Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League: wrap, results, standouts from round eight

One team brought up a perfect first half of the season, another has snapped a losing streak while one side went nuclear in a crazy 10-minute spell during round eight of the NRRRL.

One team has capped off a perfect first half of the season in style and another has gone nuclear with an incredible 10-minute spell that blew the game apart during round eight of the NRRRL.

Elsewhere, there were big sighs of relief as one side snapped a losing streak, while one player had his name in lights after a spectacular performance to help his side bring home the two points.

Catch up with a wrap of the action and main talking points with the NRRRL Seven-Tackle Set.

1) Perfect half-season for the Seagulls

Ballina capped off a perfect first half of the season with a 46-0 walloping of Casino.

Just as it has more or less all season, the Seagulls’ right edge was on fire on Saturday night, responsible for seven of the team’s eight tries, with centre Tim Cassidy running in four in the second half alone.

The win leaves Ballina at the top of the table as the only undefeated side in the competition on 16 points, two ahead of Bilambil and Northern United.

In what is a remarkable achievement, the team is both the best attacking and defensive side in the competition, scoring 328 and conceding just 76 over the first eight games.

In a sign of how dominant the Seagulls have been, this translates into an average of 41 points per game, while conceding just 9.5.

2) Rams record drought-breaking win

It was also a huge weekend for Marist Brothers, who broke a five-match losing streak in their 16-12 victory over Cudgen on a very wet Ned Byrne Oval.

It was a much-improved defensive performance from the Rams, who coming into the game had conceded 232 points at an average of more than 33 per game.

Veteran hooker Paul O’Neill proved to be the difference with the ball in hand, scoring two tries from dummy half as both sides finished with three tries a piece.

The win will come as a welcome relief for Marist Brothers, who had lost five on the trot after winning their first two games of the season.

3) Raiders hit their straps

The Raiders have won three straight for the first time since 2021. Picture: Max Ellis

One team that has hit its straps in recent times is the Tweed Coast Raiders, who recorded their third-straight win over the weekend with a tight 18-12 victory over the in-form Lower Clarence Magpies.

A late Julius Felise try got the Raiders home in what was an armwrestle at Les Burger Field.

After an indifferent start that saw the team lose three of its first four, the Raiders have bounced back with three wins on the trot to be sitting in fourth position on the ladder on 10 points, leading the charge behind the clear competition standouts of Ballina, Bilambil and Northern United.

It is the first time Tweed Coast has won three on the bounce since August 2021, when the team actually went on a four-game winning streak before Covid-19 prematurely ended the season.

4) Jets go nuts in crazy 10-minute spell

Fullback Oliver Regan was in the thick of the action as the Jets put on the afterburners against Kyogle. Photo: Max Ellis

Bilambil has certainly had its fair share of highlights so far this season and they added to that on Sunday with a 56-14 thumping of Kyogle.

After conceding a try that made scores 6-4 midway through the second half, the Jets well and truly put on the afterburners by scoring four tries in a crazy 10-minute spell to take the game away from the Turkeys.

It was a case of one try after the other as the Jets took a 26-4 lead into half time, before continuing the rout after the break, laying on another three tries in the first nine minutes to set up the huge victory.

The team’s blistering attack and ability to score quickly has been a key feature so far this season, with the Jets laying on 260 points across eight games.

5) Tough weekend for cellar dwellers

While the top teams were firing, it was a difficult weekend for some of the teams towards the bottom of the ladder as the gap between some of the sides was made painfully clear.

Casino, who are second last with just one win, were on the receiving end of a Ballina clinic as the Seagulls put on 46 against them to zero at Kingsford Smith Park.

Meanwhile Kyogle, who have one draw but are yet to register a win so far this season, conceded 10 as Bilambil went to town in The Valley.

While both sides have been more than competitive for large periods during games this season, they have struggled to put in complete 80-minute performances, and will be hoping for a better second half to the season.

