RLO Newsletter 10/7: National Schools Championships
Plus Flegg, more Schools and NRL debuts
The 2024 16-18s Australian Schools Championships kicked off on Sunday (7 July) at Bellingen Park.
Originally scheduled to be played at Coffs Harbour International Stadium, the first two days of the competition were moved 25 minutes south to Bellingen due to rain.
Play resumed at Coffs Harbour on Tuesday for Day 3 (the final day of pool games) and looks set to finish there on Friday with good weather forecast for the rest of the week. Just in time, as Bellingen Park was turning into a mud pit.
In Coffs, for what I’m assuming is also a weather-related reason, the games were played across the width of the field, with new 10-metre lines added in blue over the existing field lines from last Friday’s Sharks-Titans NRL game.
The pitch was in great condition, though.
I've caught up on all six of the boys’ 16-18s pool games but haven’t had time to watch the girls’ side, so my bad for the lack of coverage on that.
Game 1: NSWCIS 30 - 24 NSWCHS (Pool B)
CIS jumped out to a 24-0 lead with halves Toby Rodwell and Mitchell Woods having a hand in several tries, with Woods also kicking a 40/20. CHS switched on in the second half, scoring five tries to get within two before a last-minute CIS try to Heinz Lemoto sealed it. It was Lemoto’s third of the game.
NSWCIS 34 (Heinz Lemoto 3, Rex Bassingthwaighte, Kahu Capper, Heamasi Makasini, Toby Rodwell tries; Mitchell Woods 3/7 goals) def. NSWCHS 24 (Zailen Campbell-Cook 2, Kade Reed, Lorenzo Talataina, Nikora Williams tries; Nikora Williams 2/5 goals). Players of the Match: NSWCHS 12 Darcy Smith (Kincumber High); NSWCIS 11 Heinz Lemoto (The Scots College).
Game 2: NSWCCC 30 - 26 QSS (Pool A)
Down 26-12 with eight minutes to play, CCC stormed home with three tries to snatch the win and, ultimately, top Pool A. Queensland led 16-6 at halftime, conceding a try in the final play of the first half. Zac Garton was Queensland’s best, scoring twice. CCC winger Lucas Borg crossed for the winner in the 59th minute, his second of the game.
NSWCCC 30 (Lucas Borg 2, Jared Haywood, Jack Hilliar, Jhett Sydir tries; Jack Attard 4/4, Cooper Black 1/1 goals) def. QSS 26 (Zac Garton 2, Charlie Dickson, Zac Herdegen, Saifiti Junior Saifiti tries; Zane Harrison 3/5 goals). Players of the Match: NSWCCC 17 Fletcher O’Doherty (St Mary’s Gateshead); QSS 11 Zac Garton (Caloundra SHS).
Game 3: ACT 20 - 8 NSWCIS (Pool B)
The ACT pulled off the upset of the competition so far defeating CIS by 14 points. Leading 16-8 at halftime, they kept CIS scoreless in the second half, the only try coming through fullback Braydan Darmody, who ran 90 metres off a knock-on.
ACT 20 (Braydan Darmody, Harry Hudson, Cooper Johnston, Luke Tuialii tries; Braydan Darmody 2/4 goals) def. NSWCIS 8 (Cyrus Bloomfield, Heamasi Makasini tries; Mitchell Woods 0/2 goals). Players of the Match: NSWCIS 12 Josiah Fesolai (Central Coast Sports); ACT 7 Jonah Anderson (Erindale College).
Game 4: QSS 20 - 16 CAS (Pool A)
Queensland survived a scare from the Combined Affiliated State to secure second spot in Pool A. A great showing from the underdog CAS side, who trailed just 6-4 going into halftime. Queensland were up 20-4 late when halfback Darius Rogers, younger brother of Broncos’ half Josh, scored in the 54th minute. His halves partner Lockyer-Azile Foliola crossed shortly after but time expired just after the conversion.
QSS 20 (Mason Barber, Zac Garton, Elijah McKay, Sam Stephenson tries; Zane Harrison 2/4 goals) def. CAS 16 (Lockyer-Azile Foliola, Darius Rogers, Micah Warena tries; Waka Hammond 2/3 goals). Players of the Match: QSS 7 Zac Harrison (Palm Beach Currumbin SHS); CAS 1 Matthew Kereti (The Grange P-12 School).
Game 5: NSWCCC 38 - 0 CAS (Pool A)
CCC opened Day 3 with a big win, ending the Affiliated States’ hopes of finals action. The game was over at halftime with CCC leading 28-0. Prop Cody Hopwood and winger Jope Rauqe both scored doubles.
