Newtown Jets players: How heroes of Henson Park have saved Cronulla’s season
‘It’s not reserve grade, it’s a springboard to the NRL’. And haven’t the Sharks made the most of their affiliation with the Newtown Jets as they stay in the hunt for final eight despite a lengthy injury list.
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Forget Kogarah Oval, Cronulla should be playing out of Henson Park while they’re waiting for Shark Park to be rebuilt.
The Sharks have defied an exodus of experienced players and a horrific injury toll to win six of their last eight and surge into the top eight, and much of it is on the back of talent developed by their NSW Cup feeder club, the Newtown Jets.
Following Jackson Ferris’ and Braydon Trindall’s debuts against Brisbane, 10 players from Newtown’s State Championship winning side last year have played for the Sharks in 2020, including NRL top tryscorer Sione Katoa, classy fullback Will Kennedy and reborn second rower Siosifa Talaki.
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With Andrew Fifita, Matt Moylan and Chad Townsend all spending time on the sidelines and Paul Gallen, Matt Prior and Josh Morris all hitting the road, the Sharks could have been facing disaster in 2020, but they’ve been saved by talent raised in the shadows of the King George V stand in front of a weekly crowd of 8972.
“The NRL clubs identify the talent, we just provide a happy place for them to be at, where they can be comfortable,” said Newtown coach Greg Matterson.
“When you play at Newtown it’s like you’re not playing reserve grade, it’s an old club with good supporters and a good atmosphere on game day.
“The boys get a kick out of that and it helps springboard them into the NRL.”
Star Sharks forwards Braden Hamlin-Uele and Briton Nikora are also Jets graduates, but it’s not just happening at Cronulla.
Kyle Flanagan, the NRL’s top pointscorer, was a Jet before he was Rooster, and Titans prop Jaiman Jolliffe spent plenty of time at Henson Park as well - Newtown haven’t had it this good in the top grade since they were excluded from the NSWRL in 1983.
Some of the Jets - like Kennedy, Katoa and Brailey, come from Cronulla’s outstanding junior program but needed a little time to find their feet before transitioning to first grade.
But now the Sharks are reaping the benefits of years of excellence at junior level - the club won the SG Ball and Harold Matthews premierships in 2015, had a dominant Holden Cup team in 2017, took home the Jersey Flegg premiership in 2018 and the Jets managed to take home the NSW Cup premiership and the State Championship last year.
One of the stars of that 2019 finals run, when the Jets fought their way to glory after finishing seventh on the ladder was Katoa, who made his NRL debut in 2018 but struggled to hold his place in the firsts.
After an electrifying season with the Jets last year he’s become one of the NRL’s new stars and his classy finishes have him as the league’s leading tryscorer.
His fast-stepping and acrobatic finishes were well known to the Henson Park hill, and now the entire league knows all about Katoa.
“No-one can finish tries like him. Some of the stuff he did for us last year in the run to the grand final was outstanding,” Matterson said.
“He lacked a little bit of confidence when he was in and out of the NRL team, but now he’s scoring tries and bringing the ball back really hard.
“He’s gone to the next level, I believe, which is great for him because he’s a really great kid.”
Another mainstay of that side was Will Kennedy, who scored the winning try in the extra time grand final victory over Wentworthville.
Kennedy has impressed at fullback for the Sharks this year with his fast hands and classy attacking play.
“He was light, now he’s starting to get bigger and bigger. He always had those silky skills, but when it came to collisions he didn’t have the body,” Matterson said.
“But now he’s getting a bit more strength and looks a lot more confident.”
Talaki is an example of the other sort of player who comes through Newtown. The hard-running 23-year old played 11 first grade matches for Souths in 2016-17 but washed out of the Rabbitohs and Penrith in quick time, losing his enthusiasm for the game.
He nearly gave it away, but opted to give it one more try with the Jets last season. Now, Talaki has become a fixture in Cronulla’s first grade side and will start at second row this week over New Zealand Test forward Nikora.
“He was sort of in limbo, Penrith didn’t want him after he played a little bit of NRL at Souths, and he really got rejuvenated in our system. I’m really happy for him,” Matterson said.
“That’s our role as a feeder club - not only to foster the good kids from the Sharks but to try and bring a few outsiders to the table.
“We’re trying to educate these blokes as men, not just football players, about their responsibilities and what they can do to help themselves, not just what we can do to help them. And that’s all part of it.”
Hard-nosed front-rower Toby Rudolf is another Jets success story. In just 12 games, he’s become one of Cronulla’s best metre-eaters - only Aaron Woods has gained more yards for the club this year.
“Toby was destined. He always had something, whether it was at training or on game day, he was just a personality,” Matterson said.
“What he brought to the table towards the back end of last year and what he’s done this year for the Sharks is a credit to him.
“He’s another bloke who couldn’t get a gig - he was at Souths, went to the Q Cup, did his knee but he just kept banging on the door, and now it’s all paying dividends for him.”
With the NSW Cup suspended until 2021, the Jets have taken a major financial hit - most of their revenue comes from their game days at Henson Park.
If there’s anything better than watching the Jets run around on a brilliant winters day with a Henson Park happy meal (a VB and two sausage sandwiches) in hand, we don’t care to know about it so please support the club if you can by purchasing a Keep The Jets Flying membership. For details, click here.
FROM THE JETS TO THE SHARKS
Members of Newtown’s 2019 premiership side to play for Cronulla in 2020
Will Kennedy
Sione Katoa
Ronaldo Mulitalo
Bill Magoulias
Braydon Trindall
Blayke Brailey
Toby Rudolf
Jackson Ferris
Scott Sorensen
Teig Wilton
Originally published as Newtown Jets players: How heroes of Henson Park have saved Cronulla’s season