Sunshine Coast rugby league mid-season report card: Every team graded, analysed

The Sunshine Coast rugby league season has flown by as we uncover our mid-season report cards. See each sides grade, predictions and who the coaches have named as their key players.

Sunshine Coast rugby league mid-season report cards.

After 11 rounds of enthralling rugby league across the Sunshine Coast, we’ve passed over the halfway point of the 2023 senior men’s and women’s seasons.

With just seven rounds in the regular season remaining, teams are still battling it out for their place in the finals.

In a rollercoaster season of unpredictable results from both divisions, we’ve spoken to every head coach to gauge their side’s strengths, weaknesses, standout recruits and debutants and come up with a grade for their season so far.

Read below to see how each team is tracking and our predictions for the end of the season.

All coaches were contacted before the time of publishing.

MEN’S DIVISION 1

BEERWAH BULLDOGS: 1st

Wins: 11 Losses: 0 Draws: 0 Pts: 44

Coach: Brett Hill

Beerwah Rugby League coach Brett Hill and captain Daniel Kidd. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Best recruits or debutants: “We’ve got a front rower from Gympie in Rowan Jardine who has been outstanding for us. Then also a young local junior Jackson Kite who has been outstanding for us actually. We are trying to blood a few youngsters along the way and everyone’s buying in. We’ve actually used 28 players this year with the amount of injuries we’ve had so it’s been a good club effort.”

Biggest strength: “Definitely our defence, we put in a real good pre-season and worked on our fitness a fair bit. We’ve also been working on our discipline as over the past few years we’ve been a bit slack. We’re keeping the penalties down now a little bit which helps but our defence has been good all year.”

Need improvement: “Our cohesion. Even though we’re winning we don’t seem to be getting to where we want to be. We’re sort of fumbling and bumbling around because there’s new players in new positions so it’s taken a little bit longer. Our defence is keeping us in it but if we can get out attack right it will make us a bit more formidable.”

Season expectation: “To still improve our attack and keep our defence where it is.We’ve got to keep trying to keep the penalties down so we get a fair share of the ball and if we can do that I think we’ll be hard to beat.”

Prediction: It’s hard to see any side stopping Beerwah at the moment. At this rate they should secure an early finals series match at home and a win there would go a long way in helping them secure their elusive division one premiership. They were there last year when they went down 26-18 to Maroochydore and the old saying ‘you’ve got to lose one to win one’ may finally ring true for the Bulldogs in 2023.

Overall mid-season grade: A+

KAWANA DOLPHINS: 2nd

Wins: 7 Losses: 3 Draws: 1 Pts: 30

Coach: Andrew Hinson

Jackson Whitby in action for the Kawana Dolphins. Picture: R.J.Jarman

Best recruits or debutants: “Jackson Russell is one who is really playing some good footy. He’s a young halfback that we’ve had come through the grades and he’s had a massive pre-season with us. At the start of the year I was wondering where he would fit in the team but his tenacity and skill has helped him force his way into the starting halfback spot. The other one I’d say would be Jackson Whitby who just turned up at the club and has been playing a bit of fullback, centre and five-eight and is another one that’s really bought into what we’re doing.”

Biggest strength: “It prolly a double edge sword but our strength has been the way we hustle and work hard in defence. We’ve been on the ropes a few times throughout the year but we just seem to work really hard for each other through our scramble defence.”

Need improvement: “I guess on the other side which is a bit of a contradiction is that our aggression and tenacity in defence can sometimes be a little bit low as we’re a bit like rocks and diamonds at times. There’s still some chinks in the armour which we’re trying to fix up but have definitely been improving.”

Season expectation: “We set the goals at the start of the year that we want to be playing semi final football and I think we definitely have a team to achieve that. We need to be doing everything right between now and then to make sure we’re there at the end of the year. Our focus for the back half of the season is to continue building those combinations and getting ready for the pointy end of the year.”

