RLO Newsletter 15/3: Silktails debut
A Jersey Flegg recap, field goals, floggings and a Braith update
The Kaiviti Silktails’ first game in the Jersey Flegg ended in a 38-20 defeat to the Wests Tigers this past weekend. Stepping up from the Ron Massey Cup, the Silktails found themselves down 22-0 after half an hour.
Their first try (a really great try) was scored not long after by centre Emosi Daubitu before normal service resumed, with the Tigers pushing their lead to 34. Three late tries to the Fijians added some respectability to the scoreline.
The Silktails return home this weekend, hosting the Rabbitohs in Round 2. If their Ron Massey form is anything to go by, their fixtures in Lautoka and Nadi will be their best chances to pick up wins this season. In 2023, they won seven of their nine home games and lost all seven of their games in Australia, by an average margin of 20.
Round 1 quick hits:
The season got underway with Penrith defeating the Roosters 14-4, thanks to two runaway solo tries by centre Casey McLean. The first, a 70-metre run from dummy half, the second a 60-metre dash off a scrum.
At Brookvale, Manly had a chance to tie it late, with fullback Blake Metcalfe spraying his penalty shot wide and South Sydney holding on for a 16-14 win.
Reigning premiers Canterbury flexed their muscle with a 30-6 win over Parramatta. They led 12-6 until the final 10 minutes, where they ran in three tries.
Canberra led Newcastle 24-0 after 40 minutes before the Knights scored four unanswered tries to get within six, with goal kicking letting them down. The Raiders iced it in the final minutes through centre Regan Carr to win 30-18. Hooker Owen Pattie had a hand in all five of his side’s tries.
The Warriors return to the Jersey Flegg got off to a rough start, losing 38-10 at home to Cronulla. They scored first through centre William Piliu after three minutes. They then conceded seven tries. A solo effort from Sharks edge Dylan Coutts was the standout, with the second-rower running 60 metres and stepping the fullback to score on debut.
St George Illawarra ended the round with a strong 36-14 win over Melbourne in Wollongong. Trailing 18-4 at halftime, the Storm scored twice just after the break to get back into it. Three more Dragons tries followed, including two long-range efforts from fullback Wesley Pring.
Arbitrary Flegg Team of the Week: 1 Liam Ison (CRO), 2 Cain Barnes (SGI), 3 Casey McLean (PEN), 4 Brenden Naicori (WST), 5 Ofele Lene (WST), 6 Nicholas Quinn (SGI), 7 Joseph O'Neill (CBY), 8 Noah Reed (SOU), 9 Owen Pattie (CAN), 10 Jett Liu (SGI), 11 Brandon Tumeth (WST), 12 Luke Smith (CBY), 13 Jaxon Lavender (CAN).
Last week I noted that the NSWRL’s new streaming service would show one Flegg game a week. That is correct but for clarification, it’s only Silktails games (except this weekend’s).
Looking ahead to Round 2, the game of the week looks to be Canterbury-Cronulla, which kicks off at 11 am on Saturday if you’re interested and in Chester Hill or the surrounding area.
🏉 Queensland junior reps
Tweed jumped into first on the Mal Meninga Cup ladder despite not even playing thanks to Mackay’s 46-10 demolition of Townsville. Bolstered by the inclusion of Cowboys’ squad member Jamal Shibasaki, the Cutters scored nine tries in torrid conditions. The loss knocks the Blackhawks down to fifth, while Mackay now sits a point outside the Top 6. Burleigh, Ipswich, and Redcliffe also picked up big wins in Round 5. Ipswich has looked particularly impressive during this early pool stage, scoring 144 points in four games.
Townsville and the Western Clydesdales remain the only undefeated sides in the Cyril Connell Cup after Souths Logan suffered their first defeat in Round 5. Their loss to Redcliffe moves them to second in Pool C, with Burleigh moving ahead. Four teams will play in the finals – the first-place winners in Pool A and Pool B, and the top two of Pool C.
The same finals system will be used for the Harvey Norman women’s under-19s competitions, where the Clydesdales are currently dominating Pool B. In four games, they’ve scored 176 points and conceded 20. The poor, old Wide Bay Bulls are last in the pool, having three of their four games without a bench.
🏉 New South Wales junior reps
The Roosters came out on top in the SG Ball’s top-of-the-table clash last weekend, taking care of St George 46-10 to remain undefeated. Their captain Blake Steep scored twice in the win.
The Wests Tigers juniors collided in Round 6 as Wests played Balmain in the SG Ball and Harold Matthews. The Magpies (who are fourth in the U19s and first in the U17s) won both games, 40-10 and 38-0 respectively.
Central Coast five-eighth Isaac Fotu-Moala slotted a field goal just before halftime in his side’s Harold Matt game against Parramatta. They were losing 22-0 at the time. Great stuff.1
Canterbury continues to decimate sides in the U17 Lisa Fiaola Cup. They scored 17 tries in a 94-0 massacre of Manly last Saturday. They are undefeated atop the ladder, with 334 points scored and a points differential of 294.
A shoutout to the St George Tarsha Gale Cup side who, after five long weeks, finally scored their first try of the season in Round 5. Prop Manaia Maxwell-Puohotaua scored the Red V’s only try in a 54-4 loss to the Knights.
The finals begin in the regional comps this weekend with Monaro vs. Central Coast and Northern Tigers vs. Macarthur in the U18 Laurie Daley Cup, while in the U16 Andrew Johns Cup the Western Rams vs. Central Coast and Newcastle-Maitland vs. Macarthur.