6) The Corey Morris spectacular

It was the Corey Morris show at Murwillumbah on Sunday as the Mullumbimby fullback was involved in just about everything in his side’s 30-14 victory over the Mustangs.

The day actually didn’t start too well for Morris, who was caught out hoping to usher a Murwillumbah kick dead in goal, only for Mustangs winger Dayton Wise to come flying through and lay a hand on the ball for a try.

The Giants’ star made amends shortly after though, brilliantly flying through the air – much like a slips fielder – to catch a crossfield kick from teammate Wayde Kelly for one of the most spectacular tries of the season – in any competition.

He wasn’t done there, with Morris once again brilliantly leaping high to take a midfield bomb to set up Mullum’s third try, before sealing the victory with five minutes to go by stepping past one defender, ducking under another and scoring next to the sticks.

7) Top three break clear

The halfway mark of the season is often a good point for reflection, and it’s clear that three teams have broken away at the top after the first eight rounds.

Ballina, Bilambil and Northern United have been the best three teams in the competition by quite a distance, with the trio’s excellent attack in particular putting plenty of teams to the sword.

Leading the charge has been the Seagulls, who are in first place on 16 points after an undefeated opening eight weeks that has seen them pile on an incredible 328 points and concede just 76.

The Jets are second, just two points behind on 14 points with a record of seven wins and one loss, which came against Northern United in round six.

As for the Dirawongs, that 20-18 win over the Jets was a real statement of intent for the team, who are tied with Bilambil on 14 points with six wins, one loss and one bye.

After finishing eighth last season, Northern United have arguably been the competition’s biggest improvers, losing just one game – 30-22 to Ballina, no less – in a contest where both sides scored five tries and goal kicking was ultimately the difference.

Round eight wrap

There were spectacular attacking performances during round eight of the NRRRL as one gun player scored four tries and another put together a highlights reel that even NRL stars would be thrilled with in what was a huge weekend of football.

Elsewhere, one side scored a key victory late in the match, while another broke a significant drought with a tight win.

Catch up with a wrap of the action below.

Seagulls take down the Cougars

Ballina has capped off a perfect first half of the season with a 46-0 thumping of Casino at Kingsford Smith Park.

Centre Tim Cassidy bagged four second-half tries as the Seagulls’ right edge ran absolute riot on the Cougars, running in seven of the team’s eight tries to extend Ballina’s record to eight from eight at the halfway point of the season.

The Seagulls ran riot against Casino.

The rout started in the 13th minute when fullback Zac Beecher scored after a spread to the right edge to make it 6-0.

The Seagulls doubled the lead 15 minutes later when a nice cut-out ball from five-eighth Hamish McClintock and flick pass from Cassidy put winger Rowan Mansfield over.

Winger Fred Pitt scored in what was a rare try in the left corner on 34 minutes, before the trio of Cassidy, Mansfield and McClintock combined again for the latter to score on the stroke of halftime to give the home side a 22-0 lead at the break.

It was all the Cassidy show in the second half, with the big centre crossing for a remarkable four tries in the second 40.

After barging over from dummy half for his first on 50 minutes, Cassidy combined with McClintock for another three tries, with his five-eighth feeding him with a series of lovely cut-out balls to cap off the rout.

The victory leaves Ballina at the top of the table with an unbeaten record after eight rounds, while for Casino, the defeat was a harsh reality check after the Cougars’ last out victory over Kyogle.

Ballina 46 (Cassidy 4, Beecher, Mansfield, Pitt, McClintock tries; McClintock seven goals) def Casino 0

Jets hammer the Turkeys

Bilambil has continued its fantastic start to the season with a 56-14 hammering of Kyogle at the East Bilambil Sports Field.

Lachlan Garner and Hayden Hansen both bagged doubles as the Jets ran in 10 tries to three in the rout.

The Jets hit the lead in the 12th minute when some tidy work from hooker Tom Rowles put Tyson Donnelly over for a 6-0 lead.

Despite coming in as rank outsiders, the last-placed Turkeys hit back midway through the half after some nice offloads saw Adam Pomare power his way over to bring the scoreline to 6-4.

