Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League: Round 10 talking points, full wrap, results, standouts
There were statement wins, pieces of individual brilliance and surprise results that will have major finals implications. See the full weekend talking points from round 10 of the NRRRL.
Local Sport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Sport. Followed categories will be added to My News.
We saw a bit of everything during round 10 of the NRRRL with statement wins, individual brilliance and some surprise results.
Catch up on all the latest with our talking points from the weekend:
EVANS STARTING TO CLICK
Evans Head produced one of its most impressive performances of the year with a 44-12 thumping of Casino at Stan Payne Oval.
The win keeps the Bombers in fifth place on the ladder, just two points off leaders Ballina, with the team holding the impressive record of five wins and two losses so far in 2024.
And while the team has been travelling well, the win over the Cougars was perhaps a sign that the team has turned a corner with the ball in hand.
For much of the season the Bombers’ pack of has been the bedrock of its success, with the forwards winning the battle in the middle as the side outlasted its opponents.
However the shackles were well and truly released against Casino as the team ran in nine tries on the back of some excellent footy.
Both wingers Zacharia Roberts and Brandon Anderson bagged hat-tricks, with the Bombers most notably going from the left hand touchline all the way to the right with a sweeping move for one of Anderson’s tries.
PERRY INSPIRES BALLINA VICTORY
Perhaps more than anybody, Ballina has Jess Perry to thank for its place on top of the ladder after the halfback put in a masterful performance in the team’s 36-22 victory over Bilambil in a blockbuster clash at Kingsford Smith Park.
Just a few games back after coming out of retirement earlier in the season, the halfback scored two tries, helped set another and pulled off a string of big plays as the Seagulls overcame a Bilambil comeback to run down the Jets for the side’s seventh win from eight games this year.
Perry’s big afternoon started in just the third minute when he came across like a cannon ball to slam Jets’ danger man Reiven Smallman into touch with a brilliant cover tackle just as the Bilambil winger looked to scoot up the touchline.
Shortly after he showed great judgment to leap high and catch his own bomb, which led to a try to Jordan Lee, before burrowing over from dummy-half late in the first half to give the Seagulls the lead once again.
He stepped up again in the second half when the game was in the balance. With his team trailing 22-18, Perry put in a grubber that rebounded off the post before diving over to once again big Ballina the lead and help trigger a late triple shot to get the points.
TWEED COAST EARN THEIR REWARDS
It would have been a happy road trip back to Cabarita on Sunday after Tweed Coast recorded its first win of the season with a 52-6 thumping of Lower Clarence in Yamba.
It was a well-deserved win from the Raiders, who have been competitive this season despite their lowly ladder position.
Although they came into the game without a win in since round 15 last year, the team has been well in the contest for all of its games so far.
They have lost by margins of two points (Cudgen), six (Casino) and 10 (Marist Brothers and Evans Head) and famously threw away a 14-point lead late in their last match with Murwillumbah in what was one of the best comebacks in recent memory.
The side also the first to take points from Byron Bay with a hard-fought 12-all draw back in round seven.
So when the Raiders ran in nine tries to hammer the Magpies, there was a sense that the team had deserved it.
In fact, despite holding a record of five wins, one draw and just one win so far in 2024, Tweed Coast remarkably has a positive points difference of four, which should give the team confident heading into the back half of the season.
YOUNG HORNETS HITTING THEIR STRAPS
Things are also looking bright up at Kingscliff after Cudgen romped home to its second straight thumping with a 48-10 victory over Kyogle at Ned Byrne Oval.
This comes after the team piled on nine tries against Northern United in its 44-4 rout during the King’s birthday long weekend.
The team is now sitting in fourth place on the ladder, just two points behind Ballina with a record of five wins and two losses.
It is a fantastic achievement from the Hornets, who have a vastly different side to last year’s grand final-winning team.
Just six from September’s premiership-winning 17 lined up in green and gold for the weekend’s win over the Turkeys, with many of the club’s young guns and reserve graders doing a stellar job in stepping up to A-grade.
