Uni-Norths Owls 36 def. Canberra Royals 31
BentSpoke John I Dent Cup – Round 9
Greenway Enclosed Oval – Saturday, June 21, 2025

The Canberra Royals have suffered a frustrating 36-31 defeat to Uni-Norths Owls at Greenway Oval on Saturday afternoon, surrendering a commanding first-half lead in what will be remembered as one of the most dramatic comebacks of the 2025 season.

Despite establishing a 31-0 halftime advantage, the Royals were unable to maintain their intensity in the second half as the home side mounted an extraordinary fightback to claim a stunning victory.

The visitors began in perfect fashion with fullback Chace Oates opening the scoring, adding the conversion himself to give the Royals a 7-0 lead. Oates completed his double shortly after, again converting his own try as the Royals raced to a 14-0 advantage.

Centre Caleb Piper extended the lead with a well-taken try, with Oates maintaining his perfect record from the tee to push the score to 21-0. Centre Lincoln Smith completed the first-half scoring for the visitors, with Oates adding his fourth conversion before slotting a penalty goal to establish what appeared to be a match-winning 31-0 halftime lead.

However, the home side produced one of the great second-half comebacks in recent memory. Flyhalf Charlie Crozier opened the Owls’ account in the 4th minute, though centre Samuel Toa was unable to add the conversion as they reduced the deficit to 31-5.

The momentum continued to build for the home side when winger Rhys Van Nek crossed in the 16th minute, with Toa successfully converting to bring the score to 31-12. Centre Christopher Mickelson powered over in the 33rd minute, with Toa again adding the extras as the Owls closed to within 31-19.

The comeback gathered pace when Toa crossed for a try of his own in the 42nd minute, successfully converting his own score to reduce the margin to 31-26. Substitute Jack Debreczeni, who had replaced patrick Callaughan at halftime, added another try in the 49th minute, though Toa’s conversion was unsuccessful as the home side trailed 31-30.

Mickelson completed his double in the 60th minute, with Toa again off-target with the conversion, but the Owls had taken the lead at 31-35. The home side added one final score to complete their remarkable comeback and secure the 36-31 victory.

Head coach Joe Kolokihakaufisi was forced into several changes throughout the match, with blood injury protocols seeing Tom Iles and Joshua Myburgh interchange multiple times. The coaching staff also utilized tactical substitutions, with Samuel Heffernan replaced by Ata Misi, Samuel Myburgh by Pedro Rolando, Paddy Mcinally by Ben Johnston, Tom Barrett by Cooper Eagle, and James Bundy by Sione Mau.

Despite the devastating result, there were outstanding individual performances from the Royals. Oates’ first-half display, contributing two tries, four conversions, and a penalty goal for 21 points, demonstrated his quality under pressure. The forward pack’s dominant first-half performance provided the platform for what should have been a comprehensive victory.

The defeat will serve as a harsh lesson about maintaining intensity for the full 80 minutes, though the squad’s ability to score 31 points away from home shows the attacking potential within the group.

MATCH DETAILS

Try Scorers:
Royals: Chace Oates (2), Caleb Piper, Lincoln Smith
Owls: Charlie Crozier, Rhys Van Nek, Christopher Mickelson (2), Samuel Toa, Jack Debreczeni, plus one additional try

Conversions:
Royals: Chace Oates (4/4)
Owls: Samuel Toa (3/7)

Penalty Goals:
Royals: Chace Oates (1/1)
Owls: None

TEAM CHANGES

Canberra Royals:

Blood Injury Substitutions:
Tom Iles and Joshua Myburgh (multiple interchanges)

Tactical Substitutions:
Samuel Heffernan (replaced by Ata Misi), Samuel Myburgh (replaced by Pedro Rolando), Paddy Mcinally (replaced by Ben Johnston), Tom Barrett (replaced by Cooper Eagle), James Bundy (replaced by Sione Mau)

Coach: Joe Kolokihakaufisi

Uni-Norths Owls:

Tactical Substitutions:
patrick Callaughan (replaced by Jack Debreczeni – 40min), Zeb Maddinson (replaced by Vaotangi Mafi – 56min), Jimmy Plowman (replaced by Miller Tauiliili-Pelesasa – 56min), Samuel Mickelson (replaced by Jasper Simmons – 65min), Ben Roberton (replaced by Polynesia Crichton – 65min), Christopher Mickelson (replaced by Boston Morete – 72min), Charlie Crozier (replaced by Siave Seti – 72min), Jordan Thompson (replaced by Stirling Doyle – 78min)