Thirroul get title defence rolling against Collies as De La sound warning

The Butchers overcame a poor start to the season last year to ultimately claim the title with a strong back-end, but both coach Jarrod Costello and skipper Hayden Crosland have been up front about the fact it's not a path they wish to tread again in 2024.

Going 0-2 at home to start the year did not mesh with that plan, but it's what the Butchers were staring down the barrel of after surrendering a 12-0 lead to go down 16-12 to Wests on their own patch in round one.

Dropping another back to back at Gibbo to open a campaign was not something Costello or his side was willing to entertain.

"We said the only thing that we were going to accept today was a win," Costello said.

"We weren't going to lose twice [in a row] at home in a blue and white jumper at Gibbo. The boys were pretty determined to get it done.

"It's the same for all sides, one thing you always have to your advantage is when you play at home. Last week we were beaten by a better side, but this week we had to make sure we got it done.

"I thought our effort last week was really good, so it was nice to back it up and actually get two points. It was nice to get our season off to a good start."

Things didn't look so rosy through 40 minutes, despite the hosts getting off to a flyer through Tarje Whitford just four minutes in.

Halves partner Jarrod Boyle followed up with a gem of a long ball for Jye Patterson to score midway through the first half for a 10-0 lead, but close range tries to Declan Purcell and Sean Payne in the seven minutes before the break remarkably saw Collies lead 12-10 at the interval.

It took 17 minutes for the Butchers to crack the Dogs in the second half, which they did through Steve Marsters, but the game wasn't put to bed until Marsters swooped on an errant pass and raced 50 metres for the match-winner with six minutes left.

Having been in a similar position without getting the job done last week, Costello praised his side's composure down the stretch, particularly that of Boyle and Whitford.

"I was happy with our first 30 minutes, the last 10 [of the first half] we were poor," Costello said.

"We had a lot of field position in the first half and, while we didn't score, that takes energy out of teams and we knew we'd get the rewards for that field position late in the game.

"We probably saw that, but I was just disappointed with that 10 minutes before halftime letting them score a couple of tries. The guys knew that and they were much better in the second half.

"We completed much better, we finished our sets in the corners really well. I thought Boyley and Tarje (Whitford) kicked really well, and Deitzy (Brad Deitz) made some good decisions out of dummy-half.

"We played much straighter than what we did last week in the arm wrestle. I thought our middles, and our bench especially, were really good.

"Caleb Hocking had a huge game. When you're in an arm wrestle, you need guys like that that bend the line, and he was doing that. I thought we were the better side for most of it."

Collies coach Peter Hooper conceded as much, despite his side giving itself a chance late in the piece.

"We didn't execute the way we would have wanted, especially at crucial times at the back end of the game, we turned the ball over and Stevie ran 50," Hooper said.

"You can't be too disappointed with the effort, but we just couldn't grab the ascendancy and keep it. We did in patches, but we couldn't keep it and you've got to take your hat off to the Butchers in that regard.

"That first 40 minutes was an outstanding game of footy to watch between two pretty good sides. Defensively we were outstanding in that first stint, and again in the second half.

"That's not our problem, it's the bits in between that get us from one end of the field to the other and allowing the opposition to go down the other end too easily. We did it last week, and then we did it a couple of times again today.

"Whether it be a penalty late in the tackle count or a cheap error early in the tackle count, it was just giving them a field position. We spoke about it during the week, but it didn't [get fixed] today."

The Dogs remained well in the game late but, having lost the entire spine that featured in last year's grand final, Hooper conceded some combinations remain a work in progress.

"Sometimes the passes just literally weren't out in front," Hooper said.

"It's round two, I get that, but passes just weren't in the right spot today. If they're out in front you can ice those things.

"Whether it's a depth thing and tempo thing, we've got stuff to work on during the week. I think we're on the improve, we'll have to be next week against De La."

The loss was soured further by the loss of inspirational skipper Blake Phillips just seven minutes into the contest, the famously durable veteran leaving the field and not returning with an apparent groin injury.

"I'm not sure how bad it is, but if Blake Phillips walks off it's never a really good sign," Hooper conceded.

Elsewhere on Saturday, De La Salle put the rest of the competition on notice with a huge 40-16 win over Wests at Captain Cook Oval, while Corrimal produced a gritty 16-10 win over Dapto at Ziems Park on Sunday.

In what a belated first outing for marquee recruit and co-coach Jarrod Mullen, the Cougars trailed 10-0 early but produced three unanswered tries to lead 16-10 and hold on for the victory.

It's their second win over the Canaries in as many outings and, having waited until the penultimate round last season for a breakthrough win, is a huge boost for the Cougars in just the second week of season 2024.