THE Ipswich Jets were left with far too much work to do after a devastating first-half blitz from the Sunshine Coast Falcons condemned them to a 34-16 Hostplus Cup defeat at Sunshine Coast Stadium.
Ipswich showed plenty of fight after the break, but the damage had already been done as the Falcons piled on six first-half tries to take a commanding 28-4 advantage into the sheds.
Sunshine Coast opened the scoring through Sam Burns in the 10th minute before Thomas Casey crossed just three minutes later as the home side quickly took control of the contest.
Flynn Camilleri then struck twice in the space of four minutes, before Josh Lynn and Zion Johnson added further tries as the Falcons tore through the Jets’ defence.
Ipswich finally found some momentum after the break, with Tony Francis breaking the Falcons’ defensive line and crossing in the 45th minute.
The Jets continued to create opportunities during a much-improved second half, with Corey Ross and Harrison Hill among those finding their way through the Sunshine Coast defensive line.
Despite the disappointing finish to the regular season, Ipswich will now turn its attention to finals football and the opportunity to make the most of a home-ground advantage.
The sixth-placed Jets will host the Mackay Cutters at Richardson Park on Sunday, with kickoff at 2.10pm in a do-or-die week one finals clash.