Prediction: I think a key talking point was following the 2023 Presidents Cup match were Kawana held a 20-4 lead before being chased down and defeated 28-20. The teams then met again the following week were the match ended 12-6 but again showed that the Dolphins have what it takes to compete against the best. The Dolphins should win a minimum of five from their final seven matches of the regular season and will have everyone‘s eyes on them when they meet Beerwah in round 16 at home. They’ve established themselves as the clear key contender this season and have shown key growth week to week.

Overall mid-season grade: A-

NOOSA PIRATES: 3rd

Wins: 5 Losses: 6 Draws: 0 Pts: 20

Coach: Mick Duff

The Noosa Pirates 2023 men's team. Picture: Facebook.

Best recruits or debutants: “Zane Embleton was one of our Noosa juniors but played senior footy for the Pomona Cooran Cutters last year and got C-grade player of the year. He came back to us this season wanting to make a-grade and has quickly established himself as one of our strike centres. He’s been improving and getting better week-in-week-out so he’s been exceptional and will only get better as he’s only 22 or 23. In saying that, some other guys we’ve picked up like BJ Richardson has been outstanding in the back row. He’s brought in massively into our culture and brings a lot of fun and excitement to the game which is good. The others would be George Fisher and Vincent Law who, when they’re available, have been awesome for us.”

Biggest strength: “Trying to get our full strength team on the field has been impossible, we haven't been able to do it yet. I think what that does show is our solid club depth and that we’re still able to be quite competitive. We’ve been able to score tries, there’s no issue there and with Beerwah just a little bit in front of us for points scored.”

Need improvement: “Our defence, because we‘ve had so many injuries and so many chops and changes it’s been our biggest grief. We haven’t been able to put games away in situations we should’ve won and collected some points.”

Season expectation: “I’m really aiming to come somewhere in that top four, there’s no doubt about that. Everyone wants to be there for finals and we’ve definitely got the side to do it. We were again down on troops but I think our match against Beerwah was a decent guide to where we sit and what we've got to do to be there at the end.”

Prediction: It’s been an up and down year for the Pirates. Coming into the season I had them as my clear darkhouse selection and I believe they still fit that mould with the amount of injuries and changes they’ve had to endure. Their matchup against Kawana at home this weekend will be a clear guide as to where they rank and a win should see their finals spot as theirs to lose. They should win a minimum of four matches during their run home and fingers crossed they get a full strength side against Beerwah in round 17. Duff has put in a solid effort this year with his ‘flair-filled’ Pirates and although their current record doesn’t show it, I still believe they could make it to the grand final and give Kawana and Beerwah a real shake-up.

Overall mid-season grade: B

NAMBOUR CRUSHERS: 4th

Wins: 5 Losses: 6 Draws: 0 Pts: 20

Coach: Ken Kerr

Nambour Crushers senior men. Picture: Facebook.

Best recruits or debutants: “Myles Gal has come in and done a real good job. We’ve juggled our front row a fair bit over the past few months but he’s come in and filled a spot which has been good. One guy that hasn’t played for eight odd years but has just made a comeback is Luke Blumke. He used to be in the Falcons system but just quit and took an extended break from the game and is back now and is absolutely killing it. He gets his job done every week in the back row and has been quality.”

Biggest strength: “Up until a few weeks ago it had been our defence. We weren’t scoring a heap of points but we were holding teams out really well. With the injuries and replacements it’s been tough.”

Need improvement: “Just with the injuries and ins and outs it’s been tough to really click as a team but we should get a few guys back in the coming weeks and have a more settled team which will be nice.”

Season expectation: “I’d love to get our full strength team back on the field and have them fit and ready. There’s still a bit to go and I think we’ll peak again and kick on again before the finals.

Prediction: After picking up the wooden spoon in 2022, the Crushers have stamped their feet on the competition with new recruits and what looks to be a new approach on-field. Injuries and squad rotation has again been Nambour’s achilles heel but they should see some key players returning in the coming weeks. Five straight losses have the Crushers scratching their heads at the moment but four home games out of their last seven should see them pick up at least four wins if they are serious about playing finals footy.