GENERATIONS COLLIDE WITH MULLUM’S NELSON CONNECTION
There was a familiar name on the scoresheet during Mullumbimby’s stunning 34-26 victory over Northern United, with the team getting plenty of joy down the right win with a family connection that has deep roots in the club.
Lining up at centre, former Parramatta and Gold Coast player Cody Nelson opened the scoring for the Giants and kicked a goal from the sideline. Meanwhile playing alongside the 35-year-old was his 18-year-old nephew Cooper Nelson on the wing.
The young gun bagged two tries and kicked two goals, with his uncle handing off the final pass for both tries – including the final four-pointer to seal the thrilling win.
“In all honestly, he’s probably the only reason I’m still running around at the moment,” said Cody. “He gives me a bit of a lift-off to keep wanting to play footy, keep digging in and trying.
“So I’m really, really enjoying it and I think he’s starting to reap the benefits of that too. He’s starting to play to some play good footy after a couple of years where he’s had some long injuries.”
They aren’t the only Nelsons involved with the club. Cooper’s father Chase is a former Mullum A-grader and is currently the team’s trainer, while his mother Zoe plays in the league tag side.
Footy fans should also keep an eye out for Cooper’s 16-year-old brother, Ryder Nelson, in the years to come, with the outside back impressing for the Northern Rivers Titans in the Andrew Johns Cup earlier this year.
RAMS SHOWING PLENTY OF FLAIR
It’s not the first time it has been noted in season 2024, but Marist Brothers certainly entertained the crowd at Red Devil Park with some excellent attacking football during the team’s very impressive 24-16 win over Byron Bay.
After scooting out to a 14-0 halftime lead, the Rams surged further ahead midway through the second half with a great example of eyes-up footy.
Sensing space out wide on the last, Marist’s halves Shallin Fuller and Jye Davis took on the line and fired the ball out to centre Mitchell Krause, who then showed great skill and intuition to chip the ball over Byron winger Riley Baharov before regathering and stepping past the fullback to score.
Almost better than the try, Krause celebrated with one of the wonkiest cartwheels seen in the Northern Rivers.
The Rams then added to their highlights reel late in the game when Fuller showed incredible control with a deft grubber in behind the defensive line before picking up the ball ahead of the oncoming defender and passing it on to Krause to complete his hat-trick with another brilliant try.
TRYSCORERS’ RACE HEATS UP
Speaking of Krause, the Rams’ skipper’s efforts have breathed life back into the leading tryscorers’ race after round 10.
With one try in what was remarkably a comparatively quiet weekend for his standards, Bilambil’s Reiven Small remains on top with 15 tries, however Krause’s hat-trick has brought him back within touching distance with 11.
Elsewhere, Northern United’s Hezekiah McKenzie bagged a double to move to 10 to sit equal with Evans Head’s Torben Milton, who crossed for one in the Bombers’ big win over Casino.
ROUND 10 WRAP
A couple of teams have made serious statements to the competition after a thrilling round 10 in the NRRRL.
After two months alone at the top, one team has been dethroned from first place on the ladder, while at the other end another has broken through for its first win of the season.
Elsewhere, two big guns clashed in a heavyweight blockbuster, while another two sides went blow for blow in a contender for game of the season.
Catch up with a wrap of the action below.
BALLINA GO TOP WITH STATEMENT WIN
Ballina has surged into first place on the ladder after an impressive 36-22 victory over Bilambil at Kingsford Smith Park.
Halfback Jess Perry put on a masterclass for the Seagulls, scoring two tries and helping to set up another as the home side crossed three times in the final 20 minutes to run the Jets down and claim the win.
While both teams came into the contest equal on points in second and third on the ladder, Bilambil was arguably the form team of the competition, having piled on 228 points in its last five games. In contrast, while the Seagulls had also only lost one game this year, the team had won three of its last five by six points or less.
And with his team firing, Jets winger Reiven Smallman was arguably the form player of the NRRRL, crossing for an incredible 14 tries in five games.
The winger got a taste of the action early when he sought to shoot down the line but was dragged into touch by his opposite number Fred Pitt.
It was an early statement from Ballina, who just one minute later again snuffed out any danger posed by Smallman when Perry came across in cover defence to slam the Bilambil speedster into touch.