NSWCCC 38 (Cody Hopwood 2, Jope Rauqe 2, Lachlan Dooner, Jared Haywood, Andes Johansson tries; Jack Attard 4/5, Wil Rosenbaum 1/2 goals) def. CAS 0.
Game 6: NSWCHS 26 - 10 ACT (Pool B)
After Day 2’s big upset win over CIS, the ACT needed to win, draw or, at the very least, not lose by 15+, to play in Thursday’s semi-finals. Things were looking positive at halftime with the scores level at 10-all before CHS scored 16 unanswered points and knocked them out on points differential.
NSWCHS 26 (Zailen Campbell-Cook 2, Lincoln Fletcher, Darcy Smith, Lorenzo Talataina tries; Kade Reed 2/3, Nikora Williams 1/2 goals) def. ACT 10 (Patrick Dawson, Yuri Hromow tries; Braydan Darmody 1/2 goals).
Here’s how the pools finished:
A: 1st NSWCCC (4 points), 2nd QSS (2 pts), 3rd CAS (0 pts)
B: 1st NSWCHS (2 points, +6), 2nd NSWCIS (2 pts, -2), 3rd ACT (2pts, -4)
Wednesday 10 July is a rest day for both boys’ and girls’ competitions with play resuming on Thursday 11 July with the boys’ semi-finals and girls’ consolation games. The girls’ final is already set with QSS, who topped Pool B, facing Pool A winners NSWCHS.
Schedule - Thursday 11 July
Boys 16-18s
9am CAS vs. ACT
10:15am NSWCCC vs. NSWCIS (Semi-Final 1)
11:30am NSWCHS vs. QSS (Semi-Final 2)
Girls 17-18s
12:45pm Northern Territory vs. Western Australia
1:40pm NSWCCC vs. Victoria
2:35pm ACT vs. NSWCIS
On Friday 12 July, the boys’ final kicks off at 11:40am and the girls’ at 1:10pm. The Australian Schoolboys and Schoolgirls sides will be named shortly after at 2:45pm.
🏉 Jersey Flegg Cup
It’s been a month since the last newsletter, so let’s have a look at where things stand in the Jersey Flegg.
1st Canberra (14 wins, 3 losses, +242)
The Raiders are still leading the competition, winning all four of their games over the last month and are on a six-game winning streak. In Round 16, they left it late to beat Parramatta, scoring in the 67th minute to win 18-16. Last weekend, they defeated the fifth-placed Knights 30-14 at home.
2nd Canterbury (13 wins, 4 losses, +251)
The Bulldogs remain in pursuit of the minor premiership, matching the Raiders over the past month with four wins. They are also on a six-game streak. They currently have the best defence in the competition, holding Melbourne to zero and the Warriors to six over the last two rounds.
3rd Penrith (11 wins, 6 losses, +169)
The Panthers were third a month ago and remain there after a good month in which they went 3-1. The loss came in Round 15 to Newcastle, 24-4. In Round 17, they posted the biggest win of the season so far, crushing the Tigers 62-0. They face a big test in Canberra this weekend.
4th Manly (11 wins, 6 losses, +113)
The Sea Eagles have had a great month, going 4-0 and jumping from seventh into the top four. They took care of four sides below them on this streak, averaging 34.5 points per game. Last week, they held on for a 20-16 win over Melbourne, despite scoring three tries to the Storm’s four.
5th Newcastle (10 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw, +54)
Like Penrith, the Knights were fifth then and are fifth now after a 3-1 month. They were on a four-game winning run before going down 30-14 to the competition leaders this past weekend.
6th Wests Tigers (9 wins, 8 losses, -23)
The Tigers were fourth a month ago but have gone 1-3 since, including that massive loss to Penrith in Round 17. Last weekend, they were beaten by the Sharks, who now sit just three points behind them with a game in hand.
7th St George Illawarra (8 wins, 9 losses, +37)
The Dragons have jumped from ninth to seventh after picking up two wins from their last four. Could be pushing closer to the Top 5 if not for a disappointing 20-18 loss to Souths in Round 17. They hold a positive points differential despite their losing record which could help in a few week’s time.
8th Cronulla (7 wins, 8 losses, 1 draw, -29)
Cronulla were second last four weeks ago but now sit six points outside the Top 5 with their catchup game against the Silktails still to play. They’ve won three of their last four and get a chance to see how they measure up against the Bulldogs this weekend.
