Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League: Wrap, results, standouts from King’s Birthday catch-up games
A couple of star players have well and truly shown their worth with some quite remarkable performances that almost need to be seen to be believed.
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It might be the King’s Birthday long weekend but there’s still plenty of local footy on show as a host of teams play catch-ups games over the next few days.
In order to make up for the rain-affected fixtures, clubs like Ballina and Evans Head will squeeze two games into the period, while the likes of Mullumbimby, Kyogle, Northern United, Cudgen, Bilambil and Lower Clarence will all take to the field.
The action kicked off with two Thursday night clashes between Mullumbimby and Evans Head at Les Donnelly Field and Ballina and Kyogle at Kingsford Smith Park, with Northern United hosting Cudgen and Bilambil welcoming the Magpies over the course of the weekend.
Catch up with some of the biggest talking points and a wrap of the action below.
BALLINA THE BIG WINNERS
Ballina has emerged as the big winners from the long weekend catch-up games with two wins in six days.
Kicking off with a 48-6 win over Kyogle at home on Thursday night, the Seagulls then backed it up with an impressive 30-10 victory over Evans Head at Stan Payne Oval on Tuesday evening.
The two wins has taken the team up to third, just one point behind leaders Byron Bay, with a record of six wins and one loss from its seven games.
EVANS GOING UNDER THE RADAR
They have might gone down to Ballina on Tuesday night, but Evans Head is also travelling well in fifth place on the ladder after picking up one win over the long weekend.
The Bombers were impressive in a hard-fought 16-12 victory over Mullumbimby last Thursday night to keep in touch with the competition frontrunners.
With four wins and two losses from the team’s six games, Evans is equal with last year’s premiers Cudgen and just three points behind the ladder-leading Red Devils. Along the way they have knocked off heavyweights Bilambil (22-12) and have accounted for Lower Clarence (36-12), Tweed Coast (20-10) and Mullumbimby (16-12), with the team’s two losses coming at the hands of Murwillumbah and Ballina.
Given that the team had only played four games coming into the long weekend period, there was a sense among some footy fans that the Bombers had somewhat snuck under the radar.
“I think that’s exactly it. We were sitting down the ladder just through the lack of games,” said Evans Head football manager Nathan Williams. “So I think we have snuck under the radar but we’ve still got a lot of work to do.”
Indeed, the Bombers take on Casino, Marist Brothers and Kyogle – teams all below them on the ladder – in a crucial three-week stretch that could well set up the team’s season. If they have a successful next couple of weeks, the Bombers could put some distance between them and their rivals and solidify their spot in the NRRRL top six.
ZIEBELL MASTERCLASS STUNS CONTENDERS
Cudgen was another one of the big winners over the weekend with a stunning 44-4 victory over an understrength Northern United at Crozier Field.
The star of the show was undoubtedly Caleb Ziebell, who remarkably set-up six tries as the Hornets blew away the Dirawongs in the second half to surge into fourth place on the ladder.
The size of a prop with the ball skills of a playmaker, Ziebell has been playing in the five-eighth role for Cudgen and combined his strengths for the opening try when he charged at the line and then got a clever offload away for winger Alex Williams to score the game’s first try.
The approach was proving to be incredibly damaging as Ziebell offloads remarkably led to his team’s first three tries.
He then made a powerful 70m break up field before passing off to Chaz Bond to score the team’s fourth, before turning to the boot to set up another two late in the match to cap off a quite remarkable performance.
NO SMALL FEAT
Ziebell isn’t the only Tweed star lighting up the competition, with Bilambil’s Reiven Smallman continuing his scintillating form as the Jets hammered Lower Clarence 60-20 on Sunday.
The winger crossed for an incredible four tries and helped set up two more in a destructive attacking display.
A powerful runner with speed to burn, the winger has proven to be incredibly dangerous from anywhere on the field and had a hand in four long-range tries against the Magpies.