The tackle gave the Seagulls great field position and they duly capitalised when skipper Anthony Colman crashed over for the first try of the game in the fifth minute.
Ballina had come out of the blocks firing and struck again in the very next set on the back of another huge play from Perry.
Kicking on the last, the halfback put up a towering midfield bomb and then timed his leap to
perfection to outjump Bilambil’s Harry Fitzhugh and catch the ball. He then managed to get an offload away to Hamish McClintock, who put in a perfectly weighted grubber for Jordan Lee to race through and score to put the side up 10-0 after eight minutes.
Bilambil had barely had any ball in the opening stages but when they did they made it count, with fullback Chanse Perham shrugging off a couple of defenders to go over on the right edge to make it 10-6.
Then on 21 minutes the match took a turn. With a scrum 10m out from its own line Ballina was suddenly penalised and lock Michael Dwane sent to the sin bin for what appeared to be dissent.
With a fresh set on the Ballina line, Bilambil needed just two plays to strike, with a nice spread to the left putting Smallman over for his 15th try of the season to level things up at 10-all.
Just when it looked like things were going Bilambil’s way, the Jets were penalised directly from the kick-off for obstruction, gifting the home side excellent field position.
Perry had been the game’s outstanding player in the early stages and he came up with another big play in the following set, burrowing over from dummy-half to once again put the Seagulls up by six.
Ballina did incredibly well not to concede while Dwane was off the field and the team went further ahead with a penalty goal to take an 18-10 lead into the break.
The Jets had been second best in the opening half but they came out of the sheds with a bang, with Harry Fitzhugh putting Caleb Nicholls into space with a nice cut-out ball, before the centre repaid the favour by flick-passing back to Fitzhugh to score under the sticks in just the second minute of the half to cut the lead to two points.
Bilambil had a spring in its step and the team almost scored in the next set, only for Smallman to be taken into touch by Ballina’s Lachlan Offley.
While Perry had starred in the first half, Fitzhugh was putting his mark on the second with another crucial play. Making a break, the halfback then fired a lovely cut-out ball over to Tyson Donnelly, who then put the ball through the hands for Fitzhugh’s brother and halves partner Alex Fitzhugh to score under the sticks and take a 22-18 lead.
While Fitzhugh’s brilliance had helped put Bilambil ahead, Perry hit back again for Ballina with another excellent solo effort.
With the Seagulls attacking Bilambil’s line, the playmaker put a grubber in behind the Jets’ defensive line that bounced off the post and back into his hands to put his side up 24-22 with 15 minutes to go.
Perry simply couldn’t stay out of the action and when he was hit late after kicking the ball in the very next set, Ballina was back on the attack again.
A penalty and then a Bilambil knock-on in trying to regather a grubber gave Ballina three sets in a row on the Jets’ line. The pressure finally paid off, with prop Reece Summer charging over from close range to make it 30-22 with eight minutes to go.
Bilambil was pushing hard to get themselves back in the game and after his team conceded three penalties in 60 seconds, Summer was sent to the sin bin to leave Ballina with 12 for the final three minutes.
Kalani Hensby put the ball down a couple of plays later but the play was called back for obstruction.
The Seagulls then rubbed salt into the wound when Michael Dwane burrowed over from dummy- half at the death to cap off the impressive win.
The victory sees Ballina jump to the top of the table on 14 points, while Bilambil’s five-game winning streak comes to an end with the team dropping down to third.
Ballina 36 (Perry 2, Colman, Lee, Summer, Dwane tries; McClintock six goals) defeated Bilambil 22 (Perham, Smallman, H Fitzhugh, A Fitzhugh tries; three goals)
RAZZLE DAZZLE RAMS KNOCK BYRON OFF PERCH
Marist Brothers have picked up a huge scalp by defeating ladder leaders Byron Bay 24-16 at Red Devil Park.
Rams skipper Mitchell Krause scored a hat-trick as the Lismore side played some scintillating footy to inflict the first loss of the season on the Byron side.
