Andrew Johns/Laurie Daley Cup: 10 star performers from round four
There was a five-try hero, mesmerising playmakers and some magic outside backs. Check out the top-10 star performers from round four of the Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cups.
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There were plenty of intriguing storylines from round four of the Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cups, with some standout players shining for their teams over the weekend.
There were four and five-try heroes, explosive outside backs and one of the most masterful halves performances in recent memory as teams made a play for the finals.
Following such a huge round of footy, check out 10 players who caught our eye.
Read on as well to catch up on 10 of the biggest talking points from the round.
LOGAN COOMBES (WESTERN RAMS)
One of the easiest inclusions in round four’s team of the week is the Western Rams back-rower, who scored a whopping four tries as his side ran rampant over the Dragons 50-22 in the Johns Cup.
Coombes showcased his excellent running game, hitting up the ball with great speed and power to burst his way through the defensive line on four occasions. He also showed off a mean step, notably for his second try where he ducked and weaved away from a number of defenders.
The Dragons simply had no answer for the young gun who brings his season tally to five after this mammoth effort.
CODY FIELD (NEWCASTLE MAITLAND REGION KNIGHTS)
It was another week where there were plenty of contenders from the Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights’ excellent Johns Cup side.
Despite being dispossessed for one Riverina Bulls try, fullback Cody Field made a number of key attacking contributions that shone through.
The competition’s leading pointscorer crossed for a try either side of the halftime break, the first of which featured some great individual work to shake off a few would-be tackles.
He also provided an assist to his centre Flynn Hodges and was constantly involved in the Knights’ sweeping ball movements.
RYDER NELSON (NORTHERN RIVERS TITANS)
The Northern Rivers Titans got their first win on the board in the Johns Cup against the Northern Tigers, with centre Ryder Nelson an attacking standout.
Nelson’s pace proved to be too much for the Tigers to handle as he crossed for two tries. His second was one of the tries of the round, bursting onto a flat ball on his own 40m line and charging the length of the field to finish a beauty.
LATRELL DYER (MONARO COLTS)
The centre was a standout for Monaro as the club’s Johns Cup side recorded the upset of the season to beat the Macarthur Wests Tigers 16-10.
Dyer made the initial linebreak that got his side into a terrific field position, before providing the assist to Sebastian Jones to open the scoring.
He then followed up with a try of his own, showing great strength to force his way to the line.
The elusive centre was also strong defensively on the right edge as the Tigers sought to be get back in the game.
SEMI LEWENIQILA (CENTRAL COAST ROOSTERS)
The Central Coast winger continues to emerge as one of the superstars of this year’s competition with another two tries to his name in the Chooks’ 30-10 Johns Cup win over the North Coast Bulldogs.
Desite crossing for eight this season, his first try was his best yet, burning the Bulldogs down the right flank, fending away a couple of attempted tackles and running 70m to score.
And while his second was more routine, finishing off after a terrific pass from teammate Zaylen Ekepati, it demonstrated just how crucial a finisher the winger has been for the Roosters.
REECE JOSEPHSON (NORTHERN TIGERS)
The powerful fullback finds himself in the top-10 performers’ list for the second week in a row after a blistering performance in the team’s dramatic 34-30 victory over the Northern Rivers Titans in the Daley Cup.
Once again electric coming out from the back, Josephson scored a double and set up another in a crucial performance that secured the Northern Region’s spot in the finals.
JACK THOMPSON (NEWCASTLE-MAITLAND REGION KNIGHTS)
You’d be hard pressed to find a better individual performance for any round of football, with the young half scoring an incredible five tries and setting up another in the Knights’ 46-18 Daley Cup demolition of the Riverina Bulls in Junee.
Playing up a year after spending the first few rounds of the season in the Harold Matts competition, Thompson completely transformed the Knights’ attack, which had only managed to score a combined 26 from its first three games of the season.
Whether taking on the line, putting up a high ball or backing up in support, Thompson was absolutely everywhere, with everything he touched seemingly turning to gold.
COOPER BLACK (WESTERN RAMS)
Another regular in the weekly top-10 list, the five-eighth was once again outstanding as the Rams kept their finals hopes alive with a 28-12 victory over the Illawarra South Coast Dragons.
With the game in the balance after a Dragons comeback, Black took the game by the scruff of the neck by using his big frame to charge over some would-be defenders for a late double to put the game to bed.
All up, it was a 16-point haul for the Western star, who is currently the leading pointscorer in the Daley Cup with 46.
JJ MAU POHIVA (MONARO COLTS)
The big interchange forward was absolute dynamite off the bench as the Colts smashed their way into premiership contention with a huge 32-10 upset over the previously undefeated Macarthur Wests Tigers in the Daley Cup.
