow then gelled a bit in the end and dug in for each other," he explained.

"He (Hall) just said we needed to keep winning that ruck, they were getting a roll on and had us on the back foot and he just wanted us to win that ruck."

After moving out to a 12-point lead early, the visiting side looked like they might dominate the day before Trundle's Connor Farrar scored his own double to make it even.

Johnstone's first try then put Woodbridge in front before George Tooke Shield returned fire.

Johnstone was in again, charging down a kick to score to make it a six-point lead with minutes remaining.

Patterson's chip and chase then brought the crowd to their feet to even the game up with a final field goal attempt from the away side missing the mark as the game ended in a draw.

With the representative match a step up in standard, Johnstone believed the main difference came from the game's pace.

"They were a pretty fast team compared to Woodbridge so it was a good challenge - you get faster teams in Woodbridge but not every weekend," he said.

After having several years off from rugby league by playing Aussie Rules with Lake Cargelligo, Johnstone has returned to the Condobolin Rams and injected his skills into the squad. The hooker mixes his time playing Aussie Rules on Saturdays and rugby league on Sundays.

"A couple of mates are back playing for Condobolin and I just wanted to keep playing footy while I can," he said.

"It's going alright, we still need to work on a few areas, with time we'll get there and should go well in the second half of the season."

With a few young players in Condobolin's squad, Johnstone said they only require a few tips here and there when it comes to their football.

"They're good players, you don't have to tell them much just say what we need to work on and they do their own thing," he said.

Meanwhile, George Tooke Shield's league tag team proved to be a cut above the Woodbridge squad in a 32-4 result, which CSU's Grace Farmilo and Amber Kelly took part in.

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