Taking on the previously unbeaten Red Devils, Marist Brothers came out of the sheds firing, with Paul O’Neill forcing an error as Byron worked its way out from its own end. The Rams then picked up the loose ball and put it through the hands for winger Brendan Bainda to open scoring in the eighth minute.
The visitors were at it again midway through the half when a nice interchange of passing gave centre Henry Lee some space to burrow over to make it 10-0.
Then on the half-hour mark Krause, last year’s leading tryscorer in the NRRRL, did it all himself.
Picking up the ball from dummy-half, he brushed off one defender and outmuscled three others to plant the ball down for the Rams’ third try to give his side a 14-0 lead at the break.
Marist Brothers had been excellent in the first half and they kept the momentum going in the
second with a brilliant team try.
Deciding to run it on the last, halves Shallin Fuller and Jye Davis put the ball through the hands for Krause, who then chipped it over the top of Byron winger Riley Baharov before regathering to score an excellent try. The centre then celebrated his effort with a particularly wonky-looking cartwheel as his team went 20-0 ahead on 53 minutes.
It had been a tough afternoon for the Red Devils who finally got on the board on the hour mark when fullback Brett Kelly went over.
The Rams had been playing some attractive football all afternoon and added to their highlights reel with another brilliant try 12 minutes from time. Spreading the ball to the left, Fuller received it three wide from the ruck and then deftly put the ball on his toe to get in behind the defensive line. With the fullback racing up, he regathered the ball and fired it over to Krause over for the skipper’s hat-trick to spark fierce celebrations from the Rams players.
And while Byron scored two late tries they were merely consolation efforts as the Rams took the points back to Lismore with an impressive victory.
Marist Brothers 24 (Krause 3, Bainda, Lee tries; Fuller two goals) defeated Byron Bay 16 (Kelly 2, White tries; Rogers two goals)
MULLUM PREVAIL IN CHAOTIC THRILLER
Mullumbimby has kept in touch with the top six after a hugely entertaining 34-26 victory over
Northern United.
In a seesawing contest that featured huge swings in momentum, the Giants went from having an 18-point to lead being down by eight, before a late flurry of tries secured the team’s third win of the season.
Mullumbimby came out of the blocks firing, with a powerful charge from prop Jyde Dwyer sending the team up field. Fullback Tyrone Harding then came up with a lovely flick pass to put Cody Nelson over after just five minutes.
Harding was at it again in the next set, making a break and charging 70m up field to once again be knocking on the Dirawongs’ door. In the very next play the team then put the ball through the hands for Robbie Newton to crash over out wide.
It was a red-hot start from the Giants and two sets later they were in again when centre Cody Nelson put his nephew and wing partner Cooper Nelson into space for Mullum to go up 14-0 inside 12 minutes.
The Giants were having plenty of success down the right edge and after a smart blind side play from hooker Tommas Gibson and quick hands from Cody Nelson, Harding was over for the team’s fourth try to make it 18-0 after 16 minutes.
Remarkably, Mullumbimby had scored four tries in six sets in what was a dominant start to the game.
The Giants looked unstoppable, but an error from the kick-off gave Northern great field position, with Hezekiah McKenzie getting on the outside of his man to put Damon Coldwell over in the corner.
Errors starting creeping into Mullumbimby’s game as Northern United enjoyed more possession and good field position and eventually it paid off when McKenzie scored from his own grubber on the stroke of halftime to make it 18-10 at the break.
Despite their early domination, Mullum only went into the break eight points up, and this became two just six minutes after the restart when Alistair Faulkner got on the end of a Desmond Ferguson grubber to score in the corner to make it 18-16.
The Dirawongs then remarkably hit the lead 10 minutes later when Elijah Thaiday-Shinn muscled his way over to score out wide.
After Mullum had kicked off the game with four straight tries, Northern had hit back with four of its own. This became five on the hour mark when an offload from Theo Hippi helped the Dirawongs make a break from deep in their own end, with that man McKenzie backing up on the inside to make it 26-18.
The Giants had conceded 26-straight points and looked out for the count until Mullum hooker
Gibson burrowed his way over from dummy-half to make it 26-24 with 10 minutes to go.
