Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League: Ballina defeats Bilambil in 2024 grand final
They might not have been the flashiest Ballina side in history, but there is one big thing that sets the Seagulls of 2024 apart from the rest.
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After five months of footy, the NRRRL season came to an end with a huge grand final day at Kingsford Smith Park.
Premiership were defended while incredible resolve was shown to earn some redemption across a huge day of football.
Catch up with a wrap of the action as we progressively roll out reports from the grades below.
BALLINA DO IT THE HARD WAY
Ballina has returned to the top of Northern Rivers rugby league after the Seagulls defeated Bilambil 16-10 in a thrilling grand final at Kingsford Smith Park.
It was the club’s seventh premiership in the past 11 seasons, continuing an incredible legacy that has
But while the Seagulls have been the dominant force in the NRRRL for the past decade, it’s clear that this year they did it the hard way against Bilambil.
Just like they’ve done on eight other occasions this season, the Ballina side came from behind at halftime to win, repelling set after set of Jets’ attacks in an epic defensive display.
“It was probably our worst game of the year in attack. Our ball control was quite off,” said Ballina coach Greg Barnes.
“I think we had to defend our line about 20 times. And we’ve had to do that all year. Losing eight players of the calibre that we lost last year, we really changed tactics in regard to how we were going to win it this year.
“The guys that came in were predominantly from the under-18s and guys who were playing reserve grade. We based our game this year on fitness and defence, and that’s how we got it done against Bilambil, just like we have all year. Exceptional.”
Indeed, unlike last year’s star-studded Ballina team, which piled on a whopping 614 points in 17 games with some scintillating attacking footy before falling at the final hurdle to a rampaging Cudgen, this year’s team relied on its toughness and grit to grind their way towards a minor and major premiership.
For example, Ballina scored 200 fewer points this season, showing a grittiness and will to win that saw it come from behind at halftime nine teams to win six of its 17 games by six points or less and rescue one draw.
And while not the flashiest team he has coached over the years, Barnes – who celebrated his third A-grade premiership with the Seagulls – said there were some very special characteristics that set his side of 2024 apart from the others.
“There’s not gonna be another side like that in regards to a team that wants to win more. They’re very tenacious,” said Barnes.
“They realise on paper that they’re not the most skilful team, they’re definitely not the biggest team, we’re quite a small side. But we’re fit, we’re athletic and we connected really well from the start.”
He added: “You’ve got to be really good to beat us through our defence. I had one bloke come up after the game who said, ‘You blokes love defending so much that you just throw the ball back to them.’
“That’s what it looked like on Sunday. But when it comes to being a unit and a team, there’s never going to be a team like this again.”
The victory also marks the end of Barnes’ two year-reign in what is his second stint as Ballina head coach, with the outgoing boss full of praise for the club and community.
“I’d just like to thank the town,” he said. “The crowd was probably the biggest we’ve had there for 10 years. 2013 was my first A-grade comp that I won and that was huge because we hadn’t won a comp for 20 years, but I think Sunday was on par if not better.
“The atmosphere was unbelievable, so I’d like to thank the fans, the board and especially the players for just taking ownership of what we had to do – and they got it done.”
MATCH REPORT: BALLINA PREVAILS WITH DEFENSIVE EFFORT FOR THE AGES
Ballina has atoned for last year’s grand final heartache after an incredible defensive display helped the Seagulls to a thrilling 16-10 victory over Bilambil in a pulsating NRRRL decider at Kingsford Smith Park.
Despite making a bucketload of errors and spending much of the game defending inside its own half, Ballina put in a defensive display for the ages to hold out the Jets and claim the club’s seventh premiership in the last 11 seasons.
With things locked at 10-all late in the second half, the decisive moment came with 15 minutes to go when Ballina centre Jordan Lee ended up on the end of a clever grubber from Ballina five-eighth Hamish McClintock to plant the ball down and put the Seagulls ahead.
While they were the last points scored in the match it certainly wasn’t the end of the drama, with Ballina repelling set after set in the dying stages as Bilambil threw the kitchen sink at the Seagulls’ line.
In fact, the match came down to the final seconds as the Jets made a break down the left in the last minute of play, only for centre Caleb Nicholls to be dragged down one metre short of the line.