Overall mid-season grade: B-

MAROOCHYDORE SWANS: 5th

Wins: 4 Losses: 6 Draws: 1 Pts: 18

Coach: Bart Hold

Maroochydore Swans player Jackson Moule in action in the Sunshine Coast rugby league 2022 grand final. Picture: Phil Bradeley

Best recruits or debutants: “Seaton Reid joined us after round four and he’s been massive for us. He’s an experienced lad, won player of the competition in 2021 at Noosa so he’s been a great pick-up.”

Biggest strength: “I’d say our camaraderie and spirit at the club. We went through a fair bit in the off-season and pre-season but we’ve been able to handle everything that’s been thrown at us and I think that reflects on the field as well.”

Need improvement: “Just juggling our team each week with young lads coming in and out, players away for work and things like that. Our team changes a bit from time to time so I wouldn’t call it a weakness because I think it’s good for the club in the long run giving these young kids a crack.”

Season expectation: “We’re just taking it in three game blocks at the moment so we don’t have anything set in stone in what we want to achieve. That’s how we’ve been dealing with the competition this year and it seems to be going okay so far.”

Prediction: If someone said four months ago that the Swans would be competing for a spot in the top four they probably would’ve been under the influence. After winning the competition in 2022, failing to field a team in pre-season and then announcing their ambition to compete in a-grade at the 11th hour, the Swans have earned plenty of respect this season. Led by new head coach Bart Hold alongside captain and club legend Tom Geraghty, Maroochydore have relied on reserve grade and younger players to step up in a big way this season. Yes, they still have had top calibre players from their premiership winning side such as Oscar Crawley, John Mclaughlin and Jackson Moule, but after being left with just five returning A-grade players it’s been a season full of tough and solid performances from the green and white. Recent wins against Coolum, Caboolture and Nambour have the Swans sitting just one win outside of the top four and some key wins at home in the coming weeks could see them sneak into the finals.

Overall mid-season grade: B+

CALOUNDRA SHARKS: 6th

Wins: 4 Losses: 7 Draws: 0 Pts: 16

Coaches: Craig Cleary and Leigh De Jersey

Caloundra Sharks a-grade players Tyrell Hopkins, Kaedyn Philemon and Liam Smith pictured after making their senior debut. Picture: Facebook.

Best recruits or debutants: “Rueben Olive, he obviously came to us from Maroochydore in the off-season and I think he’s having the best season he’s had in many years. He’s been dominant and strong and arguably our best player every week. Haydin Elsebach has also been killing it. He’s fit in really well and same for Travin Baumann who’s come from Hervey Bay and he’s proving quite hard to handle.”

Biggest strength: “It‘s a very close competition, I think we’ve dropped two games that we really should’ve won which is frustrating but had we have won those we’d be sitting a lot more comfortable than we are. The big thing for us is that we’ve debuted six of our under 19s this year already. They’ve proven to be really strong which is great for them and great for the future of our club. Our points scoring has been a lot better this year than it has in the past two seasons. Like most clubs it’s about your depth so we’ve been knocked around a bit too but in saying that the young players we’ve bought through have stepped up to the mark.

Need improvement: “The biggest thing we‘re looking at fixing is our completion rate. As I said we can score but we’ve got to get our attack flowing a bit better and at the moment there are just far too many mistakes.

Season expectation: “We’ve got to make the finals. That’s our goal to be within the top four.”

Prediction: The Sharks now only play one of their final seven matches at home and after giving up crucial points at home during the first half of the season it may seem a step too far for what is a young Caloundra outfit to make the top four this season. There are some great, exciting rising stars in the mix and they will definitely prove as a key contending side for years to come, especially if they can keep their spine intact.

Overall mid-season grade: C+

CABOOLTURE SNAKES: 7th

Wins: 4 Losses: 7 Draws: 0 Pts: 16

Coach: Mitch Buckett

Caboolture Snakes player Luke Ford.

Best recruits or debutants: “It’s probably a few of the guys that have come up from reserve grade and cemented their spots for the year. Ash Comer has been going really well, Mark Stimson has been in the team for a few years now but is having a standout year and same with Mateaus Chankay.“

Biggest strength: “It’s hard because we go away from it but our biggest strength is when we stick to our structure, we kick long and bring good energy in defence.”