It proved to be the start of a stirring comeback. In the next set Creedence Kelly Donovan put up a midfield bomb that landed in no man’s land. The halfback regathered the ball after a favourable bounce and then found Kye Cooper to go over in the corner for the team’s second try in two minutes to retake the lead. Cooper Nelson slotted the conversion from the sideline to put his side up 30-26.
The Giants then made it three tries in three sets when a break up field and spread to the right put the younger Nelson over in the corner to seal the two points in what was a quite remarkable match.
Mullumbimby 34 (Cooper Nelson 2, Cody Nelson, Newton, Harding, Gibson, Cooper tries) Cooper Nelson two goals, Cody Nelson one goal) defeated Northern United 26 (McKenzie 2, Coldwell, Faulkner, Thaiday-Shinn tries; McKenzie three goals)
TWEED COAST BREAKS DUCK IN STYLE
Tweed Coast has broken through for its first win of the season after a 52-6 thumping of Lower Clarence at the Yamba Sporting Complex.
Winger Jacob Ryan crossed for a hat-trick as the Raiders ran in nine tries to one to sing the team song for the first time in 2024.
Not only was it the first victory for 2024, but in hammering the Magpies Tweed Coast broke a 315-day drought stretching back to round 15 last year.
In what was a clash between two sides looking for their first victory of the year, the Raiders started brightly, with a nice cut-out ball from halfback Riley Lack putting Ryan over in just the third minute.
The Raiders then doubled their lead in the 18th minute when Zion Kamana went on a powerful run and threw the ball back for Dan Willoughby to dive over.
It was all one-way traffic and Tweed Coast stretched further ahead on 27 minutes as Darcy Earle scored to make it 16-0.
The Raiders’ left edge was causing Lower all sorts of problems, with Kamana once again breaking the line and then finding Owen Fredericks on the inside to score the team’s fourth try in half an hour for a 22-0 lead.
The Magpies had been blown away in the opening stages but they finally got on the board late in the half when Daniel Mitchell crashed over from close range to make it 22-6 at the break.
If the first half was one-sided then the second was simply one-way traffic, with the Raiders racing out of the blocks yet again. In the very first set of the second half fullback Juwaan Terekia burst through the Magpies’ line before the ball went through the hands for Ryan to score his second.
Tweed Coast was cutting holes through the Lower defence and the team went over shortly after through Cameron Pollard and Daniel Ross to surge ahead 40-6 with half an hour to play.
The Raiders then added another two tries, to Spencer Jackson and Ryan for his third, to cap off the big win.
The victory will be a welcomed one for the young Tweed Coast team, who have been very
competitive throughout the season and bounced back after a late collapse saw the team run down in its last start against Murwillumbah. Meanwhile it’s a case of going back to the drawing board for Lower, who suffered their eight- straight loss of the campaign.
Tweed Coast 52 (Ryan 3, Willoughby, Earle, Fredericks, Pollard, Ross, Jackson tries; Lack eight goals) defeated Lower Clarence 6 (Mitchell try; Williams goal)
HORNETS FIRE UP IN KYOGLE ROUT
Cudgen has solidified its spot in the top four after a comprehensive 48-10 victory over Kyogle at Ned Byrne Oval.
The Hornets had eight different tryscorers as the team continued its strong form with its second big win in succession to sit just two points off the top of the ladder.
Fresh from a 40-point thumping of Northern United over the King’s birthday long weekend, Cudgen started strongly against the Turkeys as lock Parker Bryant showed plenty of strength to charge his way over for a try in just the second minute.
Seven minutes later Bryant was at it again, putting Luke Toon through a gap for the team’s second to race ahead 12-0.
Kyogle hadn’t seen much of the ball in the early stages but the team landed a blow midway through the half when centre Dan Gibson crashed over on the edge.
However just when the Turkeys got themselves back into the game, Cudgen struck again, with a Jacek McLaurin break up field giving the team good field position and a spread wide putting back- rower Ethan Schultz over for the team’s third try to take an 18-4 lead into the break.
While they were well on top at halftime, the young Hornets took complete control of the game in the second half as their fitness started to show.