Highlight came midway through the second half when Smallman showed all his pace and footwork with a length-of-the-field try. Picking up a Lower kick just five metres out from his own line, he stepped past the oncoming defenders before burning his way down the left-hand touchline to plant the ball down.
The four-try haul moves Smallman well clear in the leading tryscorers’ race with an incredible 14 from his five games, five clear of Marist Brothers’ Mitchell Krause and Evans Head’s Torben Milton.
CATCH-UP WEEKEND WRAP
It was a big long weekend of action in the NRRRL, with eight clubs involved with catch-up games over the period.
Catch up with a wrap of the action below.
BALLINA COMPLETE DOUBLE SHOT
Ballina has capped off a long weekend double-header in style with a 30-10 victory over Evans Head at Stan Payne Oval.
Another excellent performance from halfback Kel Sheather and a double to young prop Will Bates helped the Seagulls to its second win in six days over the break to jump up into third place on the NRRRL ladder.
With both teams having played a catch-up game on Thursday, the Seagulls – who knocked over Kyogle 48-6 – were the sharper of the two sides out of the blocks, with hooker Caleb Kinna taking advantage of some sloppy defensive work at marker to barge over from close range for the first try of the night after six minutes.
A penalty helped the Seagulls up field in the next set before back-rower Carl Lolohea crashed over on the right edge to put his side up 10-0 after 11 minutes.
Despite being stunned by the Ballina burst, Evans Head started the throw the ball around and had success with Zacharia Roberts making a break up field. A few plays later the Bombers then put on a lovely shape to the left, with a Michael Roberts cut-out ball putting his namesake over in the corner untouched in the 16th minute.
The game was going from end to end as both teams looked to spread the footy around, and when Sheather got a nice offload away to Billy Dwane, the lock darted through to put the Seagulls up 16-4 midway through the half.
At times Ballina threatened to really pull away but the Bombers’ defence held firm. A penalty goal to the home side on the stroke of halftime then brought the scoreline back to 16-6 at the break.
The game moved into a grind in the early part of the second half as the teams battled it out for field position. However the fatigue of playing their second game in quick succession seemed to take its toll at times, with Seagulls prop Will Bates bursting through some sloppy goal line defence to give Ballina a 22-6 lead 12 minutes into the half.
Despite going further behind, Evans looked dangerous when they shifted the ball but execution let them down at times. Midway through the half a nice spread put Bombers winger Brandon Anderson into space, however his kick over the top went out on the full.
Things were getting testy in the middle and Ballina skipper Anthony Colman was sent to the sin bin midway through the half for dissent.
It was also getting emotional off the pitch, with two spectators sent from the ground for abusing a touch judge.
Ballina was well ahead but one of the team’s stars put the icing on the cake 10 minutes from time.
Sheather, who has been a matchwinner for Ballina in recent weeks, once again showed how valuable he is with a wonderful stepping run to stick his nose through a hole before offloading for Bates to score his second and put Ballina up 28-6.
Brody Waters then went over for a consolation for Evans Head before a Sheather penalty goal at the death finished off the match.
The victory pushes Ballina into third place on the ladder, just one point behind leaders Byron Bay, while Evans Head remains in fifth with a record of four wins and two losses.
Ballina 30 (Bates 2, Kinna, Lolohea, Dwane tries; Lofts 2, Sheather 2, Kinna goals) defeated Evans Head 10 (Z Roberts, Waters tries; M Roberts two goals)
BILAMBIL PILE ON PAIN AGAINST LOWER
Bilambil has continued its scintillating attacking form with a big 60-20 victory over Lower Clarence at the Bilambil East Sports Field.
Winger Reiven Smallman continued his incredible tryscoring run with another four and back-rower Kalani Hensby claimed a hat-trick as the Jets piled on 11 tries to blow the Magpies away.
Bilambil’s 60 points is the equal highest scored by any team in one game so far this season, with the display continuing the team’s incredible form with the ball in hand that has seen it score 228 points in its last five games, at an average of 45 per game.
