50+ names: The most damaging ballrunners of the Connell, Meninga and Harvey 19s junior representative competitions revealed
Who were the most damaging ballrunners in the Meninga, Connell and Harvey girls competitions? More than 50 devastating junior league rookies uncovered here. FULL LIST
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Who were the most devastating ballrunners breaking tackles in the Connell, Meninga and Harvey girls competitions?
Following our revelation of the speed demons and strongest players, we uncover the damaging ball carriers who are laying the platform for their team to succeed.
Find out who they are below, catch up on the latest Team of the Week and keep an eye out for Saturday’s coverage of round six.
Jump to: Cyril Connel Cup | Mal Meninga Cup | Harvey Norman U17s | Harvey Norman U19s
MOST DAMAGING BALLRUNNERS
CYRIL CONNELL CUP
Western Clydesdales
Shaun Elara
Lock Elara has turned heads this season with his powerful running.
A versatile forward who lurks on the edge, Elara has arguably been the best player in the Connell Cup over the past fortnight.
Northern Pride
Jason Hastie and Cayde Miller
Pride’s two props Hastie and Miller have been on somewhat of a tear, setting the platform for their backs and doing the grunt work in the middle third of the park.
They are metre-eaters.
Sunshine Coast Falcons
Jackson Koina
Young lock Koina started in the halves as a junior but as he’s grown he has been moved into the forwards and has thrived.
Koina has the ability to dominate physically but also tactically with his skills and overall knowledge of the game.
Norths Devils
Dyer Akauola
Destructive prop Akauola is a front row powerhouse so highly thought of that, in 2023, he made the Queensland rugby league 15 Years schoolboys side, while also being named in the Queensland Reds emerging junior squad from Brisbane Grammar School.
He has been in fine form this season.
Redcliffe Dolphins
Charlie Dickson
The Wavell SHS back row was one of the Dolphins first academy signings. A Moreton Bay Raiders club junior, he has come through the Raiders, and now Dolphins junior ranks alongside Mereki Warradoo, Nixon Pasese, Duquan Talaepa, Zac Herdegen and Prestyn Laine-Sietu. Wavell SHS teammates Sangstar Figota and Ben Uini were also Raiders juniors. Dickson was a Queensland 13 Years and Queensland 15 Years representative.
He is not only a damaging runner, but a strong defender with developing ball skills.
Has gotten better with each game this season.
Wynnum Manly
Taylon To’a and Agapetos Lote-Felo
Player position: Prop and edge forward respectively
To’a is a rising edge forward who can be particularly damaging on the edge, one-on-one. He is tall and strong with a long stride and can get away from a defender if they don’t get their technique right.
Lote-Felo comes from the Gold Coast Eagles rugby nest, but in league he is a middle field specialist, a hard running prop. He runs with confidence and authority.
Tigers
Kobi Floro
Prop Floro is a young giant and defenders need to have their ducks in a row to make sure he doesn’t come out the other side of the line. He is just a big body, a kid getting better with experience.
Souths Logan
Joseph Tupuse
An outside back battleship from Keebra Park SHS, Tupuse is one of the biggest threats in the competition when he carries the ball.
He
Wide Bay Bulls
Johannes Smith
Prop Smith creates plenty of momentum every time he touches the ball and is definitely one of the Bull’s hardest runners of the footy.
Townsville Blackhawks
Eneliko Savelio
A solid body with great footwork, Savelio causes headaches for defenders whether he’s playing in the backrow or a touch wider at centre.
The tough Kirwan High student always puts his body on the line in defence.
Taakoi Benioni
Moving south from Cairns to join the Kirwan High production line, Benioni is another big body who simply loves contact.
Linked to the Cowboys and with a history of rugby union and touch, backrower Benioni is almost impossible to tackle when he builds up a head of steam.
CQ Capras
Tyler Melrose and Will McLaughlin
Halfback and captainMelrose is very talented, a slick playmaker who has an impressive running and kicking game that will keep opposition on their toes. He is a good organiser with great vision and game sense for a player at this age.
McLaughlin is every defensive lines’ nightmare. He is skilful, fast, unpredictable and loves attacking from anywhere on the field.