In a game that ended two tries a piece, it was ultimately the perfect boot of McClintock, combined with Ballina’s ruthlessness in attack and incredible defensive resolve, that handed the side victory.
Indeed, the Jets appeared to be the better team for much of the game but struggled to convert its possession and field position into enough points.
Bilambil showed its intent from the outset, spreading the ball wide in the first set as danger man Reiven Smallman made a break up the line.
It was a bright start from the Jets who landed the first blow shortly after with a brilliant passage of play.
Attacking the line, halfback Harry Fitzhugh put in a clever kick for Smallman, who did incredibly well to throw the ball over his head to keep it in play. Ballina fullback Liam Green then failed to clean up the scraps and Bilambil’s Kalani Hensby dived on the ball to score after just three and a half minutes.
Errors were hurting Ballina in the opening stages as Bilambil enjoyed multiple sets in the Seagulls’ red zone.
Despite being under the pump, Ballina went up the other end and hit back with its first real attack on the Jets’ line, with skipper Anthony Colman sliding through some indecisive Bilambil edge defence to level things up on 10 minutes. McClintock then slotted the conversion to put his side up 6-4.
Just as it did in the major semi-final against Cudgen two weeks ago, Ballina took any points on offer and extended its lead on 15 minutes after a knocked-on bomb was picked up by an offside Jets player, allowing McClintock to put the Seagulls up by four.
However mistakes continued to cruel Ballina and winger Fred Pitt saved a certain try after knocking down the final pass of a sweeping Bilambil move that had Smallman unmarked on the wing.
The Jets had the better of field position but struggled to break Ballina down, with the Seagulls’ black and blue wall forcing errors from Bilambil.
However Ballina just couldn’t hold the ball and made just one too many errors, with the Jets capitalising on a knock-on to spread the ball right for Smallman to go over in the corner with five to play in the half. Josh Quinn then kicked the conversion from the sideline to give Bilambil a 10-8 lead at the break.
With the game in the balance both sides continued to make errors after the restart, with Ballina yet again coughing up easy ball in its own end.
The game moved into a grind as both sides fought for territory, although the Seagulls were tempting fate with more errors in dangerous territory.
As the half progressed, Ballina started to complete more sets and after receiving back-to-back penalties, McClintock took the two points to lock things up at 10-all with 23 minutes remaining.
With scores level, a critical mistake from Bilambil coming out of its own end gave Ballina a fresh set in good territory.
And while the team had been forced to defend its own line time and time again, the Seagulls showed plenty of polish with the ball in hand when McClintock put Lee over to put his side ahead. The five-eighth then continued his excellent day with the boot by slotting the conversion from the sideline to go up 16-10 with 13 minutes remaining.
Despite going ahead, Ballina continued to make errors and Bilambil’s Tyson Donnelly looked odds-on to score late on, only for a desperate tackle from Rhys Riches to lodge the ball loose and save a try.
With five minutes to go the Jets thought they had finally cracked the wall in what was a huge moment in the game.
After Ballina spilled an Alex Fitzhugh bomb, the ball ended up with Jets centre Caleb Nicholls, who palmed off a defender to get over the line. However just as the celebrations were about to begin, play was called back as his teammate Wade Ayres knocked the ball forward in the lead-up.
That wasn’t the end of the drama though as Ayres was held up over the line and Ballina’s Fred Pitt pulled off a brilliant catch to diffuse a dangerous bomb.
Balina then had a golden chance to seal the match, but when Pitt dropped the ball over the line, Bilambil had 70 seconds to run the length of the field to score.
And although the Jets made a break and went incredibly close through Nicholls, Ballina held on for a thrilling grand final victory.
Ballina 16 (Colman, Lee tries; McClintock four goals) defeated Bilambil 10 (Hensby, Smallman tries; Quinn one goal)
TWEED SEAGULLS CAP OFF DREAM RETURN
The Tweed Seagulls capped off a dream return to the NRRRL after taking out the league tag and reserve grade grand finals in a bumper finish to the season.
With the club playing in the competition for the first time in close to two decades, the Seagulls came from behind to knock over Marist Brothers 12-6 to kick off the day in league tag, while the reserve grade side also put on a comeback to defeat Byron Bay 30-18 in a highly entertaining clash.
