Meninga Cup semi-final preview: Kingmakers, team lists named
Which players are predicted to swing the Meninga Cup sudden death semi-finals matches? The capable kingmakers from Souths Logan, Mackay, Burleigh and Norths are named here ahead of Saturday’s clashes on the Peninsula.
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Which players are predicted to swing the Meninga Cup sudden death semi-final matches staged this Saturday at Kayo Stadium?
The kingmakers capable from Souths Logan, Mackay, Burleigh and Norths are named here ahead of games which will decide who takes on the Tweed Seagulls and Redcliffe Dolphins in the next stage of finals footy.
Souths will take on Burleigh at 1pm before Mackay tackle Norths at 3pm in what promises to be an exciting day of footy on the Peninsula.
MENINGA CUP SEMI-FINAL KINGMAKERS
Antonio Verhoeven (Burleigh Bears)
A fresh face for Burleigh this season after moving from New Zealand, Verhoeven has popped up at the right time more than once to score timely tries for the Bears.
The tall, long-striding Palm Beach Currumbin State High senior looms a big threat at left centre and he has the likes of Dallas Ingram and Marley McLaren to unlock his best.
Jett Bryce (Burleigh Bears)
A boundless ball of energy and physicality, Broncos Academy forward Bryce can have a huge say in the result of Saturday’s semi-final.
Game-breaking at his best, the 19-year-old right-edge forward has been noted for his determination in contact, relentless nature in defence and V8 engine.
Dallas Ingram and Marley McLaren (Burleigh Bears)
Two first-class playmakers from the Coast, Ingram and McLaren have been masterful this season.
Both Ingram and McLaren have made the jump from Connell Cup under-17s footy to Meninga Cup under-19s in style, rising to every challenge in a demanding season.
Ingram is set to be a key cog in The Southport School’s First XV this winter at flyhalf while McLaren and Tweed pivot Taj Lateo were warming their engines for Palm Beach Currumbin’s fast-approaching Langer Trophy campaign.
Jackson Howe (Souths Logan Magpies)
An underrated type, Howe has delivered the goods for countless seasons at The Nest and he has made a switch from halfback to hooker this year which showed how versatile he is.
A talented Logan Brothers junior with a superb short kicking game, Howe will have his hands full distributing the ball from the feet of his forwards and defending in the middle.
His craftiness can’t be underestimated in games like these.
Fa’apale Feaunati and Xzavier Timoteo (Souths Logan)
Souths were blessed with two terrific middle forwards whose middle name was damaging.
The absence of towering prop Dirhys Sefo has opened the door for the barnstorming Timoteo to earn a starting role and alongside humble hit-man Feaunati, he can make it a match to remember.
Both props, who were under-aged in the under-19s competition, possess plenty of strength and skill to complement their thirst for contact.
David Bryenton (Souths Logan Magpies)
Captain. Goalkicker. Five-eighth.
Need more be said?
Bryenton has been blistering in 2025 after coming into his own as a Year 11 student playing for Keebra Park in last year’s Langer Trophy competition.
The flair-filled fullback has risen with the tide for Souths, showing he can be just as influential as a game-managing No.6.
Adaquix-Jeramiah Watts-Luke (Norths Devils)
A big improver, Watts-Luke has developed his defensive understanding and positioning dramatically in 2025 which is an added bonus given how potent he is running the ball.
Slippery in every sense of the word, Watts-Luke has made a roaring return to footy after an injury-ridden 2024 put the livewire Marsden Mako on ice.
Can create something from nothing.
Carter Welfare and Jahrel Iselin-Jansen (Norths Devils)
This combination can carve up even the best of defensive structures.
Welfare’s poise and control mixed with Iselin-Jansen’s jinking running ability and x-factor has served up a storm over the last month.
Can the pair provide the best of both worlds in Saturday’s sudden death skirmish?
Yes.
Monte Betham and DJ Talaepa (Norths Devils)
Stationed on each edge of Norths’ wall will be two attacking aces - Betham and Talaepa.
Renowned for shedding first tacklers, the pair of them can lay a nice platform for the Devils to thrive off.
Just last Tuesday Betham was a bulldozing customer in Stretton’s frantic 22-18 boilover win against Caloundra State High which earnt the school its first entry into the Langer Trophy.
Later this year Betham will come up against Talaepa, Mabel Park State High’s captain.
Flynn Battaia and Zane Elletson (Mackay Cutters)
Elite all season long, this centre pairing has delivered the goods for Mackay with their metre-eating carries and ability to find the stripe.
Left centre Battaia and right centre Elletson will meet their match in Keyarn Pene and Robertson Tusi Tofu, two high-class centres out of Wavell State High.
But both boys have the strike to send plenty of traffic back Norths’ way.
Josh Toby (Mackay Cutters)
Mackay were fortunate to have hooker Toby back in the side after a thumb injury hindered his availability over the past month.
The son of local legend Kerrod, a bustling back-rower who was the club’s player of the year awardee in its inaugural Queensland Cup campaign, Toby is not afraid to try his hand from the ruck base.
Tough like his father, Toby is a creative kid with the tenacity of a prop forward and fast instincts of a spine player.
Kooper Shears (Mackay Cutters)
A surprise packet in 2025 - he moved from halfback to fullback - Shears has been outstanding for the Cutters with his low-mistake rate, footwork and link play in the backline.
A product of St Patrick’s College, Shears knows where to run and when to time it, giving Mackay nice shape in attack around his primary playmakers Nelson Fenlon and Nikolaus Djukic.
THE TEAMS
BURLEIGH
1. Saxon Innes
2. Bailey Trew
3. Phillip Coates
4. Antonio Verhoeven
5. Disharne Tonihi
6. Dallas Ingram
7. Marley McLaren
8. Braydan Wong
9. Hayden Watson
10. Oscar Laffranchi
11. Jett Bryce
12. Cruz Tauaifaiga
13. Anton Whaiapu
Interchange
14. Ryder Abell
15. Cooper Humphreys
16. Tavake Tau’a’alo
17. Jesse Rafferty
SOUTHS
1. Siosaia Poese
2. Jackson Streader
3. Finn Kendall
4. Joseph Tupuse
5. Nickolas Streader
6. David Bryenton
7. Nehemiah Vavau
8. Fa’apale Feaunati
9. Jackson Howe
10. Xzavier Timoteo
11. Tannar Baker
12. Lenn Esera
13. Jayden Solien
Interchange
14. Tom Parker
15. Andrew Fonomaalii
16. Carlos Bagon
17. Wil Pati
MACKAY
1. Kooper Shears
2. Setaleki Mafileo
3. Flynn Battaia
4. Zane Elletson
5. Rylan Misztela
6. Nelson Fenlon
7. Nikolaus Djukic
8. Travis Larner
9. Joshua Toby
10. Tavita Penaia Te’o
11. Joseph Doyle
12. Jack Thorburn
13. Ryan John
Interchange
14. Kayne Smith
15. Mark Morrow
16. Harrison Considine
17. Camden Hopes
NORTHS
1. Adaquix-Jeramiah Watts-Luke
2. Tyrese Tovao
3. Keyarn Pene
4. Robertson Tusi Tofu
5. Kurt Jones
6. Carter Welfare
7. Jahrel Iselin-Jansen
8. Jasper Barry
9. Lachlan McCall
10. Laurie Lupematasila
11. Montgomery Betham
12. Duquan Talaepa
13. Charlie Dickson
Interchange
14. Sonny Herdegen
15. Zac Reader
16. Dyer Akauola
17. TBC
Originally published as Meninga Cup semi-final preview: Kingmakers, team lists named
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