9th South Sydney (7 wins, 9 losses, 1 draw, -208)
The Rabbitohs have won just once this past month, their lone win from their last seven games. They were battered 46-0 by Parramatta in Round 18 (the second time this season they’ve been kept scoreless) and hold an abysmal points differential.
10th Sydney Roosters (7 wins, 10 losses, +28)
It’s been a tough season for last year’s runners-up, who have dropped to 10th thanks to a six-game losing streak. They’ve already used a competition-high 47 players this season.
11th Parramatta (7 wins, 10 losses, 0)
The Eels were 12th a month ago on the back of a four-game winning streak but their progress stagnated with back-to-back losses to Canberra and Newcastle. They rebounded last weekend with a big win over Souths which got their points differential to zero. They finish the season with four straight home games.
12th Melbourne (7 wins, 10 losses, -24)
The Storm have dropped two spots over the last month, winning just once in their last five, a victory over the bottom-placed Silktails in Fiji. They’ll need a big run to get close to the Top 5.
13th Warriors (5 wins, 11 loses 1 draw, -170)
A month ago, the Warriors were hot on a three-game winning streak. Since then, they’ve lost four straight. They’re 10 points outside the finals places but only play two current Top 5 sides on their run home.
14th Kaiviti Silktails (0 wins, 16 losses, -440)
The Silktails had just sacked their head coach Wes Naiqama a month ago but are still winless under interim boss Timoci Duve. They suffered close defeats to the Warriors and Bulldogs before three big defeats in recent weeks. They have four home games left to play in Fiji, their best shot to snag a win.
Top try scorers: 15 Matthew Hill (MEL); 14 Regan Carr (CAN); 13 Ben Rumble (SGI); 10 Danny Gabrael (CBY); 10 Nick Murphy (PEN); 10 Siulagi Pio (MEL); 10 Tea-Rani Woodman-Tuhoro (NEW); 9 Mohamed Alameddine (PAR); 9 Broden Konz (MAN); 9 Kane Rushton (CAN).
Top point scorers: 148 Ashton Ward (SGI); 112 Te Hurinui Twidle (PAR); 110 Cassius Tia (CBY); 98 Kristian Dixon (CRO); 90 Jirah Liddiard (PEN); 80 Josh Durkin (SYD); 73 Kallum Weatherall Stacey (MAN); 68 Zakauri Clarke (WST); 66 Mitch Henderson (CAN); 62 Regan Carr (CAN).
Upcoming fixtures – Round 19
12/7 Cronulla vs. Canterbury, PointsBet, 5:45pm
13/7 Kaiviti Silktails vs. St George Illawarra, Churchill, 12pm
13/7 Penrith vs. Canberra, BlueBet, 12pm
13/7 Parramatta vs. Warriors, Lidcombe, 1pm
14/7 Manly vs. Newcastle, 4 Pines, 12pm
14/7 South Sydney vs. Melbourne, Coogee, 1pm
14/7 Sydney Roosters vs. Wests Tigers, Wentworth, 1:15pm
🏉 Schoolboy Cup
The Schools’ competitions are on their mid-season break due to the national championships and school holidays. Queensland is set to resume next week, with three rounds still to play. The New South Wales competition will restart in two weeks, with just four pool games remaining.
Allan Langer Trophy – South East Queensland
After the first four rounds, Ipswich SHS and Keebra Park SHS are the only undefeated teams and will play each other next week in Round 5. Defending Langer Trophy champs Palm Beach Currumbin have had a slow start, with two wins and two losses, and still have their big rivalry game with Keebra coming up in Round 7. At the bottom of the table, Caloundra SHS and Redcliffe SHS are winless. The top seven teams play finals, so their Round 6 game should decide who finishes seventh.
Ladder: 1 Ipswich SHS (8pts), 2 Keebra Park SHS (8), 3 Mabel Park SHS (6), 4 Marsden SHS (4), 5 Palm Beach Currumbin SHS (4), 6 Wavell SHS (2), 7 Caloundra SHS (0), 8 Redcliffe SHS (0).
Aaron Payne Cup – North Queensland
Kirwan SHS have been the dominant side in Pool A, going undefeated so far and scoring 106 points over three games. Ignatius Park and St Patrick’s Mackay should both go through, with fourth-placed Trinity Bay still without a win.
St Augustine’s Cairns are also undefeated and leading Pool B. They’ve scored 126 points and conceded 10 in their three games. They’ll only need to hold off Mackay SHS and Holy Spirit Mackay as fourth-placed Mareeba SHS are playing for zero points this season.
