Andrew Johns/Laurie Daley Cup: Full preview of the 2024 semi-finals
After an exciting regular season, it’s semi-final time in the Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cups. Check out how the teams are shaping up and who to keep an eye on in our full preview.
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After five exciting rounds of the regular season it’s time for the semi-finals in the Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cup, with the four best teams in each competition facing off for a spot in the decider.
In the Johns Cup, Western Rams face off with the Central Coast Roosters and the Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights take on the Macarthur Wests Tigers.
Meanwhile in the Daley Cup it’ll be Monaro taking on Central Coast and the Northern Tigers playing Macarthur.
Ahead of the blockbusters, we’ve taken a look at the strengths of the semi-final sides and assessed who to keep an eye on in our previews.
ANDREW JOHNS CUP
WESTERN RAMS V CENTRAL COAST ROOSTERS
Saturday 16 March, 10am at Woy Woy Oval
It will be a case of the best attacking team of the competition up against one of just two undefeated sides when the Rams and Roosters meet at Woy Woy Oval on Saturday morning.
After suffering a late collapse to lose their opening round clash 24-20 at the hands of Macarthur, the Rams have run riot in the competition, winning four straight to top the Southern Pool.
In particular, the team’s attack has been incredibly lethal, with the side scoring a remarkable 192 points across its five games – the most of any team in either competition.
“We’re slowly getting there,” said a very understated coach Tony Woolnough. “We’ve been trying to get some combinations going with the chopping and changing throughout the competition but I think we’re well on track and they’ve definitely got some points in them.”
They’ll take on an excellent Central Coast Roosters side that managed to grind out some tough results to go through the regular season undefeated.
While comfortably accounting for Monaro, the Northern Tigers and North Coast Bulldogs, the Central Coast showed plenty of grit and match awareness to hold off a rampaging Northern Rivers Titans 26-22 in round two, before being held to an entertaining draw by fellow undefeated side the Knights in the round five.
While they won’t need any extra motivation, the Roosters will be out to emulate last year’s Andrew Johns Cup side, which went on to take out the grand final.
Led by a dominant forward pack, Woolnough expects much of the contest to be decided by how well his team can match it with the Chooks in the middle.
“They’re a strong side, they’ve got some big kids in there so obviously our main objective is to hold them up front. They’ve got a big pack and some creative halves – they’ll definitely be our biggest test to date,” he said.
“If we match them up the middle then I think we’ve got the strike power to score points.”
Western Rams
Position: 1st in Southern Pool (4-1)
Biggest victory: 52-10 v Northern Tigers (round five)
Top tryscorer: Taj Jordan (eight)
Key players: Taj Jordan, Triston Ross
Central Coast Roosters
Position: 2nd in Northern Pool (4-1-0)
Biggest victory: 28-6 v Northern Tigers (round three)
Top tryscorer: Semi Leweniqila (eight)
Key players: Owen Knowles, Jack-Dean Potaka, Alexander Stephenson
NEWCASTLE-MAITLAND REGION KNIGHTS V MACARTHUR WESTS TIGERS
Sunday 17 March, 11am at Pirtek Park, Singleton
The other semi-final will see the free-scoring Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights take on the best defensive team in the competition, the Macarthur Wests Tigers, in Singleton.
Simply one of the most exciting teams of the regional competitions, the Knights will come into the game after an undefeated regular season that saw the team top the Northern Pool.
With a lethal left edge in fine form, the Hunter side has piled on the points throughout the season with some stunning backline plays, with left side players Chase Butler, Chip Valentish and Kade Paton scoring 14 tries between them in just five games.
They’ve generally made light work of their opponents over the course of the season, but did finish with an epic 24-all draw against the Roosters in round five that saw the side outscore their opponents five tries to four.
“They’re quite talented, they’ve got a few speedsters out wide. They’ve got plenty of star power, plenty of speed, which means plenty of points,” said Macarthur coach Harrison Fox.