The scoring started in just the sixth minute when Smallman put his left wing partner Blake Graham into space. The centre then put the ball on the toe for his winger to race through to score the game’s opener.
Lower must have had a sense of deja vu in the very next set when the Jets once again broke down the left-wing, with Smallman this time squaring the ball to Harry Fitzhugh on the inside for the team’s second to go 12-0 up.
Smallman couldn’t stay out of the action, with the winger catching a cross field kick from Fitzhugh before showing good awareness to pass to Graham on the inside for another try on 17 minutes, before a nice offload from Jacob Hind put Hensby over on the left edge to put the team up 24-0 after 30 minutes.
It had been a tough opening half an hour for Lower but the Magpies got on the board after 35 minutes when a deflected kick from Vincent Williams landed nicely for teammate Callan Hollis to score.
However that was just a brief reprieve as Chanse Perham scored late in the half to make things 28-6 at the break.
Unfortunately for the visitors the halftime break didn’t change things as Bilambil made a break down the left once again in the first set of the half to put Smallman over less than one minute after the restart.
A penalty just after the kick-off sent the Jets up field again, with Hensby slicing through for his second, before Tom Rowles put Alex Fitzhugh through a gap for the team’s third try inside eight and a half minutes to extend the scoreline out to 44-6.
In a sign of the domination, it took more than 11 minutes for Lower to simply get its hands on the footy in the second half. But when they did the Magpies made it count, with a nice spread to the left putting the team over in the corner for its second on 53 minutes.
However the visitors had no answer for Reiven, who showed just how quick he is by going 70m to do it all himself shortly after.
And while Lower crossed for two more tries in the final 20 minutes, Smallman capped off the rout with his fourth late in the game to put an exclamation mark on the big win.
Bilambil 60 (Smallman 4, Hensby 3, H Fitzhugh, A Fitzhugh, Graham, Perham tries; A Fitzhugh eight goals) defeated Lower Clarence 20
CUDGEN MAKES STATEMENT WITH NTH UTD ROUT
Cudgen has made a huge statement to the rest of the competition after recording an impressive 44-4 thumping over heavyweight side Northern United at Crozier Field.
In what was the team’s best performance since taking out last year’s grand final, the Hornets piled on nine tries to one to easily wipe away the understrength Dirawongs, who were missing key ex-NRL recruits James and Tyrone Roberts.
Winger Alec Williams claimed a hat-trick and his left-side centre Joel Hare claimed a double as five-eighth Caleb Ziebell put on a masterclass to help Cudgen surge into third spot on the ladder.
Coming off a last-start loss to Marist Brothers, the Hornets started brightly and crossed after seven minutes when a powerful charge and offload from Ziebell put Williams over.
Ziebell was at it again on 23 minutes when another nice offload put Jett Forbes into half a yard of space to scoot through for the team’s second to go 10-0 up.
Northern United had struggled in the early exchanges and the team turned to one of its star players to get it on the board late in the half, with Hezekiah McKenzie going on a weaving run to plant the ball down in the corner to make it 10-4 at the break.
The Dirawongs went into halftime still in the game, however the proposition became much more difficult just a couple of minutes after the restart when yet another Ziebell offload put Williams over in the corner for his second.
From here it was one-way traffic. A great break down the left edge from that man Ziebell set Chaz Bond up for a try before a brilliant kick from an unlikely source – forward Zac Blattner – put Hare over to stretch the scoreline out to 26-4 with 20 minutes to play.
The Hornets really ran riot in the final quarter, piling on another four tries – including two from the boot of Ziebell – to cap off a brilliant victory.
The win moves Cudgen above Northern United into fourth place on the ladder with a record of four wins and two losses, while the Dirawongs now sit in seventh with what was their third loss of the campaign.
Cudgen 44 (Williams 3, Hare 2, Forbes 2, Bond Spencer tries; Moase four goals) defeated Northern United 4 (McKenzie try)
EVANS HEAD EDGES OUT 12-MAN MULLUM
Evans Head has moved into fourth place on the ladder following a 16-12 victory over a 12-man Mullumbimby at Les Donnelly Field.
