Round Six of the Tooheys New Shute Shield kicked off on Friday night at the birthplace of Australian rugby, where Sydney Uni were looking to bounce back from their shock loss last week to Southern Districts. Their opponents were Northern Suburbs, a young and fast-improving team who pushed much-fancied Gordon to the wire last time out.

The high-flying Marlins welcomed Warringah to Manly Oval for the match of the day in the TNSS rivalry round at the weekend. And in a physical encounter it was the home side that prevailed 17-10.

My apologies to Eastern Suburbs flyhalf Ben Ward. The wonders of City Rail conspired to cause me to miss the opening 15 minutes of this game and his try in the process. I’m sure it was a classic!