Need improvement: “To stay in the game for the full 80 minutes. Not wavering in and out of the games and sticking to it as we’ve probably only played two full games this season.”

Season expectation: “Definitely still aiming to play finals. We know we’ve put it to every team we’ve played against, we just switch off.”

Prediction: There’s still room for improvement out of the Caboolture Snakes outfit who have tried turning their home ground into a fortress in 2023 and will be reliant on more key victories across the final seven matches. The Snakes have only dropped three games at home this season and will get to play Caloundra, Kawana and Maroochydore in the coming weeks at the snake-pit which could be the push they need to squeeze into finals contention. After seeing most of the same players return to the Snakes in pre-season from 2022, I think it‘s fair that many expected more out of the men in yellow and black this season. In saying that, the Snakes found themselves in a similar position this time last year and just missed out on the top four after going on a solid win streak. Don’t count them out just yet.

Overall mid-season grade: C

COOLUM COLTS: 8th

Wins: 2 Losses: 7 Draws: 2 Pts: 12

Coach: Matt Smith

Coolum Colts winger Matt Withers contests a high ball against Noosa. Picture: PattmanSport.

Best recruits or debutants: “Definitely our two New Zealand recruits, by a fair way. That would be Hsed Faaee and Isaac Jones, their really holding us together and performing really well. It was a little bit of a slow start to adjust and get used to our competition but now they’ve really stepped up to the mark and are both playing some really good footy.”

Biggest strength: “Our defence is definitely helping us stay in games definitely. It’s been really good and it’s been holding us in good stead.”

Need improvement: “We probably should’ve won more games but we’re just asking a little bit in our attack at the moment. We’re just not on the mark at the moment and not taking our chances but with new players it’s a continuous work in progress. Here’s hoping we can click sooner rather than later.”

Season expectation: “Now that we’ve played everyone once we know that we’re competitive. We know we’re around the mark and hoping to squeeze into the top four as a realistic aim.”

Prediction: It’s been a solid season for the Colts in 2023. After picking up three division two premierships in the last four seasons, the Colts made a push to compete in the a-grade competition for the first time since 1989. After stamping their feet on the competition with a 6-6 draw to Kawana in round one it was clear that Coolum weren’t to be taken lightly. After only two wins and two draws it’s easy to look at their seven losses but those defeats have been by an average of only 3.4 points. I think it’s fair to say that Coolum have well and truly held their own in their debut season and many are excited to watching them build in the coming years.

Overall mid-season grade: B

WOMEN’S DIVISION 1

KAWANA DOLPHINS: 1st

Wins: 8 Losses: 0 Draws: 2 Pts: 40

Head Coach: Geoff Wheeler

Kawana Dolphins senior women's player Suvanaha Connors in action. Picture: R.J.JARMAN Photography.

Standout players: “The standouts for us so far this season have been the two players we‘ve got back from the BMD competition in Tyla Mitchell and Ellie Williamson. The biggest standout from the players that we already had has been our front rower Krystal Must. She’s been an absolute workhorse and has pretty much laid the platform for most of our wins this season and was key in the nines competition and the Presidents Cup.”

Biggest strength: “Our attack, we know we can score tries with the players and combinations we have. The teamwork as well this year has been great, all the girls are so happy to come to training and game days and really get on well as a team.”

Need improvement: “It’s just been our defence that sometimes lets us down and we know we need to still improve in a few areas. I wouldn’t call it a weakness but an area that could improve would be our game sense. Just knowing what to do at certain times on the field.”

Season expectation: “As a group we really want to take all four competitions and trophies that are on offer this year. We’ve taken the nines, we’ve taken the Presidents Cup and so we really want to win the minor premiership and ultimately the grand final. We’re just trying to keep all of the girls fit and healthy for the back half of the season.”