MAL MENINGA CUP
Western Clydesdales
Luke Cesari, Barney Litidamu, Trace Beattie
The Clydesdales get up the field through these three.
Cesari plays centre, while Beattie and Litidamu are in the forward pack. Beattie has a turn of speed, Litidamu strength, and Cesari a mixture of everything.
Norths Devils
Lauloto Salei
Salei, a natural leader, packs a punch carrying the ball. He was so versatile he could also be a pinch-hitter on the edge, while also being a nice ball-player before the line.
Salei has a story to tell. His journey to play in the Meninga Cup started in New Zealand, continued in Alice Springs, then Far North Queensland before he moved to Wavell SHS and now the Devils.
Souths Logan
Braden Teuila
The Magpies get value out of this edge forward from Marsden SHS who, while not one of the biggest forwards in the competition, packs a punch with his dynamic wide running.
Redcliffe
Elijah Rasmussen
The Dolphins have a number of players who suit this category - captain Zac Garton, Rasmussen’s front row partner Michael Waqa and the towering Patrick Kailahi - but Rasmussen’s thumping early set runs were where it all starts for the side. A New Zealander, he has been signed by the Dolphins.
Wynnum Manly
Beni Allen
A front row wrecking ball whose carries caused distress upon opposition defensive lines. Allen, a Logan product signed by the Broncos, is an athletic big man with a promising future.
Brisbane Tigers
Elijah Keung
A front row powerhouse from the St James school who played strongly at last year’s Confraternity Carnival. As a junior he also dabbled in rugby where he was a fringe representative from the Sunnybank Dragons.
Central Queensland Capras
Braelan Marsh
Marsh’s awareness around the ruck is his biggest asset, whenever there’s an opportunity the dummyhalf doesn’t miss it.
SethCarpenter
Fierce fullback Carpenter is wrangly, awkward and hard to tackle.
His fend has taken his opponents prisoner this season.
Mackay Cutters
Will Shears
A damaging ballrunner with great upper body strength, centre Shears has potential to be a real strike player for the Cutters.
Liam Doherty
A hard running edge forward who runs a great line, Doherty creates momentum with every run of the footy.
Northern Pride
Mason Kira
A big man from Mountain Creek SHS, Mason Kira is an edge forward wrecking ball with untapped potential. He is a real dynamo and it is little surprise the astute Melbourne Storm talent scouts see something in him.
He is a part of the 2024 Emerging Origin squad.
Spare a thought for his prop teammate Wyatt Lourigan who has been his partner in crime this season.
Sunshine Coast Falcons
Jackson Kite
The Falcons second rower was an easy pick. Kite is a tall and rangy forward that creates holes in the defensive line no matter who’s in front of him.
Townsville Blackhawks
Tekelu Mene
A speedy outside back who doesn’t shy away from contact, Mene is a big player that knows how to use his size. His combination of speed and strength make him one of the Blackhawks’ greatest attacking weapons.
Wil Hope
Hope is an excellent rugby union player as well as a standout for the Blackhawks in rugby league.
A rangy edge forward with a strong carry, Hope has fantastic skills for his size and is a great leader – demonstrated by his selection as one of Kirwan High’s sports captains for 2024.
HARVEY NORMAN U17S
Burleigh Bears
Eta Sikahele, Seneisha Hepi
The season may be over but we can still recognise these trailblazing talents from the Bears.
Both were impressive with ball in hand during the short season.
Souths Logan
Ma’u Halatoa
Prop Halatoa set the tone with her carries, allowing Souths Logan’s outside backs and halves to pounce.
She was somewhat of an unsung hero.
Wynnum Manly
Summer Thorne
“She works hard in attack while making plenty of metres. It is not unheard of for Summer to take two dominant carries in a set,’’ said coach Cameron Nygaard.
Norths Devils
Memphis Tanielu and Easter Taualai
Coach Kristen Freed said it was a toss up between these two girls. “If they are not in a NRL system soon I would be very surprised,’’ he said.