But while the Knights have plenty of firepower, they’ll take on a Tigers team that has prided itself on its defence in 2024, conceding a miserly 58 points across its five games.
They are certainly no slouches with the ball either, with the likes of five-eighth Brock Achurch, halfback Curtis Lakeman and centre Elijah Sefo in particular combining well with each other.
“One thing that’s caught the eye is the combinations that we’ve built throughout the pre-season and then the last five weeks in games,” said Fox. “Everyone’s just firing on all cylinders at the moment, the energy is really, really positive.”
Despite this, Fox says that much of the team’s success has been built on the foundation laid by middle forwards Kye Penfold, Jake Gaffney and Jaziyah Taiatu, who will once again be key if the team is to make it through to grand final week.
“Without the likes of people like Kye, Jaziyah and Jake Gaffney, people like Brock Achurch, Elijah Sefo, Curtis Lakeman don’t get that proper platform or field position.”
Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights
Position: 1st in Northern Pool (4-1-0)
Biggest win: 44-12 v Riverina Bulls (round four)
Top tryscorer: Chip Valentish, Kade Paton (five)
Key players: Chase Butler, Curtis Mulheran, Chip Valentish
Macarthur Wests Tigers
Position: 2nd in Southern Pool (4-1)
Biggest win: 42-6 v Illawarra South Coast Dragons (round five)
Top tryscorer: Elijah Sefo (four)
Key players: Kye Penfold, Elijah Sefo, Curtis Lakeman
LAURIE DALEY CUP
MONARO COLTS V CENTRAL COAST ROOSTERS
Saturday 16 March, 11:30am at Woy Woy Oval
It’ll be arguably the form team of the competition up against one of the undefeated heavyweights when Monaro travel to Woy Woy to take on the Central Coast Roosters.
In what is the only return fixture of the first round of the finals, the Colts will be out to avenge their 14-0 loss to the Chooks back in round one.
“It’ll be a good chance to have another crack at them,” said coach Brendan Bradley.
“I think round one was probably a bit of a kick in the bum for us, to be honest. It sort of kickstarted us. We’ve got pretty much the same side but it was more or less what we needed to kick it off.”
Since then, Monaro has really turned on the fireworks, winning four straight – including a 62-12 demolition of Riverina – to wipe away the Southern Pool and finish in first place in the group.
“They’re coming along pretty well, to be honest. We’ve been pretty lucky that we could keep a core group from round two until now,” said Bradley.
Halfback Jonah Anderson has been a star for the team, while hooker Mitchell Brophy has also been strong. And while they have taken some of the highlights, the coach has praised the work of forwards Jesse Milin, Alex Hardy and JJ Mau Pohiva as being central to the team’s success.
“They’ve been terrific, the middles. They’ve been very, very strong,” he said.
In looking to reverse the round one result, the Colts will take on a Central Coast Roosters side that has shown plenty of skill, physicality and grit to go through the regular season without tasting defeat.
“They’re a good side and obviously haven’t dropped a game all competition, so we’ll have to play well to turn that result around,” said Bradley.
“They’re dangerous all across the field, so if we can hold the footy and build a bit of pressure, hopefully we can do it.”
Rather than blowing teams away, the Roosters have just shown excellent character to outlast their opponents throughout the season.
After a 14-0 win over Monaro to kick off the season, they went on to edge out a fast-finishing Northern Rivers Titans side 18-14, before drawing 26-all in a classic against the Northern Tigers. The team continued to show their ability to close out tight games by pipping the North Coast Bulldogs 10-8 in round four.
The Chooks then seemingly saved their most dominant performance for last, running in eight tries to smack the Knights 40-14 in round five.
Five-eighth Chaice Bayley was almost unplayable that day, setting up six tries as he looms as a key player in the semi-final.