Working alongside front-row partners Jesse Millin and Alex Hardy, Mau Pohiva was immense as the Colts’ pack dominated field position against the Tigers.
He also came up with one of the plays of the season for good measure.
Winding up for a huge hit-up midway through the first half, the big bench weapon broke through the Macarthur defence on his own 30m line before running half the field, shrugging off another two defenders and finding his supporting runner Yuri Hromow to score.
TOBY BATTEN (NORTH COAST BULLDOGS)
His team might not have won, but the young halfback enhanced his reputation with another outstanding performance as the Bulldogs pushed the undefeated Roosters all the way in the team’s 10-8 loss in the Daley Cup.
A week after his man-of-the-match performance against the Knights, Batten showed just how classy a ball player he is with some lovely hands to set up his team’s two tries.
Showing plenty of variety, he put backrower Sam Watts over with a lovely short ball, before showing excellent vision to fire off an excellent cut-out ball for winger Brayth Ledger to score in the corner.
TALKING POINTS
The Andrew Johns and Laurie Daley Cup experienced arguably the biggest weekend of the season after some huge results and performances highlighted round four across regional NSW.
From the upset of the season, to some high-scoring thrillers and teams finally hitting their straps, there was plenty of action around the grounds.
Meanwhile, the race for the semi-final spots is well and truly alive as the competitions head into the final round, with some facing a do-or-die shootout if they want to extend their seasons.
Catch up with a wrap of the top talking points from round four below.
COLTS RECORD HUGE DOUBLE
The story of the weekend was arguably the Monaro Colts recording a shock double victory over the previously undefeated Macarthur Wests Tigers in Canberra.
Coming into the game winless, Monaro’s Johns Cup young guns pulled off the upset of the season as they prevailed 16-10.
While they might have left their run for the finals a little late, the under-18s in the Daley Cup underlined their premiership credentials with a super impressive 32-10 win. The Colts’ forwards helped lay the platform for victory, while some nice ball-playing from halfback Jonah Anderson put the game to bed in the second half.
ROOSTERS REMAIN UNDEFEATED
Macarthur’s losses mean that the Central Coast Roosters hold the unique record of being the only club in both competitions yet to taste defeat this season, with a combined record of seven wins and one draw from the opening four rounds.
While the Chooks ran over the top of the North Coast Bulldogs in the second half to record a 30-10 win in the Johns Cup, the Daley Cup side was forced to dig deep as it narrowly edged out a tough Dogs outfit 10-8.
The Central Coast side will be out to extend its record and go through the regular season undefeated when they take on local rivals the Knights in round five.
NORTHERN TIGERS PILE ON THE POINTS
The Northern Tigers once again turned on the fireworks with another excellent attacking display in the team’s 34-30 victory over the Northern Rivers Titans in the Daley Cup.
It was the third time in four matches that the team has scored more than 30 in a game, with the team’s only other fixture ending in a 26-all draw. The Tigers have now scored 132 points in the current campaign, the most in the Daley Cup.
The victory also extended a quite remarkable run that underlines the Northern Region’s attacking DNA. Not since the semi-final in 2021 have the Tigers’ Daley Cup team won without scoring 30 or more points in a game.
KNIGHTS HIT THEIR STRAPS
While it has been a mixed campaign for the two Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights sides, both teams well and truly turned it on with big wins over Riverina on the weekend.
The Johns Cup side continued its excellent run, thrashing the Bulls 44-12 to keep its unbeaten run alive and remain at the top of the Northern Conference.
And while the Daley Cup side came into the game winless, having scored just 26 points from its first three games, the Knights’ attack well and truly clicked into gear as the team crossed for eight tries in its 46-18 win.
Much of this was down to young playmaker Jack Thompson, who scored an incredible five tries in what was his first game in the grade this season.
DO-OR-DIE FOR DRAGONS
2024 hasn’t shined favourably on the Illawarra South Coast Dragons so far.
The club suffered a double loss in round four against the Western Rams to leave both sides with a record of one win and two losses. The Johns Cup team was blown out of the park by an early Rams onslaught before going on to lose 50-22, while the Daley Cup side was outclassed in its 28-12 defeat.
Their title defence in the Laurie Daley Cup is now looking shaky, with both sides facing do-or-die clashes against Macarthur if they are any chance of making the finals.
Four points behind the Tigers in both grades, the Dragons would need to do the double over Macarthur and then defeat the Northern Rivers Titans in the rescheduled round three clash in order to give themselves a chance of sneaking through to the final four on goal difference.