“It was a really great day,” said president Brian Cox, who noted that two grand final victories was above and beyond his expectations after helping to re-form the club less than 12 months ago.
“We hoped that we were gonna make the finals and then anything can happen. But to win all 18 games (in reserve grade) and to have the league tag girls to win is outstanding.”
Indeed, the 12-point win over the Red Devils capped off a perfect season for the reserve grade side.
Consisting of a large chunk of local juniors who returned to the club to play with their mates, the team went through the campaign undefeated in what was a fairytale story for the club.
“It was great to see all the Seagulls juniors come back and play together,” said Cox. “A lot of them are mates since they were kids, so I think that was a big reason why they played so well together.”
Meanwhile the victory in league tag was perhaps even more remarkable, especially considering that the side was thrown together at the last minute to try and ensure that the club had enough teams to register with the division.
“They had to form to make sure we had a club at the start of the year with the three teams in,” said Cox.
“We looked like not having three at one stage and we really had to fight to get the girls in to make the third team.”
He added: “It’s great, considering they put the team together and range from 16 to 44. They had a wide spread but they were outstanding as well.”
And while there were premierships on the field, Cox said grand final day also showed just how successful the club’s return to the NRRRL had been off it.
“We were surprised how much of the crowd actually got behind us,” he said. “But to see them turn up, I thought that it was much more popular than everyone thought it was going to be.
“A lot of people didn’t think the Seagulls would have a lot of supporters originally and were wondering how we’d fare at the end and who would support us. But the amount that came on at the end was ridiculous. It was outstanding.”
That was best witnessed at the full-time whistle in reserve grade, when scores of fans rushed onto the field to celebrate with the victorious players.
“You could see that by how many people ran on the field. It was also amazing how many people from other clubs were supporting us in the end,” Cox said.
“It was just amazing to see how many were there cheering for them at the end.”
And while the 2024 season was a roaring success, the club is confident of strengthening further in 2025, when it plans to introduce an A-grade team in the competition.
“The amount of interest for next year is ridiculous. People reckon they’re coming to play, happy that we’re going to A-grade and everything,” said Cox.
“A couple of brothers of players who are already there have been talking about it. It’s great to hear, but I’ll wait until they sign before I believe it.”
Regardless of how many grand final day fans turn out in the black and white next year, it seems the club’s future is in good hands, with the Seagulls under-14 and under-15 boys teams, as well as the under-17s girls tackle side, taking out junior premierships over the weekend.
“It was good to see the older age groups there go well and give us something for the future,” said Cox.
“There was a lot of support out of that as well, a lot of them turned up on Sunday.”
BYRON SNAPS 47-YEAR DROUGHT WITH ‘MIRACLE’ COMEBACK
Byron Bay has broken a 47-year drought in the under-18s competition in the most extraordinary of circumstances, scoring four tries in the final seven minutes to run down Bilambil 36-28 in a gripping grand final.
Trailing by 14 points and with the game looking out of reach, the Red Devils put on a quite brilliant display of clutch football to surge past the Jets and claim the club’s first premiership in the age group since 1977.
“It was a bit of a nailbiter,” said Bilambil coach Jason McCombie.
“It was really hard to work out what to do, that was the biggest challenge. We basically ended up with not a very normal team on the field. We just had most of the really attacking players on the field at the end. That second half was just going so fast and it felt like we were going to run out of time,” he added.
“You can’t really do much as a coach because they’ve got to make those plays under pressure. It’s good that they’re confident enough to throw the ball around and go for it.”
In what was a stunning comeback that needed to be seen to be believed, Byron Bay was trailing 28-14 late in the game after having conceded three of the last four tries when it turned the game on its head.
With seven minutes to go the Red Devils gave themselves a fighting chance when winger Elliott Farrell went over to make it 28-20.
And while the team had cut the deficit to eight, the BarTV Sports commentator summed up the view of most footy fans by declaring, “We’re heading into miracle territory here for Byron Bay.”
However a Bilambil knock-on deep in it end left the door slightly ajar for the Red Devils, who duly spread the ball left again straight from the scrum for Farrell to acrobatically claim a quick-fire double. Finn Spencer then slotted the conversion from the sideline to make it 28-26 with less than two minutes remaining.