Sadly for the visitors that was as close as they got, with the Jets running in an incredible four tries over the next 10 minutes, with Alex Fitzhugh, Garner, Blake Forder and Brent Daley-Holten crossing to give the home side a commanding 26-4 lead at halftime.

The rout continued after the break with the Jets scoring another three tries in the first nine minutes through Jack Durheim, Garner and Hansen.

And while Kyogle crossed for two tries late in the game, they were nothing more than consolations as the Jets ran out 42-point winners.

Bilambil 56 (Garner 2, Hansen 2, Donnelly, A Fitzhugh, Forder, Daley-Holten, Durheim, Raftery tries; Regan eight goals) def Kyogle 14 (Pomare, Guiney, Hardy tries; Loose-Morris one goal)

Raiders edge out Magpies at the death

The Tweed Coast Raiders recorded their third win in a row. Picture: Max Ellis

Tweed Coast has recorded its third-straight victory after a tight 18-12 victory over Lower Clarence at Les Burger Field.

A late try to Julius Felise and some desperate goal line defence got the Raiders over the line after the two sides went tit for tat throughout the match.

Lower Clarence, who also came into the game on the back of two straight wins, were the first to score in the 18th minute when Cooper Many latched onto a Vincent Williams grubber to give the Magpies a 6-0 lead after some nice second-phase play.

The Raiders hit back five minutes later when skipper Drew Lanston crashed over after dummying past the Magpies’ defence close to the line to even things up at 6-all.

However the Magpies, who have been one of the competition’s most improved sides in 2023, took a lead into half time when five eighth Jacob Cameron-Clarke sliced through the Tweed Coast defensive line before passing to Dan Mitchell in support who scored under the posts.

The match was finely poised, and with half an hour to go the Raiders levelled things up once again at 12-all when some excellent footwork from Brayden Evans saw him step his way past a couple of defenders to score.

Then with 20 to go Tweed Coast thought they had taken the lead when Zion Kamana crossed the line, however he was judged to have put a foot in touch in the lead-up.

Both sides had their chances in the final quarter, and in a sign of how tight the contest was, the Raiders and Magpies both attempted to edge ahead with penalty goals, only for Evans and Grant Brown to miss their kicks.

Indeed, Brown’s missed penalty goal proved to be a turning point, with the Magpies knocking on the subsequent 20-metre dropout and giving the Raiders’ excellent field position.

The home side made them duly pay, with prop Felise crashing over with eight minutes to go to give his side the lead for the first time in the match. Evans then added the extras to make the scores 18-12.

And while the Magpies through everything at them to tie things up, the Raiders held on with some tense goal line defence to claim the two points.

Tweed Coast 18 (Lanston, Evans, Felise tries; Evans three goals) def Lower Clarence 12 (Many, Mitchell tries; Brown two goals)

Giants’ brilliance takes down the Mustangs

Mullumbimby has snapped a two-game losing streak and cemented its place in the top five after a 30-14 victory over the Mustangs in Murwillumbah.

A four-try first half blitz helped set up the win for the Giants, who created some absolute moments of brilliance as they claimed the two points.

It was actually the Mustangs who opened the scoring 10 minutes in with one of the more unusual tries.

Murwillumbah put in a kick towards the Giants’ left-hand corner. Mullum fullback Corey Morris was shielding the ball and hoping to see it go dead in goal, however a flying Danyon Wise came through and planted his hands on the ball for a remarkable try.

Despite the nervy start, Morris made up for his error five minutes later, spectacularly diving through the air like a slips fielder to take a cross field kick from Wayde Kelly and score a brilliant try to give the Giants a 6-4 lead.

This was the first of four first half tries that put Mullum in a commanding position, with five-eighth Dean Rooney, centre Robbie Newton and winger Brett Kelly-Wirth all crossing to give the side a 24-4 lead at halftime.

Morris once again showed his class in setting up Newton’s try. Following through on a Rooney bomb, Morris spectacularly outjumped the Murwillumbah fullback before putting it through the hands to score in the left corner.