A couple of late tries ultimately proved the difference for the Bombers in the physical and at times fiery clash, which saw the Giants play most of the game without prop Jyde Dwyer who was sent off late in the first half.
The controversial decision to send Dwyer off for allegedly striking an Evans Head player during an altercation didn’t take away from what was an intense and entertaining spectacle between the two sides in trying conditions, with the game going down to the final play.
“Intensity is probably the main thing in the game. With the night-time conditions it was a bit greasy and both sides had a bit of dropped ball,” said Evans Head football manager Nathan Williams.
“We probably weren’t that happy with our ball control but intensity-wise it was a pretty hard, physical game. One of those games where you’re happy to get the points and get out of there.”
The win was important for Evans Head, who jump up into fourth on the back of a record of four wins and one loss.
“This part of the season is crucial. Last year we lost a couple of these earlier sort of games and later on in the year you’re chasing points, so you need to be getting away with these ones to set yourself up,” said Williams. “It was a good one because it’s a bit of a hard road trip on a Thursday night,” he added. “We’re just happy to take the two and move on.”
On the other side, while disappointed with the result, Mullumbimby skipper Cody Nelson was pleased with his team’s effort.
“Other than the send-off, I thought the game was quite good,” he said. “Evans were on their game, they were directed around quite well and played some pretty nice structured footy but we definitely felt like we were in it.
“It takes a massive toll towards the end of the game when you’ve got to play a large majority of it with 12 men. But I was really happy with the boys for their effort, just the grit and determination we had. We weren’t super polished with what we put together, but it certainly makes a difference when you’re trying to do it with 12 people.”
Nelson was left frustrated by the call to send Dwyer off. The incident occurred late in the first half after Evans Head was penalised for a dangerous lifting tackle on Mullum’s George Orry.
In amongst some of the push and shove, Bombers’ halfback Roy Bell came into the play to push Dwyer, who retaliated with what looked like two forceful pushes of his own to the chest. While Bell was sent to the sin bin for his part, the touch judge’s intervention led the referee to make the surprise decision to send Dwyer off.
“The touch judge came in and said ‘I’m happy to write the report and I’ve seen a closed fist intentional punch,’” said Nelson.
“I don’t believe Jyde punched him. I was standing very close to it, I didn’t see him punch him. I’ve tried to watch the video again and I can’t see anywhere where he’s struck Roy (Bell).
“Roy came out of the altercation with no marks on him, not whingeing that he’d been punched or anything, so it just doesn’t make any sense to me how we lose a player when I still can’t see when a strike has taken place.”
The incident was a key moment in what was a physical if not polished clash at Les Donnelly Field.
The slippery conditions tested both teams out early on as they started the game with a string of errors.
Bombers’ winger Zacharia Roberts came closest to scoring in the early exchanges when he leapt high to take a cross field kick from Bell, only to be pushed into touch before he could plant the ball down.
Evans Head shaded the opening 20 in terms of possession and field position but couldn’t put the ball away thanks to a combination of good sliding defence and poor execution.
The greasy conditions continued to cause troubles for both sides and when Mullumbimby fullback Tyrone Harding fumbled a bouncing ball it gave Evans Head the opportunity to build repeat sets on the Giants’ line.
The pressure eventually paid off, with a spread to the right putting Torben Milton over in the 29th minute to put his side up 4-0.
A few minutes later the game changed as Dwyer was sent from the field.
Despite being a man down Mullumbimby was the next to strike, with some nice work from halfback Creedence Kelly Donovan and a lovely flick pass from Owen Brock putting centre Cody Nelson over in the corner to lock things up at 4-all at the break.
Just as in the first half, Evans Head started the brighter in the second and thought they were over in the 46th minute when winger Brandon Anderson put the ball down in the corner, only for play to be called back for a forward pass.
