NSWRL Junior Reps: 20 standout performers from Fiaola, Gale, Matts and Ball round two action
A drought was broken, there was a hat-trick and monster charges. Take a look at the players who stood tall in our 20 standout performers from Fiaola, Matts, Gale and Ball Cup action.
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The NSWRL Junior Reps roadshow delivered in spades once again in round two.
After another quality weekend of footy, we take a look at the top 20 performers from the Lisa Fiaola, Harold Matthews, Tarsha Gale and SG Ball Cup competitions, plus check out our major talking points from round two.
LISA FIAOLA CUP
TALEA TONGA (SYDNEY ROOSTERS)
Quite frankly you’ll struggle to see a better individual performance from anyone this season.
Scored an 85-metre try to get the Roosters on the board, before backing it up with two brilliant passes to put her teammates over the line.
When the match was on the line she raced 90 metres from a scrum to seal the result and cap off a special display.
KELSEY BERRYMAN (MANLY)
It was a great weekend for halves in the Fiaola Cup, and Kelsey Berryman was everywhere as the Sea Eagles put St George to the sword.
The halfback had an incredible five try assists in the contest as the methodically picked apart the defence.
The NSW Maori representative also had a hand in a further two as she starred.
ASHA TAUMOEPEAU-WILLIAMS (CANTERBURY)
A strong performance from the winger saw her showcase the full range of just how powerful she is.
Her first try of the afternoon saw her withstand the attempted tackles of four defenders and break through them all to cross. Carried three defenders over the line as she scored her second within tight confines in the corner, narrowly touching down before going into touch.
LEONIA VEI (PARRAMATTA)
Had a great impact when coming off the bench for her two stints in a performance that proved the difference between the Eels and Cronulla.
Less than a minute after coming on, the front rower got onto a short ball close to the line and broke through three defenders to score.
Then less than five minutes after arriving for her second stint, Vei was able to power her way through the defence to race 20 metres and score the match winner.
TAHLIA O’BRIEN (ILLAWARRA)
A typical captain’s knock from the classy second rower who is showing her experience with a great fortnight of footy.
Not only was she sound in defence as usual, she flashed her brilliance with ball in hand, launching a brilliant cut-out pass for Maddalyn Bullock to stroll over.
Has looked right at home on the left edge.
HAROLD MATTHEWS CUP
MAX DAVIES (MANLY)
From the moment the five-eighth in headgear stepped of his right foot to open the scoring, Manly never looked like falling behind.
Went on to set up another three tries on the right edge in a clinical performance.
Served a well disguised short ball for the first, the second from slick hands before sending Cooper Elkins scurrying into the corner with a pinpoint cut-out.
ASHTON LARGE (WESTS)
A hooker on the rise, Large not only dashed Melbourne’s comeback with a decisive second half hat-trick, he showed his teammates the importance of staying alive in attack.
After feeding his hungry backline early ball, the No.9 tracked up centrefield to finish two scoring plays and was rewarded with another after cleaning up a fumbled kick.
JACK THOMPSON (NEWCASTLE)
In one of the best games of the round, Newcastle almost mowed down Canterbury in a spectacular comeback at Cessnock.
Down by 18 at the break, the Knights crossed twice and were roaring when halfback Jack Thompson finished off a cracking 80m effort.
Diesel Hagan exploded out of dummy-half before the No.7 finished the bust, backing up then chipping over the fullback and steaming onto a room service bounce to score next to the posts.
ISAAC FOTU-MOALA (CENTRAL COAST ROOSTERS)
A playmaker with all the moves, Fotu-Moala torched the Raiders with a second half masterclass on the Central Coast.
An absolute nightmare for tired defenders, his quick stepping try after the break put his side on the road to victory.
Then in the closing stages he showed all the tricks, crabbing across field before exploding through the line with a silk smooth dummy, then out pacing the cover to cross out wide.
ALIPATE VAKA (MELBOURNE)
While the Storm didn’t come away with the win against Wests, bench player Alipate Vaka was one of several standouts in a side that looks set to cause its fair share of surprises.
A mobile middle, the No.17 with the big hair troubled the Magpies with his bollocking charges and offloads in heavy traffic.
Proved too strong from close range after the interval and helped ignite an exciting comeback.
TARSHA GALE CUP
ELLA KOSTER (ILLAWARRA STEELERS)
She wore the No.10 jumper against the Raiders, but fans shouldn’t be fooled into thinking Koster is an industrious middle forward.
Parked on the right edge, the 18-year-old’s damaging lines off halfback Kasey Reh carved up Canberra’s defence.
Unstoppable hitting the line against the grain, it’s little wonder the local junior has already played NRLW.