Pool A: 1 Kirwan SHS (6pts), 2 Ignatius Park (4), 3 St Patrick’s Mackay (2), 4 Trinity Bay SHS (0).
Pool B: 1 St Augustine’s Cairns (6pts), 2 Mackay SHS (4), 3 Holy Spirit Mackay (2), Mareeba SHS (0).
Dolphins Cup – Central Queensland
Just two rounds left in the Dolphins Cup and things are pretty tight, with four of the five schools on four points. It’s a four-team finals series, so fifth-placed Emmaus College has a big two weeks ahead with two home games. St Brendan’s, who are first, have a bye in Round 4.
Ladder: 1 St Brendan’s Yeppoon (4pts), 2 The Cathedral College (4), 3 Rockhampton Grammar (4), 4 Shalom College (4), 5 Emmaus College (2).
Peter Mulholland Cup – NSW / ACT / Victoria
The revamp of the competition this year has proven to be a success with two of the four previous Seeded Pool schools already eliminated. In previous years, the four “best” schools were in a pool where all four qualified for the finals, with only one school qualifying from each other pool.
Reigning national champs Westfields Sports were the first victim of the reshuffle, eliminated from Pool A after just two games. Holy Cross Ryde and Central Coast Sports took the top two spots, while Westfields will play fellow winless school Farrer MAHS in Round 3.
Patrician Brothers’ Blacktown has cruised through Pool B so far, smashing Matraville Sports 50-0 and rivals Patrician Brothers’ Fairfield 36-0. In the final pool game, they’ll play All Saints’ Maitland, who sit third and need a win to leapfrog Pats Fairfield into second.
Erindale College and Hunter Sports High have progressed in Pool C, with Erindale going undefeated, scoring 120 points in three games. Hill Sports is another seeded pool casualty, losing their first two games. They play their final game in Round 3 against winless Illawarra Sports.
Bass High can finish second in Pool D with a big win over winless St Dominic’s College in Round 3. They started the competition with an upset win over Endeavour Sports before a loss to St Gregory’s Campbelltown. Endeavour rebounded to top the pool.
Hallam Secondary College won the Storm Cup convincingly, going unbeaten and scoring 180 points in their four games. They’ll play the lowest placed second-placed team in a finals play-in match. As of today, that would be Patrician Brothers’ Fairfield.
Pool A: 1 Holy Cross Ryde (6pts), 2 Central Coast Sports (4), 3 Westfields Sports (0), 4 Farrer MAHS (0).
Pool B: 1 Patrician Blacktown (4pts), 2 Patrician Fairfield (4), 3 All Saints’ Maitland (2), 4 Matraville Sports (0).
Pool C: 1 Erindale College (6pts), 2 Hunter Sports (4), 3 Hills Sports (0), 4 Illawarra Sports (0).
Pool D: 1 Endeavour Sports (4pts), 2 St Gregory’s Campbelltown (4), 3 Bass High (2), 4 St Dominic’s Penrith (0).
Storm Cup: 1 Hallam Secondary (8pts), 2 Vic Uni Secondary (6), 3 The Grange P-12 (4), 4 Mt Ridley (1), 5 Manor Lakes P-12 (1).
🏉 Ignatius Park, St Patrick’s Mackay take out Confro
Over the Queensland school holidays, the annual Confraternity Carnival took place in Townsville. Run annually since 1980, the Carnival features Catholic and Independent schools from throughout the state.
Ignatius Park College won the boys’ competition, their eighth title, while St Patrick’s College Mackay won the girls’, their first.
St Pat’s held on for an 8-4 win in the girls’ decider of The Cathedral College Rockhampton, interchange forward Lucy McKendry scoring the winning try.
Ignatius Park defeated Padua College Kedron 20-16, despite scoring three tries to Padua’s four. The tournament was Padua’s first league games this year, having only just switched after their union season ended.
Boys Merit Team: 1 Lincoln Baker (Ignatius Park), 2 Rhys Woolcott (St Augustine’s Cairns), 3 Sean Green (Marist Ashgrove), 4 Sean Weir (Ignatius Park), 5 Bruce Baudu (Ignatius Park), 6 Damon Humphrys (Padua), 7 Braithen Scott (St Mary’s Toowoomba), 8 Jye Watton (Marymount Burleigh), 9 Lachie McCall (Marist Ashgrove), 10 Fononga Tuitahi (Iona), 11 Harrison Hill (St Brendan’s Yeppoon), 12 Jack Thorburn (St Patrick’s Mackay), 13 Simon Green (St Brendan’s Yeppoon), 14 Fynn Dalton (Padua), 15 Cooper Fletcher (Ignatius Park), 16 Connor Sadler (Ignatius Park), 17 Zac Bateman (Cathedral Rockhampton). Coach: John Butterworth (St Laurence’s Brisbane).
