The Litchfield Bears have reclaimed the Mitchell Russell Shield after beating Palmerston Raiders at Goodline Park
The Litchfield Bears reclaimed the Mitchell Russell Shield and remain undefeated in 2023 after beating Palmerston Raiders. Read the latest from the NRL NT season here.
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Emotions were high on and off the field as Litchfield Bears reclaimed the Mitchell Russell Shield for the first time since 2019 after beating reigning premiers Palmerston.
The annual match is played in honour of Mitchell Russell, who died in a tragic motorcycle crash in 2014 at the age of 23.
The Darwin-born DJ and role model for troubled kids had played for both clubs, and the memorial game is one each sets of players put plenty of passion into.
Traditionally Palmerston, where Mitchell’s brother David plays, have had the better of the encounter, however it was Litchfield with a 28-20 score line who came out on top this time around.
The Bears have yet to be beaten in 2023 and showed their intent of keeping that title alive early on with Dillan Vanderburg and Tevita Koloamatangi contributing some massive carries.
However, Palmerston’s defence held strong in those early stages with a David Russell tackle on Nathan Dixon on the line setting the tone.
And after a turnover it was Raiders making inroads downfield through Chuck Norris and Shane Smith, before captain Ed Murphy charged through for the opening try.
But Bears weren’t going away and an offside penalty soon went their way in touching distance of Raiders’ try line.
Litchfield stalwart Luke Mahood charged through for the score, and Nathan Dixon added the extras to put the side ahead.
Trent Wedding and Dixon played key link-up roles as Vanderburg crashed through for Bears’ second.
Palmerston’s woes went from bad to worse as Norris was sent to the bin for dissent, while skipper Murphy was sent off entirely minutes later.
Bears’ fullback David Jacobson stood out in his first match of the season, and made an impression as he pulled off a successful kick-chase before putting Jackson Smith into space to score.
But despite missing their captain Palmerston never said die and on the toll of half time finally got their reward with Brad Hansen charging at the line to send Kobi McGrath through.
Litchfield were also down a couple of players both Jayden Jones and Matthew Woolmington spending time in the sin bin at the start of the second half.
Raiders took advantage with Ross Larsen bulldozing his way through for Raiders’ third try of the match and they were once more in touching distance.
It was a wake-up call for Litchfield who struck back real quick with the ball passing between Wedding and Woolmington before Jacobson slipped through a defensive gap to grab a try of his own.
Fittingly, Russell did get a try in the match honouring his brother and pointed skyward after diving over the white paint to drag Raiders back into the contest.
Bears, however, did have one more thing to say on the matter and the ever-talented Dixon managed to work a tackle in his favour to put his side clear once more and secure the Shield for Litchfield.
Bears’ captain Wedding was pleased to have the shield back, but insisted that despite being undefeated his side would not be getting complacent.
“It means a lot, we haven’t had the Shield since 2019,” Wedding said.
“Mitch and David were big in the Bears and Palmy and it means a lot to a lot of people, and for us it’s just good to bring that shield back home.
“It came down to not being complacent, we always bring ourselves down to other team’s levels and we just had to stick to it particularly in the second half.
“It’s nice to be unbeaten, but we can’t get complacent. We haven’t done anything yet, anything can happen when we play everyone again so we just need to keep our heads and show up every week.”
Meanwhile, across the rest of the NRL NT Indigenous Round the Darwin Brothers dominated old rivals Nightcliff 68-14.
Daniel Good scored a hat-trick, while Caleb Niki and Matthew Goodson were also among the multiple try scorers.
And Northern Sharks bounced back after consecutive defeats to beat South Darwin Rabbitohs 44-8, with Clint Chettle scoring four tries.
Litchfield and Palmerston to clash in emotional Mitchell Russell Shield
There will be emotion and passion aplenty when the undefeated Litchfield face reigning premiers in the annual Mitchell Russell Shield.
Darwin born DJ Mitchell Russell played for both clubs in a promising league career which was tragically cut short in a road crash in 2014.
Now he is remembered each year in the first meeting of the season between Palmerston Raiders and Litchfield Bears.
The Raiders are the current shield holders having triumphed in 2020 and retaining in both 2021 and 2022.
However, Litchfield are the only undefeated side left in 2023 and will be gunning to keep their run alive, particularly with the shield on the line.
Their young players – particularly Nathan Dixon and skipper Trent Wedding – have been standouts all season while Dillan Vanderburg and Brodie Race have run the show up front.
And with Jordan Lynas and David Jacobson making returns for the match, Bears will back their firepower to get the job done.
“There’s obviously a lot of emotion between both teams so going in there we know it’s going to be a grind all game,” Vanderburg said.
“It’s a big game, it means a lot to a lot of people so we need to be mentally prepared for it, the atmosphere is always good between our two teams so it’s going to be a fiery one.
“The whole situation is really good across the club at the moment, all the boys are positive going into each game and we just need to clean up some silly mistakes.
“Sticking into the game and really getting on the grind is what we love to do, when the boys get around each other and do what we need to do we get the results we need.”
Reigning premiers Palmerston have been stricken by injury and player unavailability at times this season, but a close-run loss to Darwin Brothers in Round 2 proved they’re still in the mix.
Mitchell’s brother David will be the emotional core of the side in this match, while well-tested teammates Blake Fletcher and Shane Smith are also expected to fire.
But coach Daniel Roach expects the biggest the return of Frank Johnson medallist Ed Murphy will give his side the biggest lift for this all-important fixture.
“It’s going to be a tough one, they’re in fine form and we’re going have to do a fair bit to match them,” Roach said.
“In saying that the Shield is on the line and it’s the sort of match which comes down to a bit of passion, it’s going to be one heck of a game.
“Once those boys hit the field the emotion will hit them and then it will be game on for the next 80 minutes, it’s something we’ve spoken about a lot particularly with David in the side.
“They’re fired up and ready to go. If my side can hold on to the ball and keep their discipline we will go a long way in this match.”
Elsewhere, Darwin Brothers will take on traditional rivals Nightcliff, while Northern Sharks will do battle with the South Darwin Rabbitohs.
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