🏉 Fifita debuts
Viliami Fifita became the second first-grade debutant in 2024, with the 23-year-old prop coming off the bench for a 14-minute stint in St George Illawarra’s big win over the Titans in Round 1.2 A Fairfield-born Fairfield junior, Fifita came through the grades with Manly, starting with their Harold Matts side in 2017. He played in their losing Grand Final side that year and two years later, played in their losing SG Ball Grand Final team. After four years in their Jersey Flegg team, he made a mid-season move to the Dragons in 2023.
🏉 Laybutt bests rest
I was prepared to do a big Rookie of the Year ranking here but apart from one player, none really stood out. Or at least stood out enough to separate and rank them. So here is the clear number one, Zac Laybutt, and nine others who played in Round 1. Let’s see what Round 2 cooks up.
1 Zac Laybutt, 2-tie Joe Chan, Ethan Strange, Tom Weaver, Jack Bostock, Jacob Gagai, Liam Henry, Max Plath, Viliami Fifita, Luke Sommerton.
🏉 Braith update
Following up on last year’s Braith expose, here are all the Braiths (some old and some new) running around in this season’s junior rep competitions:
Mal Meninga Cup: Braith Clark (Clydesdales), Braith Dowson (Pride), Braith Smith (Capras)
Cyril Connell Cup: Braith Clubb (Pride), Braithen Scott (Clydesdales)
SG Ball: Braethan Bilich (South Sydney)3, Braith Plecas (Illawarra)
Harold Matthews: Braith Sloane (Canterbury)
Laurie Daley Cup: Brayth Ledger (North Coast)4
Special mention to Anasta Tamwoy, who made his Meninga Cup debut for the Capras in Round 5.
Around the grounds
For more information on all games head to 18thman.com.
Jersey Flegg Cup – Round 1
Penrith 14 (C McLean 2, A Hotere-Papalii tries; J Nohra goal) def. Sydney 4 (H Barton try) at St Marys Leagues Stadium. Referee: W Greatbatch. Halftime: PEN 10-0. Run metres: C McLean 291 (PEN), K Fekitoa 144 (SYD). Tackles: B Phillips 30 (PEN), L Jack 35 (SYD).
South Sydney 16 (C Kaho, R McIntosh, D Towns tries; B Hawkins 2 goals) def. Manly 14 (M Hayley, C Patu, T Stoltman tries; B Metcalfe goal) at 4 Pines Park. Referee: C Suters. Halftime: SOU 10-4. Run metres: B Metcalfe 151 (MAN), L Grossemy 106 (SOU). Tackles: C Navale 32 (MAN), N Reed 22 (SOU).
Canterbury 30 (D Gabrael 2, B Porter, R Moyle, L Vito, R Wavik tries; C Tia 3 goals) def. Parramatta 6 (R Smith try; T Twidle goal) at Eric Tweedale Stadium. Referee: D Wells. Halftime: CBY 12-6. Run metres: E Vaafusuaga 123 (PAR), R Wavik 165 (CBY). Tackles: M Tupou 33 (PAR), L Smith 29 (CBY).
Wests Tigers 38 (Z Clarke 2, B Tumeth 2, B Hodges, O Lene, T Wright tries; N Teaupa 3, Z Clarke 2 goals) def. Kaiviti Silktails 20 (E Daubitu, M Poulter, B Taria, W Waqanisaravi tries; M Nacaginimasei 2 goals) at Lidcombe Oval. Referee: T Stindle. Halftime: WST 22-4. Run metres: B Naicori 110 (WST), M Senibua 169 (KAI). Tackles: B Tumeth 18 (WST), M Taramecegu 28 (KAI).
Canberra 30 (R Carr, M Henderson, T Kiriona, N Martin, V Patuki-Case tries; M Henderson 5 goals) def. Newcastle 18 (S Kaliti, J Rahme, L Sutton, T Woodman-Tuhoro tries; L Sutton goal) at St John Oval. Referee: N Loveday. Halftime: CAN 18-0. Run metres: S Kaliti 117 (NEW), J Lavender 133 (CAN). Tackles: E Salesa-Leaumoana 31 (NEW), O Pattie 41 (CAN).
Cronulla 38 (M Gabrael 2, D Coutts, K Dixon, F Faatili, M Riolo, T Waitere tries; K Dixon 5 goals) def. Warriors 10 (N Amoroa, W Piliu tries; N Amoroa goal) at Navigation Homes Stadium. Referee: P Parkinson. Halftime: CRO 14-6. Run metres: S Faeamani 95 (WAR), L Ison 225 (CRO). Tackles: I Samuelu 37 (WAR), S McCulloch 23 (CRO).
St George Illawarra 36 (C Barnes 2, W Pring 2, T Barlow, W Starling tries; A Ward 6 goals) def. Melbourne 14 (P Conn, M Jennings, S Prescott tries; D Perese goal) at Collegians Sports Centre. Referee: M Ford. Halftime: SGI 18-4. Run metres: J Liu 158 (SGI), K Stokes-Mahara 141 (MEL). Tackles: H Stewart 29 (SGI), S Huen 23 (MEL).
It almost paid off – they lost 28-21.
Englishmen Kai Pearce-Paul and Morgan Smithies also made their NRL debuts this past weekend but had spent several seasons in the Super League and are not ROTY eligible.
He counts.
He also counts. Also - a new spelling detected.