MANILITA TAKAPAUTOLO (CRONULLA)
Another weapon on the right edge, Takapautolo stamped her class in Cronulla’s victory over Parramatta.
Following a scoreless opening 20 minutes, the imposing No.12 slapped on two tries in the blink of an eye to propel the Sharks to victory.
In a showcase of pace and power, the first started on the halfway line and ended under the crossbar.
PHOENIX LAMESE (SYDNEY ROOSTERS)
The Roosters backline had an absolute field day in the side’s 13-try romp at Leichhardt, but we couldn’t go past the upfront efforts of Phoenix Lamese.
A genuine wrecking ball, the prop finished with a try of her own and paved the way for at least three others.
Part of a massive and mobile pack, Lamese can scatter defenders and ignite second phase with skilled offloads.
DAISY MCKEON (PENRITH)
In a team of big boppers, the diminutive Daisy McKeon added plenty of spark from the bench as Penrith skipped clear of South Sydney in the second half.
With vision and smarts, the No.14 regularly caught defenders on the back foot with her spirited raids from dummy-half.
The hooker in the blue headgear was involved in four of six tries and is definitely one to watch.
INDIANA RUSSELL-LIA (MANLY)
Another bench player, Indiana Russell-Lia made an instant impact in Manly’s big win over the Dragons.
In a competition riddled with bash and barge merchants, Russell-Lia is as good as any from close range.
Two of her early hit-ups saw her cross the stripe for back-to-back tries in the space of five minutes.
SG BALL CUP
RYAN HUTCHINSON (ST GEORGE)
The redhead was immense for the Dragons with an inspirational performance in the middle of the field.
A towering front rower, Hutchison constantly threatened the line with his strong charges, including setting up the opening try with a burst and classy offload.
Has been superb this season and looks a very likely type.
HAYDEN BUCHANAN (ILLAWARRA)
There’s a reason why there’s big opinions on the centre who completed an NRL pre-season with the Dragons.
Buchanan scored a long-range try to commence things, before going on to finish the game with a hat-trick and two try assists.
His partnership with five-eighth Lyhkan King-Togia has been one of the most potent in the competition so far.
NAVREN WILLETT (WESTERN SUBURBS)
Starred on the wing last week and looked even better when taking over the fullback role with Heath Mason on NRL duties.
A tall, powerful player, Willett was involved in everything to finish the game with a try and three try assists to help Wests secure a point in Melbourne.
His timing was on point and his involvements are so timely.
SOSAIA ALATINI (CANTERBURY)
Came on in the 21st minute and provided some quality minutes when his side was down 16-0 to help Canterbury stage a comeback against quality opposition.
Linked extremely well with halfback Mitchell Woods, getting put onto a short ball and barging his way over to edge his side closer.
Then the second rower proved the hero by breaking through three defenders from close range to score the match-winner with less than four minutes to play.
MOTU PASIKALA (NEW ZEALAND)
He was one of the Warriors’ best in a loss to Parramatta last week, and he backed that up with another classy performance at the back.
Looking dangerous every time he got near the ball, Pasikala broke through for his second try in as many weeks and had a hand in a couple more.
Highly exciting player who has a tremendous match-up with Roosters fullback Zac Sarfati this weekend.
ROUND TWO TALKING POINTS
EAGLES ROCK AT KOGARAH
The day started with Manly ending a huge drought in Harold Matthews and finished with two big wins in the female pathway competitions.
You could sense the relief in captain Reilly Caswell’s voice as they claimed their first win in 684 days, the result of a long pre-season of hard work and playing for each other.
Then the girls really turned it on in the Fiaola and Gale Cups, outscoring St George by a combined scoreline of 98-4 to really send a statement.
DRAGONS SHINE IN BALL
St George didn’t leave empty-handed though as their SG Ball team claimed a big win to improve their record to 2-0 for the season.
What was most impressive was how they responded to adversity at halftime, finding themselves down to 12 men and with Manly scoring on the buzzer.
They scored twice during the remaining period with a man down, before going right on with the job.
This is a serious team.
STEELERS MATCH THEIR NRL BROTHERS
Illawarra showed they can pile on the points like their Dragons mates with a 42-point effort in Belconnen.
It gives St George Illawarra fans every reason to be excited for the future as the Steelers also improved to a flawless 2-0 record, showing plenty of fight in the process.
They turned an 18-4 deficit into a 42-18 victory, and with big guns like Hayden Buchanan firing, they showed they’re right in the hunt for finals.
TIGERS SHOW HEART
Not many gave Balmain a chance in SG Ball after losing their halfback and coming up against a Roosters side who turned it on against the Bulldogs last week.
They proved many wrong with a tremendous display to restrict one of the competition’s best attacking sides to just three tries.