Likewise, in a scenario that seemed unthinkable for much of the season, round five also looms as crucial for the Tigers, who could suddenly be staring down the prospect of missing out on the finals if they lose to the Dragons in Wollongong.
RAMPAGING RAMS IMPRESS
While the Dragons were grounded, it was the Rams who soared to two wins from two in round four, marking their intentions to make a finals berth in both grades.
The Johns Cup side were the first to crack the half-century of points in the competition this season, with Logan Coombes’ four tries taking the headlines.
The Daley Cup side had a tougher test, but were still too strong to dispatch of the Dragons 28-12, with Cooper Black scoring 16 points for his side.
The Rams sit at top of the Southern Conference in the Johns Cup with three wins from four and third in the Daley Cup, with a lot of momentum on their side ahead of a meeting with the Northern Tigers this weekend.
TITANS RUE SLOW START
The Northern Rivers Titans will feel like there was an opportunity missed to dethrone the undefeated Northern Tigers in the Laurie Daley Cup over the weekend.
After a miserable opening, the Titans found themselves down 34-6 early in the second after the Tigers pierced their defence on six occasions.
However instead of rolling over, the Titans went on to score five unanswered tries, and in the end the difference was two missed conversion attempts.
It’s the second time the Titans’ under-18s have fallen short of an epic comeback victory, having come back from 18-4 down to give the Central Coast Roosters a run for their money with an 18-14 loss in round two. This was on the same day as the Titans’ Johns Cup team fought back from 20-0 down to narrowly go down 26-22 to the Chooks.
Despite pushing the competition leaders all the way at various points throughout the season with some entertaining football, both teams are out of finals contention heading into round five, with the club undoubtedly left to rue its first half slow starts.
GREEN SHOOTS FOR BULLDOGS
The North Coast Bulldogs might have walked away from round four without any points, but there were plenty of positives to take away from their tough games against the undefeated Central Coast Roosters.
While they fell off in the second period, the Johns Cup side were locked at 10-all early in the second half on the back of some creative playmaking.
Perhaps even more impressively, the Daley Cup side pushed the Roosters all the way, holding their opponents scoreless in the second half and only going down by one conversion in the end, 10-8.
Positive signs ahead of the final round where they’ll meet the Northern Rivers Titans.
TRY-, POINTSCORING RACES GO DOWN TO THE WIRE
The race to become the leading try- and pointscorer in both competitions will come down to the final round after some big performances over the weekend.
In terms of tries, the Central Coast’s Semi Leweniqila looks odds-on to finish on top of the Johns Cup. After an impressive double against the North Coast Bulldogs he races out to eight tries, three ahead of Western Rams trio Triston Ross, Taj Jordan and Logan Coombes on five.
Remarkably, Leweniqila is also a chance at taking out the leading pointscorer’s gong despite not kicking a goal. He’s sitting third with 32 points, narrowly behind Knights fullback Cody Field (38) and Western’s Callum Miskell (34).
The leading tryscorer’s race is much closer in the Daley Cup, with five players locked at the top.
Macarthur pair Archie Duncombe and Saint Fuatimau, Northern Tigers’ halfback Jordan Hamlin, Newcastle-Maitland’s Jack Thompson and Western’s Cooper Black have all scored five tries, with Black’s Rams’ teammate Nathaniel Robinson one behind on four.
In terms of points, Black is out in front with 46, two ahead of the Northern Tigers’ goalkicking extraordinaire Dylan Keane, who has remarkably kicked 19 from 23 goals so far this season.
TRIES TO REMEMBER
Speaking of tries, it was another round of classic four-pointers from emerging superstars, with some scoreboard regulars and surprise suspects making the highlights reel.
Semi Leweniqila proved he’s more than just a good finisher, scoring one of the solo tries of the season for the Central Coast Roosters. Receiving the ball on his own 30m line, he took on his opposing winger, fended him off and then burned the chasing Bulldogs defenders down the right flank, running 70m to score a beauty.
Yuri Hromow was the man who finished the try for the Monaro Colts, but it was the work of interchange forward JJ Mau Pohiva that made it memorable. Winding up for a huge hit-up, the big bench weapon broke through the Macarthur defence on his own 30m line, running half the field and shrugging off another two defenders before finding his supporting runner Hromow to finish the job.
The Newcastle-Maitland Region Knights also provided some beautiful team tries in the Andrew Johns Cup this week. While there was plenty to choose from, the second try of the day for Jesse Hudson featured a killer assist from Chase Butler, cutting-out three runners with a perfect ball to find his winger.
Watch the tries in the Andrew Johns Cup and Laurie Daley Cup here.
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