Elsewhere, halfback Brooklyn Rosemeyer has been strong in guiding the team around the park while lock Josiah Fesolai has been immense in the middle for the side and will likely play a big role if the Roosters are to win through to the grand final.
Monaro Colts
Position: 1st in Southern Pool (4-1)
Biggest win: 62-12 v Riverina Bulls (round five)
Top tryscorer: Lachlan Cunanan (six)
Key players: Jonah Anderson, Mitchell Brophy, Alex Hardy
Central Coast Roosters
Position: 2nd in Southern Pool (4-1-0)
Biggest win: 40-14 v Knights (round five)
Top tryscorer: Zahn McKay (five)
Key players: Chaice Bayley, Brooklyn Rosemeyer, Josiah Fesolai
NORTHERN TIGERS V MACARTHUR WESTS TIGERS
Sunday 17 March, 12:30pm at Pirtek Park, Singleton
It will a battle of the Tigers when the Northern Region and Macarthur meet in the second semi-final of the Daley Cup.
The home side, representing the Greater Northern Region, will be out to keep not only its undefeated run but also its free-scoring form alive in the clash at Singleton.
In what has been a scintillating season, the Tigers have scored at least 26 points in every game, keeping alive a remarkable record that has seen the side score at least 30 in every game that it has won since the 2021 finals.
Despite the fluent football, coach Darryl Rondo says the team hasn’t worried too much about how many points it scores.
“The boys don’t worry about the scoreboard too much, they just keep playing footy,” he said.
Led by key players in the spine such as fullback Reece Josephson, halfback Jordan Hamlin and hooker Jayden Seckold, the Tigers have been one of the better teams to watch in 2024, piling on the points as they won four of the five games and played out a thrilling 26-all draw with the Roosters in round three.
“I think you’ve got to give the boys credit there, they buy into everything,” said Rondo. “We’ve got no super, superstars there, we’ve just got a bunch of boys who love playing together and are playing for each other. You just can’t buy that.”
But while the spine players have got some of the credit, the coach is at pains to highlight some of his other star performers.
“I think our forward pack has been really good as a whole,” he said.
“The blokes who don’t get too much of a mention are our two centres (Samuel Carr and Cooper Meldrum). They bring the ball out of the half really well, get us on the front foot, give our forwards a spell.”
While the Tigers are undefeated so far this season, they’ll come up against stern opposition in the form of Macarthur.
Blessed with a strong forward pack and crafty halves, Macarthur led the Southern Pool for much of the regular season before a round four loss to Monaro saw the team finish second with a record of four wins and a loss.
“Their attitude is great. They’re always coming to training wanting to work hard and work for each other,” said coach Mitch Tyler.
Indeed, the Tigers have shown plenty of character throughout the short season, pulling off comebacks, blowing teams away early and grinding out victories to show that they can win from different situations.
“What we showed not just the competition but ourselves is that we can put points on quickly and score them in different ways,” said Tyler.
When it comes to scoring points, they’ve been led by winger Saint Fuatimau, who has shown that he’s got a nose for the tryline by crossing seven times to top the competition. Just one behind is backrower Archie Duncombe, who has been absolutely outstanding on the edge in both attack and defence.
And while there have been some spectacular tryscoring efforts, the coach says tightening things up in defence will be key to winning through to the grand final.
“I feel anything junior representative-wise, young kids can score points whenever they want but if we can defensively hold teams to low scores then we’ll go a long way to winning the match,” he said.
Northern Tigers
Position: 1st in Northern Pool (4-1-0)
Biggest win: 36-6 v North Coast Bulldogs (round one)
Top tryscorer: Jordan Hamlin (five)
Key players: Jordan Hamlin, Reece Josephson, Jayden Seckold
Macarthur Wests Tigers
Position: 2nd in Southern Pool (4-1)
Biggest win: 54-16 v Riverina Bulls (round three)
Top tryscorer: Saint Fuatimau
Key players: Archie Duncombe, Dylan Smith, Dion Williams
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