Perth Spirit have tackled their way to a 20-16 win in the National Rugby Championship grand final over NSW Country in Tamworth on Saturday night.The Spirit led from start to finish and took home the title on the back of a superb performance from Richard Hardwick, who was awarded the inaugural Phil Waugh Medal for man of the match.We dont mind making it a bit hard for ourselves, Spirit captain Heath Tessmann said.But I couldnt be happier with how we closed that game out and Im so proud of all the boys.Its an old cliche but its true, defence wins championships. All 23 players stepped up, we were hard, we were physical, which is what we really went out there to do tonight.But it was a piece of individual brilliance which opened the scoring in the 30th minute, when Spirit fullback Luke Morahan shed multiple tackles in a run from inside his own half to streak away, then kick and regather to score.With tries worth six points in the NRC, it didnt take long before another one came when Spirit scrum-half Ryan Louwrens finished out wide after a neat offload from Onehunga Havili to make it 12-0 to the visitors.Desperately needing to get on the board, NSW Countrys break came through giant back-rower Sam Figg who barged over just before halftime to close the gap to four points after Andrew Deegans conversion.Louwrens snuck onto the blind side from a Spirit scrum win deep in the Eagles half to go over untouched only four minutes into the second half.Both sides then slugged it out until the final ten minutes, when NSW Country substitute Tom Hill barged over and Deegan converted, closing the gap to just four points and setting up an exciting finish.But the Spirit managed to hold on take out their first NRC title, after Brisbane City won the championship in the competitions first two seasons. 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EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- Cincinnati got inside UConns 20-yard line three times in the second quarter on Saturday, but was forced to settle for a field goal on each drive as the Huskies defense stiffened.UConn responded with 20 unanswered points to snap a two-game losing streak with a 20-9 win over the Bearcats, who never made it into the end zone.Arkeel Newsome ran for 116 yards and Bryant Shirreffs threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns to lead UConn (3-3, 1-2 American).Hayden Moore, coming back from an ankle injury, threw for 315 yards, but was picked off twice for the Bearcats (3-3, 0-3), who were held to just two rushing yards.We have a great defensive line, said UConn safety Obi Melifonwu, who had one of those interceptions. We just ended up stopping them, stopping them in the run game.The Huskies switched the games momentum with a TD on their last drive before intermission and another on their first after halftime. Tyraiq Beals got the first, outjumping a defender and breaking a 59-yard catch and run, the longest of his career.That energized everybody, Beals said. Everybody stood up. We got our heads back in the game and we went rolling from there.They took the lead when Noel Thomas won a battle for the ball with Cincinnatis Grant Coleman and hauled in a 26-yard touchdown catch. Thomas made nine catches for 108 yards.Newsome broke off a 67-yard run, the Huskies longest play from scrimmage this year, which set up a 30-yard field goal to give the Huskies a 17-9 lead. It was the first time the Huskies have led entering a fourth quarter since last November.The Huskies used up more than 6 1/2 minutes of the fourth on a 16-play drive that ended with a 23-yard field goal from Bobby Puyol to make itt a two-score ballgame.ddddddddddddWe took off a lot of time, I would say thats a big improvement over what weve done in the past, said Shirreffs, who also ran for 48 yards.UConns last win over Cincinnati came in November, 2010, the season the Huskies ended up in the Fiesta Bowl. Its only other win in the 13-game series came in 2008.When you go on the road and they give you an opportunity to score points early and you dont take advantange of it, it usually comes back to haunt you, Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville said.TAKEAWAYUConn: The Huskies revived their bowl hopes with their first conference win, but had to overcome another slow start. UConns Puyol missed a 52-yard field goal late in the first quarter, leaving the Huskies without a first-quarter point this season. UConn has just 45 points in first halves.Cincinnati: Cincinnati was hoping the return of Moore would help revive their offense, which had struggled with him on the sideline. But the Bearcats must find an answer to the running game. They came in averaging just under 150 yards a game on the ground. The Bearcats fall to 0-3 in conference for the first time since 1999 and have a lot of work to do to reach a bowl game for the sixth straight season.SUSPENSION: Newsome ran 14 times, all in the final three quarters. He was held out of the first quarter, because of what head coach Bob Diaco referred to as a late Friday.UP NEXTUConn: The Huskies head back on the road for a game next Saturday night against South Florida.Cincinnati: The Bearcats have an off week before returning home to face East Carolina on Oct. 22. ' ' '