Tanielu is a rampaging prop who gets forward and plays the ball quick, while Taualai is both a destructive runner, but also a nice handler of the ball which takes some pressure off the Norths halves.
Northern Pride
Adonina Solomon, Elishama Suavai and Chloe Mackenzie
Pride were proppeled up the field by this terrific trio.
In the three game season, Solomon, Suavai and Mackenzie proved a potent combination that bent defensive lines in the middle of the field.
Sunshine Coast Falcons
Tilly Cason
Young five-eighth Cason is electric with the ball, creating space and running lines for the players around her. Cason has a strong rugby 7s representative background so she arrived at the Falcons nest with tremendous ball skills and defensive qualities.
Wide Bay Bulls
Baylie Hutton
The Bulls second rower improved out of sight throughout the season and is an early Player to Watch ahead of next season.
Tigers
Riley-Jay Henry-Purcell, Lishainah Ulugia, Orianna Clark, Sky-yvette Faimalie
The Tigers went undefeated and it was largely because of this group of powerful forwards.
The club’s ranks are stuffed with elite junior talent and these four proved they were the cream of the crop forwards capable of playing under-19s this season.
CQ Capras
Chanelle Williams
Williams is extremely dangerous when running the ball. Her agility and speed is deceiving, and she will also put on some very good tackles when least expected.
A force to be reckoned with at centre or on the edge as a second rower.
Townsville Blackhawks
Brooke Kira
Kira is a talented half that can also cover at centre, hooker or lock.
She uses her touch football skills to her advantage and added plenty to the side no matter where she played.
Taya Bowie
Fullback Bowie moved from the centres to fullback this season and was a fantastic attacking spark for Townsville.
She has terrific footwork that allows her to find soft contact and burst through tackles, all the while displaying strength well beyond her size.
HARVEY NORMAN U19S
Mackay Cutters
Paityne Johns
Hooker Johns spent the pre-season with the Cutters BMD side, and coach Matt Sanders is excited to see how that rubs off on her this season.
So far, in the under-19s competition, the representative rake has impressed.
Miah Powell
Having made the move from Rockhampton, outside back Powell is fresh off a great pre-season and Sanders is keen to see what she can add to the side in the latter stages of the season.
Souths Logan
Ma’u Halatoa
Also a Tarsha Gale Cup junior representative with the Wests Tigers, the highly thought of Halatoa impresses not only with her strong carry, but her endurance for a middle forward.
Tigers
Alice Shannon
The 2023 Australian schoolgirls prop is one of the most damaging runners in the competition. Shannon, whose league skills were polished at Mabel Park SHS, was also able to dominate the ruck even when tackled, consistently given her dummy half quick service.
Norths
Easter Taualai
Lock Taualai has progressed from the under-17s to under-19s with ease. She can be both a damaging middle forward, but also a ball-player around the ruck while having the mobility of an edge forward.
Ipswich Jets
Vaitafao-Gisele Masun-Feleti, Sifa Leapai and Lyla Duffy
From a speed perspective, no one beats hooker or halfback Vaitafao-Gisele Masun-Feleti - a Redbank Plains grand finalist - when it comes to being a damaging ballrunner. But if you want direct impact in the middle through a physical confrontation, then look to props Sifa Leapai and Lyla Duffy.
Northern Pride
Elenoa Regunamada
Fullback Regunamada makes breaks returning the ball and gets the Pride onto the front foot at times they are under pressure.
Sunshine Coast Falcons
Shannyn Harm
The Falcons second rower dominates the tackle every single time and is a damaging ballrunner.
Townsville Blackhawks
Hannah De Daunton
Backrower De Daunton was described by her coach as a player with the skills of a five-eighth.
A footballer in every sense of the word, De Daunton has a very impressive passing and kicking game while being one of Townsville’s most damaging ball carriers.
Her footwork and handy goalkicking are just the cherries on top of a young player that could go anywhere in the game with the right dedication and opportunities.
Lhylla Williamson
Backrower Williamson is the Blackhawks’ go-to player when the team needs a strong carry.
She’s a big player that uses her size effectively with solid leg drive for post contact metres, and she can also be very damaging in defence.
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