Unfortunately for them a piece of Toby Rodwell brilliance sunk them on the buzzer, but they can hold their heads high coming into a tough clash with Parramatta.
CLANGER RUINS GRANDSTAND FINISH
This column isn’t about attacking referees. We understand they have the hardest job in rugby league.
But when ordinary decisions are made in crucial parts of the game, they have to be called out.
South Sydney trailed Penrith by just two points in the Lisa Fiaola Cup with 15 minutes remaining when Kirrawahn Duckett was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle on Hannah Ison.
The only problem was it was barely worth a penalty, let alone removing one of the Rabbitohs’ best for the most important period of the game.
The NSWRL.tv commentator summed it up best:
“That’s a harsh one … there wasn’t a great deal of force in the tackle.”
PRODUCTION LINE CONTINUES
Staying at Windsor and Penrith was able to sweep the three home games played in Fiaola, Matts and Ball over the Rabbitohs.
It continued on the club’s strong start to the junior reps across the grades and is a testament to the pathways in the west.
It’s resulted in a lot of talk in recent days about more being done to keep local juniors at clubs, and with the amount of quality players the Panthers are producing, can you blame them for asking the question.
CANBERRA WOES CONTINUE
The poor old Raiders have not had a fun time of it in 2024 as they still search for their first win across any grade this season.
It hasn’t been without trying, as they were deep in the contest in two of those three games, only to fade in the second half.
One thing is for certain, with the calibre of players they have across the grades, this form slump will only be temporary and they’ll come out fighting this weekend against Cronulla.
ROOSTERS CROW ON THE COAST
It was our first look at the Central Coast in the Harold Matthews Cup this season, and they impressed at home to Canberra.
As their Fiaola side narrowly went down to Illawarra, the Roosters produced a blistering second half to take down the Raiders.
A strong Central Coast in two grades is good for the competition and both sides are aiming up so far.
WARRIORS STATEMENT WIN
With their maiden reps victory, the Warriors’ SG Ball outfit proved they’ll be no pushover in their first season.
After giving a good account of themselves on the road against Parra, the Kiwi boys got the early jump on North Sydney before lighting up their Pukekohe home base with six second half tries in a 48-12 rampage.
They face the Roosters in round three, and it won’t surprise if they depart the Central Coast with another two competition points.
OUT OF BIG BROTHER’S SHADOW
Magpies playmaker Onitoni Large has been under the radar of talent scouts for some time, but on Saturday it was Ashton who stole big brother’s thunder.
Just as the Storm looked like flipping the script on a disappointing Harold Matts first half, the dynamic hooker peeled off three consecutive tries to ice an important win in the Macarthur side’s first hit out of the season.
Oozing entertainment, this brotherly duo pack plenty of rabbits in their hat.
MAGPIES REALITY CHECK
Still on the Magpies, the U19s copped a decent reality check in the absence Heath Mason and Tallyn Da Silva.
The pair were instrumental in a comfortable round one win, but even with the return of NRL one-gamer, Kit Laulilii, Wests couldn’t hold off a resurgent Storm and ended up leaving Melbourne with a share of the points.
It’ll be interesting to see who boards the bus this week when they head north to face a talented Knights combination.
FROM LATE HEROICS TO UTTER DESPAIR
It’s an old saying, but the Wests Tigers Lisa Fiaola Cup side have quickly learned that a week is a long time in rugby league.
From the joy of a late victory over the Sharks, it only took a week for the Tigers to feel the burn on the flip side.
In a seesawing contest, Wests looked like maintaining a perfect record until Roosters half Talea Tonga struck late to spoil the party.
SUPER FIT EELS
It’s still early days, but you have to admire the way Parramatta have finished off both their SG Ball encounters.
Yet to establish a half time advantage, the Eels have jumped well clear in both outings to maintain a perfect record.
In such a short competition, a slight edge in fitness can often cover a number of cracks
LOST KICKING BOOTS
Boom Canterbury half Mitchell Woods certainly has the Bulldogs pointed towards the SG Ball finals, but the road to the promised land won’t be as rocky once he finds his kicking boots.
In the round one loss to the Roosters Woods landed three from five, and despite out scoring the Knights six tries to five, the Bulldogs only managed to sneak home by two after the No.7 sprayed four of six attempts.
SHARK RECRUIT SHINES
No wonder the Sharks were grinning following the off-season signing of Manilita Takapautolo from Canterbury.
The Sharks are unbeaten in two Gale outings and the Aussie Schoolgirls rep has repaid the faith scoring three of her side’s 10 tries.
Already an NRLW development player, the No.12 is on target for another fine showing this week when the Raiders arrive in the Shire.
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