The home side knew they needed to be the first to score after the break and they did just that, with Brandon Ewing crossing after the Giants made an error coming out of their own end.

The Mustangs then well and truly made a game of it in the very next set, with the team batting back an attacking bomb from Kade Hill, before putting the ball through the hands for Robert Shepherd to score in the left corner to make it 24-14.

The home side had all the momentum and would have closed the gap further with 25 to play, however Hill slipped over with the tryline begging after a wonderful stepping run through the Giants’ defence.

There was plenty of feeling in the match as both sides slugged it out, however Mullumbimby sealed it with five minutes to go when Morris picked up a loose pass from his teammate before stepping past one defender, ducking under another and scoring next to the sticks.

Mullumbimby 30 (Morris 2, Newton, Rooney, Kelly-Wirth; Kelly-Wirth four goals, Kelly one goal) def Murwillumbah 14 (Wise, Ewing, Shepherd tries; Peisley one goal)

Rams edge past Hornets

Marist Brothers have broken a five-match losing streak with a hard-fought 16-12 victory over Cudgen at Ned Byrne Oval.

A double to Rams’ hooker Paul O’Neill and goal kicking ultimately proved to be the difference in the end, with both tries scoring three tries a piece in the very wet conditions.

O’Neill kicked things off for the visitors in the 10th minute with a nice dummy and step to barge his way over to score from close range. Andrew Ferguson-Fitzgerald then slotted the conversion to give the side a 6-0 lead.

The visitors then doubled their lead on 18 minutes when centre Mitch Krause scored after a series of quick play the balls to put the Rams 12 clear.

Paul O'Neill scored a double for Marist Brothers. Photo: Ursula Bentley@CapturedAus.

While Marist Brothers had started well, Cudgen hit back with a quickfire double of their own.

The first came in the 33rd minute when a clever grubber from Jordan Kempnich was dived on by winger Nick Andreas.

Then just two minutes later they were in again when an error from the Rams’ fullback in bringing the ball from his own end was pounced on by Cudgen, who put it through the hands for Luke Dumas to score in the corner.

While both sides had scored two tries each, the Hornets’ unsuccessful conversions from the sideline meant the visitors went into the break up 12-8.

The home side continued with the momentum in the second half, with lock Zac Blattner turning the unlikely provider by putting in a lovely chip kick for centre Joel Hare to score and lock things up at 12-all.

But just a couple of minutes after the Hornets drew level the Rams pulled away again, with O’Neill once again showing plenty of craft from dummy half by following through on his own grubber to put the side up 16-12.

While the Lismore side had to defend plenty of sets on their own goal line in the latter stages, they held on firm to take home the much-needed two points.

Marist Brothers 16 (O’Neill 2, Krause tries; Ferguson-Fitzgerald two goals) def Cudgen 12 (Andreas, Dumas, Hare tries)

Dirawongs too good for Red Devils

Northern United has ensured that it will go into the half-season break as one of the competition’s top teams after a 44-18 victory over Byron Bay at Red Devil Park.

The Dirawongs ran in eight tries to three to remain in third place, just two points behind leaders Ballina.

Looking to bounce back from last weekend’s loss to Lower Clarence, Byron Bay opened the scoring after 10 minutes when Ricardo Peratta scored after Northern United fumbled an attacking grubber from Ben Webber.

However Northern hit back just a couple of minutes later when five-eighth Hakeem Torrens jinked his way through the defensive line to score underneath the posts to make it 6-all.

It was the first of three-straight tries from the Dirawongs, who crossed through Allan McKenzie and Hezakiah Mckenzie.

And while the home side hit back through skipper Sam Saville, Northern United scored just before halftime through Tim Torrens to lead 22-12 at the break.

While the game was still in the balance, Northern United were the first to score in the second half to put the game out of reach, before adding another two tries to Byron Bay’s one to run out comfortable winners.

Northern United 44 def Byron Bay 18