Dolphins ready to dance with Devils

Redcliffe Dolphins’ Head Coach Scott Murray says his side was a “bit underdone” for round one but will come out firing against the Devils this weekend.

The two sides will face-off at Bishop Park on Sunday at 3pm and Murray says the Dolphins will need to sharpen their defence after a 24-4 round one loss to the Falcons last weekend.

“We just felt we were a little bit underdone, with the lack of trials. We were only able to have 40 minutes and needed everything to go right (last weekend) and it didn’t,” he says.

He says they’ve needed to work on cohesion and defence in particular.

“We’re not panicking but there is a real sense we need to be better. I’m pretty confident that we will,” Murray says.

“Norths like to throw the ball around and like a lot of attack. We’ll need to be good in defence.

“They have a history of scoring points and their attacking structure is very good. We’ll need to be working together.”

He says that means making decisions as a team and working hard together.

The side lost halfback Adam Cook early in the game against the Falcons and it had a bigger impact than Murray expected.

In terms of attack, Murray says the side needs to ask more of their opponents’ defence, when they have possession. They key is to keep improving.

He says facing the Devils in round two is a good challenge for his side.

“We consider ourselves to be one of the top teams, so we want to be challenging ourselves … and get to where we need to be,” Murray says.

Captain Cameron Cullen missed round one with a lower leg injury and is “working hard to get himself right for this week” and will “see how he goes”.

What to expect this week

Murray says Norths have some quality players, with some Broncos expected to make an appearance, but so do the Dolphins with the Warriors’ Peesi Kepu scoring their only try against the Falcons in round one.

“I thought the Warriors’ players were very good for us last weekend,” Murray says.

Which Warriors players will line up for Redcliffe will depend on who takes the field for the NRL side on Friday night against Wests Tigers.

The Dolphins are away for the next four rounds facing sides renowned for having vocal supporters at their home games (Devils, Bishop Park in round two; Bears, Pizzey Park in round three; WM Seagulls, Kougari Oval round four; and Pride, Barlow Park in round five).

We asked Murray how he would keep his side focused, so they can win games and build momentum.

“Winning helps. That’s part of the challenge. The guys have been doing it for a while and know what to expect. It adds to the atmosphere,” he says.