Wests eye impressive double as Canaries look to banish Ziems Park ghosts

The Devils overcame a 12-0 halftime deficit to surge past Thirroul 16-12 at Gibson Park last weekend.

A similar smash and grab at Captain Cook Oval would bank the four toughest road points on offer in the competition straight out of the 2024 gate.

It was his first outing as a Devil, but new five-eighth Dane Chisholm knows how valuable the first-up two points was for his side.

"Pete (McLeod) pulled me over before the game and said 'I know you've played all over, but this will be different'," Chisholm said.

"He was right. It was tough going there and really good to come away with an early win. It was a massive effort, especially after the first half where we were pretty poor.

"I threw an intercept, and then we just couldn't get going. Our shape was a bit off and we couldn't really pick them apart.

"They defended really well and they flustered us a bit. In the second half we came out with a way simpler game plan, just go straight up the middle, and it ended up working for us late in the half.

"We're only going to get better. The preseason that we've been through is one of the toughest I've had in a long time, so the schedule shouldn't rattle us too much.

"The hard work and the fitness is there, it's more about just getting sharper with the ball in hand."

Chisholm overcame some first-half wobbles to slice through for a late go-ahead try that proved the match-winner with six minutes left.

It was an illustration of how valuable a pick-up - and how effective a foil for long-time half Justin Rodrigues - he can be after nearly a decade in the UK Championship and League 1 competitions.

"J-Rod was one of the first boys I met when I came here and we're only going to get better the more we work together," Chisholm said.

"It's been really good. I went to school with (Devils winger) Jye Hitchcox, we played at a lot of decent clubs together [in the UK].

"He told me about the opportunity I could have coming in here. Pete gave me a call and I was pretty keen to come and have a good two-three years here at Wests and then think about hanging up the boots.

"I played eight seasons over there [in the UK], I met my missus and and had two little English kids and they're living in Australia now, loving it.

"I've had the opportunity to work with some really good young players here too. That's something I really want to do, get close with some of the younger boys, help them progress their game and hopefully keep trudging along myself."

Elsewhere on Saturday, Thirroul will host Collegians in a blockbuster grand final rematch at Gibson Park, while Dapto will head to Ziems Park to take on Corrimal on Sunday.

It's a return to Sunday Illawarra League fixtures for the first time in almost a decade, with the Canaries looking exorcise some demons at Ziems.

Blake Wallace's side's fairy tale push at the finals last season looked very much a downhill run when they headed to Corrimal in the penultimate round, only to find themselves on the wrong end of a boil-over.

The Cougars only win of a trying 2023 campaign had wide-ranging flow-on effects, with the victory securing Thirroul's path to the finals with a week of the regular season to spare.

It allowed Butchers boss Jarrod Costello to rest, or not rush back key men nursing niggles, the prime-up spurring Thirroul to the title.

It could have been a different fairy tale altogether had the Canaries got it done that day, with Wallace saying his side is more aware than any that a trip to Ziems Park is no gimme two points.

"I don't think it ever is," Wallace said.

"From when I was a kid watching footy out there, it doesn't really matter how they're going, they're always tough at home and they always get up for it against Dapto.

"It's exciting for the boys because they know they're not going to get an easy two points out there. We're going to have to go and earn it."

The Canaries will be high on confidence despite coming off a six-point defeat to Collegians last week.

The contest saw them push last year's grand finalists to the brink despite being down to 12 men for 71 minutes following the send-off of key forward Justin Faughlin.

It's the type of early setback that would have seen the Canaries fold last season, but fighting through to earn a sniff of victory late bodes well for 2024.

"I'm not one for moral victories, but it was 22 all there and and we gave ourselves enough opportunities to get it done," Wallace said.

"I think our fitness played a pretty big factor into it, we're a much fitter football team than where we were this time last year, but I think it was just that willingness to keep competing.

"Staying in that fight, rather than getting the white flag out, turned it into a long afternoon. It's not ideal when you're losing a guy 10 minutes into the game, but we had our chances to ice it.

"Unfortunately we didn't get it done, but we set a bit of a platform there in what's expected. If it takes 80 minutes to crack a footy team it takes 80 minutes.

"We're happy to go and jump in the deep end with them and it'll be no different this weekend."