From here, Byron put on a remarkable passage of free-flowing footy to surge into the lead. Starting well in their own half, the team put the ball through the hands and once again made a break down the left through Farrell, who then fired the ball back on the inside for fullback Kai Saric to incredibly score the team’s third try in the blink of an eye and put the team ahead with just seconds to go.
Now it was Bilambil who was desperate, and when the Jets’ put the kick-off out on the full it allowed the Red Devils to march up field again and put the cherry on top with another try, kicking off hearty celebrations from the team.
“They were definitely excited,” said McCombie. “I also think it was a bit of a reflection of how they play for each other in how they just didn’t give up.”
Indeed, with a core group of the team having played juniors together as far back as the under-13s, the players already had a long history of lining up alongside one another.
“They’ve won that Group 18 comp coming through every year except for the Covid year when we didn’t have a final. They’re all mates so they have a lot of connection, so that was really what brought it home,” said McCombie.
“It meant a lot to the boys because this (NRRRL) was the first proper big comp with 13 teams. They’ve gone through each year and there have been some very close grand finals and one or two that went our way heavily. But they’re confident that they can win and I think that’s what got them home in that last seven or eight minutes.”
It was an apt finish to what had been a truly pulsating game of football that featured just about everything: from stunning tries, to huge swings in momentum, a send-off and then a fairytale comeback.
In fact, for a long time it looked like Bilambil was about to pull off a miracle win against the odds.
Leading 12-10 at halftime, the Jets were reduced to 12 after talented playmaker Harry Chadburn was sent off for tackling Byron’s Kai Saric in mid-air, causing the Red Devils’ fullback to flip onto his neck in an extremely dangerous incident.
Despite being a man down, Bilambil remarkably scored three of the next four tries, largely thanks to the brilliance of centre Preston Smallwood and hooker Ayden Byrnes, to race out to a 28-14 lead.
The Jets looked like they were about to pull off a famous win before Byron flipped the script once again with a crazy run at the death that capped off a dramatic game of football.
“We didn’t warm up real well but then we went out there and scored two tries straight away, which I thought was a bit odd,” said McCombie.
“Then when they got the fella sent off they scored two tries straight after. They really lifted and I think at one stage they had six sets in a row from our penalties,” he added.
“We dug a big hole. I always thought that our team would be fitter, we train quite hard, but the tries at the end were pretty crazy.”
NORTHERN UNITED GO BACK TO BACK
Northern United has continued its dominance of the women’s tackle competition after defeating Bilambil 46-18 in the grand final to defend its title from last year.
Trailing 12-10 at the break, the Dirawongs blew the Jets out of the park in the second half, piling on an incredible seven tries to one to storm home and back up the inaugural women’s tackle premiership won in 2023.
“It’s amazing to go back to back with the girls – it’s a bit emotional,” said Northern United playmaker Karri Williams.
“Bilambil came out firing, it was pretty hard but we knew we had to get the job done and that this was probably going to be the last time that we’d all play together, so the energy of that and our supporters really helped us to push through.”
Indeed, despite running away with the game in the second half, Northern United found itself behind at halftime as the Jets ran in three tries to two to take a two-point lead into the sheds.
And while the first 30 minutes were an arm-wrestle, it was all one-way traffic after the restart as the Dirawongs played some stunning football to take the game away from their rivals.
Back-rower and NRRRL Player of the Year Jadha King scored a hat-trick in her personal haul of 22 points while Taharni Roberts and Natalia Hickling both bagged doubled as the team ran in nine tries to four.
“We knew had to complete our sets and get down there and back it up,” said Williams. “We also knew we had a title to defend.”
Indeed, the victory ensures that Northern United remains the only team to have won the women’s tackle premiership over the course of the two years that it has been running.
And while enjoying the victory, Williams paid tribute to all the teams and players who took part.
“All the women that come together in this Group to play the game are setting the standard for women in league in this area, but it’s definitely good to get the win and go back to back with the girls.”
Northern United 46 defeated Bilambil 18
GRAND FINAL RESULTS
First grade: Ballina 16-10 Bilambil
Reserve grade: Tweed Seagulls 30-18 Byron Bay
Under-18s: Byron Bay 36-28 Bilambil
Women’s tackle: Northern United 46-18 Bilambil
League tag: Tweed Seagulls 12-6 Marist Brothers
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