More errors continued to creep into the game as both sides struggled with the wet ball.
There was also plenty of feeling in the contest as both teams muscled up with some big hits in defence. Some push and shove broke out between the teams again, with Bombers fullback Michael Roberts penalised in possession after reacting to a tackle.
Then when Evans Head skipper Matthew Toole hit Orry with a high shot, Cooper Nelson slotted a penalty goal to put Mullum up 6-4 with 25 minutes to play.
The game was on a knife’s edge and a Giants’ error in their own half gave the Bombers a golden opportunity to hit back. Some nice second-phase play created an overlap for Milton to score his second of the game on the left edge. Roberts slotted the conversion from out wide to put Evans up 10-6 with just under 20 remaining.
The Bombers enjoyed some success throwing the ball around and they made their numerical advantage pay once again eight minutes from time when a shift to the right put Brandon Anderson over in the corner. Roberts once again slotted the conversion from the sideline to make it 16-6.
Just when the game looked gone, a few offloads and a nice flick pass from Parata put Cooper Nelson over in the corner for Mullumbimby, with the winger then draining the conversion from the sideline himself to once again make it a four-point ball game with just a couple of minutes to play.
There was more late drama as the home side pushed for a late winner, with Evans Head fullback Roberts knocking on an innocuous-looking kick in the very next set to give the Giants a scrum 15m out from their opponents’ line.
With the clock ticking down Bombers hooker Toole was sent to the sin bin for a ruck infringement to once again make it 12 on 12 for the very last play of the match. As the siren sounded the Giants shifted the ball to the left with one last hope of snatching a result, but the Bombers’ defence held firm to secure the tight win.
The victory moves Evans Head into fourth place on the ladder with an impressive record of four wins and one loss, while Mullumbimby remain in ninth.
Evans Head 16 (Milton 2, Anderson tries; Roberts two goals) defeated Mullumbimby 12 (Cody Nelson, Cooper Nelson tries; Cooper Nelson two goals)
BALLINA BOUNCES BACK IN KYOGLE THRASHING
Ballina has bounced back from its first loss of the season in style with a 48-6 thumping of Kyogle at Kingsford Smith Park.
Coming off a tough 30-12 loss to Northern United last weekend, the Seagulls had eight different tryscorers as the side ran riot in the first half against the Turkeys before closing out what was the equal-biggest win of the competition so far this season.
The rout started in the ninth minute when five-eighth Jared Lofts took on the line and went straight through for the first of the match.
A penalty in the next set sent Ballina up field again, with Carl Lolohea powering his way over to make it 12-0 in the blink of an eye.
The Seagulls kept applying the pressure and Kel Sheather once again showed how dangerous his running game is by stepping and weaving his way through for the team’s third try on 20 minutes, before Liam Green made it 24-0 shortly after.
Ballina was doing a good job keeping up with the clock and when Anthony Colman went through some very sloppy defence from an attacking scrum, the home side was up 30-0 after 29 minutes.
They weren’t done there, with Jordan Lee getting on the end of a Sheather grubber on the stroke of halftime to give the Seagulls a 36-0 lead at the break in what was a ruthless half of football in wet conditions.
The second half kicked off in a similar manner as Damian Sironen charged over from close range four minutes after the restart.
It had been a very tough night for Kyogle but the team managed to stem the bleeding with some desperate last-ditch defence and started to throw the ball around themselves as the half went on.
The team was rewarded in the 63rd minute when Damian Wilson crashed through for a try to finally get his team on the board.
But Ballina was at it again just a couple of minutes later when Caleb Kinna burrowed over from dummy-half to cap off the big win.
The victory pushed Ballina back up into third place with five wins and one loss from its six games, while Kyogle’s tough start to the season continued as the side still searches for its first win of the campaign.
Ballina 48 (Lofts, Lolohea, Sheather, Green, Colman, Lee, Sironen, Kinna tries; Lofts eight goals) defeated Kyogle 6 (Wilson try; Hardy one goal)
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