USA Rugby League Championship Man of the Match-Joel Weeks
Philadelphia Fight Rugby News and Press
August 30, 2011
Fight Halfback Joel Weeks kick the championship winning penalty goal with 2:28 left in the USA Rugby League National Championship Match on 8-27-11. Photo courtesy of Dave Conard.
Joel Weeks, the Philadelphia Fight half-back and Grand Final MVP, hails from the central coast of NSW, Australia. Joel, along with his good friend and Fight fullback, Sean Staunton, came to Philadelphia this season to experience Rugby League in the USA. Barely did he expect to win a Championship while he was here. His first ever.
Even though Joel took a punishing blow to his face in the first few minutes of the match, he put his stamp on the game very early with a 2-point penalty goal and then a kick in general-play across to the left wing and toward the try-line. Left-winger, Mike Timpano, scooped on the high, bouncing ball and crossed for the opening try of the 2011 USARL Championship Grand Final.
He kept the pressure on the Fight's opposition, New Haven Warriors, throughout the game as he continued with a variety of kicks in general-play to put the Fight in dominate field positions. His defense was also sound and was involved in a try-saving tackle on the Warriors after which he responded with an individual effort in attack that left the Warriors defense in his wake, as he bustled through several defenders to post his own 4 pointer.
He kicked another 2-point penalty conversion to give the Fight an 18-nil lead at half-time.
Late in the 3rd quarter, Weeks' deft kicking came up with another try for the Fight with center Pat Quirk diving on a rolling ball in-goal. Joel chipped over the heads of the Warriors defense line for his good friend Staunton, but Sean could only get a toe on the ball which carried it over the line for Quirk to pounce to take the score to Fight 22 - Warriors 12.
Weeks was instrumental again in the final quarter of play when he gave the final pass to John Evangelista to cross the try-line and level the scores at 26 a piece.
His final contribution to the game came only minutes from the end when he put the Fight in front with a match winning 2-point penalty conversion to finish with a personal tally of 12 points from 1-try and 4-goals to seal the Championship for the Philadelphia Fight.
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