Hooker Chaz Bond crashed over from dummy-half three minutes after the restart while winger Ben Turnbull scored on the right to make it 30-4 with half an hour to play.
Cudgen continued to apply the pressure and more tries came through Jacek McLaurin, Alec Williamsand Jett Forbes, while Deon Bianchetti secured a consolation for Kyogle at the end.
Cudgen 48 (Bryant, Toon, Schultz, Bond, Turnbull, McLaurin, Williams, Forbes tries; Moase eight goals) defeated Kyogle 10 (Gibson, Bianchetti tries; Hardy one goal)
NINE-TRY BOMBERS HAMMER CASINO
Evans Head has kept pace with the competition frontrunners following a comprehensive 44-12 thumping of Casino at Stan Payne Oval.
Wingers Zacharia Roberts and Brandon Anderson both scored hat-tricks while back-rower Brody Waters claimed a double as the Bombers ran in nine tries to two in the big win.
Coming off a last-start loss to Ballina on Tuesday night, the Bombers didn’t seem to show any signs of fatigue and took the lead in the ninth minute when some clever work from halfback Roy Bell put Torben Milton into space. The big centre then showed too much speed and strength to crash over for his 10th try of the season.
Evans Head’s forwards were giving the side good field position, with a nice blind side play from hooker Matthew Toole putting Roberts over for his first on 17 minutes.
The Bombers were on a roll and when Jordan Sly put Waters through a gap the team had raced out to a 16-0 lead after 23 minutes.
Roberts then crossed for his second on the half-hour mark to ensure that the home side led 20-0 at halftime.
The Bombers have proven over the course of the season that they can throw the ball around like the best of teams and they showed that in the 51st minute when they went from sideline to sideline for a great team try.
Starting off a couple of metres in from the left-hand touchline with Roberts at dummy-half, the Bombers put the ball through four sets of hands before backrower Waters sliced through on the right edge and then passed off to winger Brandon Anderson to plant the ball down a couple of metres inside the right-hand touchline to make it 24-0.
The Bombers were on fire and a barnstorming charge from Lachlan Kennedy in the second hit-up after the kick-off led to a penalty to give the team a free ride up field.
Evans Head once again went from left to right but this time via the air, with Roy Bell putting up a kick for Anderson, who palmed off his opposing winger to grab his second inside two and a half minutes.
It had been a tough day out for Casino and the team need needed a bit of individual brilliance to finally get on the board.
Receiving the ball 40m out from the Bombers’ line, five-eighth Eddie Walker-Williams put in a clever grubber in behind the Evans Head line, regathered the ball and then threw a massive dummy to get past Evans Head fullback before finding Harrison Cusack on the inside for the team’s first try.
An Evans Head error shortly after gave the Cougars another golden opportunity, with Walker-Williams once again showing how dangerous he can be by stepping over for the team’s second try in the space of a couple of minutes.
Suddenly Casino had pulled things back to 28-12, however a one-on-one strip from Evans Head prop Lachlan Kennedy with the very first hit-up after the kick-off once again put the home side on the attack. Waters had been a threat on the right edge all day and he combined well with Sly once again to run through a gap for the team’s seventh try to make it 34-12.
The Bombers kept putting on a show for their home fans, with a spread to the right putting Anderson over for his third, while fellow winger Roberts also claimed his hat-trick with a try at the death to cap off the big win.
The victory, Evans Head’s fifth of the season, solidifies the Bombers’ spot in the top five. Meanwhile after a bright start Casino has now slumped to three straight defeats and will look to get its season back on track next weekend against Murwillumbah.
Evans Head 44 defeated Casino 12
Highlight machines: Top moments of the 2024 Koori Knockout
The Koori Knockout provided a number of incredible highlights to remember from the four-day footy extravaganza in Bathurst. We look at our 15 top moments from the weekend.
Read more
Latrell brilliance guides Walgett to back-to-back Koori Knockout wins
Walgett boasted a star studded side with a former Dally M winner, but it’s an incoming Brisbane Broncos recruit that made the most noise as WAC made it back-to-back Koori Knockout wins.
Read more