Central Coast Rugby League: Former teammates clash in The Entrance-Erina blockbuster

It’ll be more than just two heavyweights clashing when The Entrance take on Erina this weekend, with a string of former teammates colliding in the round seven blockbuster.

Former teammates Nick Newman and Joel Frazer will clash as The Entrance and Erina meet in the round seven of the CCRL. Picture: Sue Graham

It’ll be a case of familiar bedfellows facing off against each other on Sunday when The Entrance host Erina in a top-of-the-table clash at Edsacc Oval.

A string of former Erina players will come up against their old teammates for the first time in what is shaping as one of the matches of the early part of the season.

Last year’s CCRL player of the year Nick Newman, front-rower Noah Easton and Alan Munro all shifted from the Eagles to the Tigers in 2024, while former Erina forward Brandon Shoveller is in his second year at The Entrance, ensuring some added to spice to what is already a blockbuster fixture.

“It’ll be a big game. Half our team from last year is over there, so we know how they play and they know how we play,” said Erina coach Dane Allen.

“We know a lot about those individuals and I played there (The Entrance) myself for 100-and-something first grade games. I know the club’s structure, they play the same structures year in year out, so a bit of that knowledge and how the club operates is good for us.

Erina come into the game with an unbeaten record. Picture: Sue Graham

“But vice-versa, with Newman, Noah and a few of the other boys there, they know well and truly what our club is about and they’ll be ready and raring to go.”

Erina will come into the game on top of the table after winning four from four to kick off the season.

And while the club has suffered a host of injuries so far in 2024, Allen expects skipper Joel Frazer to return for the big clash.

“He’s our captain and he’ll be a huge inclusion for us. He just adds a lot of effort to our middle third of the field and a lot energy comes through Joel.

“His presence out there gives a lot of younger guys a lot of confidence, being our captain and having played 100 first grade games. You can’t replace a player like him.”

Nick Newman moved from Erina to The Entrance in the off-season. Picture: Sue Graham

The Eagles will take on a Tigers team looking to bounce back from last weekend’s 16-12 loss to Woy Woy.

“It was a physical game, Woy Woy were definitely up for the challenge. They’re going to be one of the top sides,” said coach Jarod Hamer.

“It’s a learning curve for us, we’ll be better for it next time round and we’re just going to continue to do what we need to do. There’s still a lot of football to be played.”

The Tigers have been one of the form sides of the competition in 2024. Picture: Sue Graham

While they went down last weekend, The Entrance was arguably the form side of the competition over the opening rounds, having easily accounted for Berkeley Vale (48-0), last year’s premiers Toukley (30-4) and Wyong (52-0) in a dominant opening three games.

And despite having former Erina players in Easton, Munro, Newman and Shoveller in the squad, Hamer said he hasn’t focused too much on extracting any inside knowledge from them.

“Not really. We’re not worried about any other side. If we start worrying about other sides we’re going to forget about what we need to do, so we’ll just concentrate on what we need to do,” he said.

“Obviously every side has their good players that we just touch on but we’ll keep it about ourselves and concentrate on what we need to do to get the job done.”

The Entrance and Erina clash at Edsacc Oval at 1:30pm on Sunday.