Girls Merit Team: 1 Manaia Faiumu-Malone (Cathedral Rockhampton), 2 Ava Wheeler (St Patrick’s Mackay), 3 Lorianna Eseli (St Ursula’s Yeppoon), 4 Asha Hutchinson (Shalom Bundaberg), 5 Rhiannah Brown (Cathedral Rockhampton), 6 Maycee Brown (Cathedral Rockhampton), 7 Paige Mooney (St Patrick’s Mackay), 8 Salome Mann (Cathedral Rockhampton), 9 Olivia Fletcher (St Margaret Mary’s Townsville), 10 Stevie-Lee Dixson (Emmaus Rockhampton), 11 Ebony Temple (St Patrick’s Mackay), 12 Bronte Parker (Marymount Burleigh), 13 Serenity Mila (Rockhampton Grammar), 14 Josie Wogand (Cathedral Rockhampton), 15 Jakaia-Lee Collett (St Margaret Mary’s Townsville), 16 Zoe Robson (Cathedral Rockhampton), 17 Adele Jensen (Southern Cross Townsville). Coach: Matt Geyer (Marymount Burleigh).
🏉 NRL Debuts
Over the last four weeks, 14 players played first grade (in Australia) for the first time. Here’s a quick look at how they got there.
Round 15
Heath Mason (Wests Tigers): A Thirlmere junior, Mason was named an Australian Schoolboy last year but was later ruled out. Began 2024 in SG Ball before moving up to the NSW Cup and, eventually, the NRL.
Jordan Miller (Wests Tigers): Giant prop who represented the Australian Schoolboys in 2022. Alongside Mason, won the Harold Matts that season with Wests. Played two Flegg games before moving up to the NSW Cup.
Round 16
Luke Laulilii (Wests Tigers): Was also named in the Australian Schoolboys before being ruled out, Laulilii became the sixth member of Wests 2022 Harold Matts-winning side to play NRL. Born in 2006, which means NSW didn’t win an Origin series for the first eight years of his life.
Liam Le Blanc (South Sydney): Norths Devils junior recruited by Souths in 2023 after being named an Australian Schoolboy in 2022. Played a season of Flegg last year before becoming a NSW Cup regular this season.
Caleb Navale (Manly): A Fijian international, Navale joined Manly from the Dragons, where he played Flegg for them in 2021 as a 17-year-old. An Orange CYMS junior.
Round 17
Matt Arthur (Parramatta): Son of Brad Arthur, Matt won the SG Ball Cup with the Eels in 2023 and ended the year in Flegg. Captained and scored a try for NSW U19 last month.
Jordan Martin (Canberra): A Narooma junior, Martin played 15 Flegg games for Canberra in 2019 but missed out on the Grand Final. The backrower has spent the last two seasons in the NSW Cup.
Casey McLean (Penrith): Joined his older brother Jesse as a first grader for Penrith in their loss to the Cowboys. An Australian Schoolboy last year, he moved up to the NSW Cup this season after five tries in seven Flegg games, bypassing SG Ball completely.
Luron Patea (Penrith): Hard running front rower who represented NSW U19 last season. The St Clair junior played 13 Flegg games in 2023 and has been a regular in the NSW Cup this year.
Will Pryce (Newcastle): The son of England international Leon Pryce, Will played 45 Super League games for Huddersfield before joining the Knights. Played his junior footy for Siddal.
Round 18
Charlie Guymer (Parramatta): Impressive on debut against Souths, Guymer has been in the Eels’ system since 2020, joining from Temora. Represented NSW U19 last year.
Leka Halasima (Warriors): Tonga-born backrower who filled in admirably at centre on debut for the Warriors. After last year’s SG Ball season ended, he began playing NSW Cup at 17 years old.
Ethan King (Sydney Roosters): Son of former first grader Andrew King, Ethan joined the Roosters from Ipswich in 2021, playing two seasons of Flegg before moving up to NSW Cup. Played his junior rugby league for the Central Cape Suns way up in Weipa.
Jake Tago (Parramatta): Older brother of Izack, Jake played Flegg for North Sydney and Penrith in 2018-19. A St Marys junior, he played 36 NSW Cup games before making his NRL debut.