Prediction: The Dolphins have proven themselves as the clear top team this season scoring the most points of any team and holding the second best defensive record behind Caboolture, who sit in second. When the two sides met in round seven it was a 28 all draw with both sides taking plenty of positives and negatives from the match. Kawana are still the team to beat and rightly so, but it‘s only by a narrow margin and makes for a very exciting run home.

Overall mid-season grade: A

CABOOLTURE SNAKES: 2nd

Wins: 7 Losses: 1 Draws: 1 Pts: 38

Head Coach: Raymond Totoro

Standout players: “I think our whole team has worked really well as a unit this year. I wouldn’t say anyone has been a clear star but it’s great to see them working together and getting some good results.”

Biggest strength: “Our forwards. They’ve been our strength this season.”

Need improvement: “Our biggest thing is just commitment to training. If we can improve there and get some quality numbers each week we can go a long way.”

Season expectation: “Like every coach will say, we want to win the whole competition.”

Prediction: Big wins and brute force have been the hallmark of Cabooltures victories this season with the Snakes forward pack proving too big and too powerful to stop. The side has produced an average winning margin of 31.7 points this season and get the chance to play top of the table Kawana at home in round 15. The result in that match will play a big part in who comes away with the 2023 minor premiership and who gets a home final.

Overall mid-season grade: A-

CALOUNDRA SHARKS: 3rd

Wins: 6 Losses: 2 Draws: 2 Pts: 32

Head Coach: Trevor Conroy

Caloundra Sharks 2022 Sunshine Coast rugby league open women's winners. Picture: Phil Bradeley - Sports Photography

Prediction: The 2022 premiers are safe in the top three after a solid overall season. The Sharks have shown they can match it with both Caboolture and Kawana this season and will face both sides away during the final six rounds. Caloundra have the experience and the know-how of what it takes to win it all and new head coach Trevor Conroy is keeping his cards close to his chest.

Overall mid-season grade: B-

BEERWAH BULLDOGS: 4th

Wins: 4 Losses: 5 Draws: 0 Pts: 24

Head Coach: Rebecca Jones

Beerwah Bulldogs senior women's players in action. Picture: Facebook

Standout players: “We’ve had a few players come back from the BMD premiership so ones like Jordan Jackson and Annette Brander have been great. As well as Stefanie Gallagher who’s been great, RJ Richardson who made it to the Central Queensland Crows this year at fullback and quite a few newbies as well who seem to be getting better as the weeks go on.”

Biggest strength: “I think having that good mixture of experience and youth. I think going towards the back end of the season we’ll draw on that experience but also look to those younger players and have them continue to progress and improve. At the moment it seems like we have a player who really shines or does something incredible each week which is great but if we can get a bit more consistency and have everyone standing tall at the right time it would go a long way.”

Need improvement: “Something that we’re still working on is our line speed and our overall communication. We’ve shown that we can do that in glimpses or in stages of games which has been really positive but we need to be doing that from the start until the end.”

Season expectation: “Just to keep that consistency in our performances. The main thing is having good ball possession, we’ve had games where we would turn over quite a bit of ball and end up getting gassed. The fact that we’re keeping hold of the footy much more has shown the girls we can play to structure and compete strongly.”

Prediction: Sitting nicely in the top four by six points it would be Beerwah‘s finals spot to lose. The Bulldogs play a further four matches at home and also get two bye rounds before the start of the finals. As touched on by Jones, it’s been rocks or diamonds from the Bulldogs this season but they have shown they can compete against the top half of the ladder.

Overall mid-season grade: B-

NOOSA PIRATES: 5th

Wins: 3 Losses: 6 Draws: 1 Pts: 18

Head coach: Robert Burgin

The Noosa Pirates 2023 women's team. Picture: Facebook.

Standout players: “I think Emily Garrett making the Central Crows squad has cemented her as a standout player. We’ve been telling her for a few years now that she could go to a higher level and I think now she’s really starting to believe in herself which has been great. Keara Woods our fullback and is only in her first year but is playing really well and has plenty of involvements across the paddock. Our captain and halfback Kat Anderson has been topping the tackle count and is always leading the way with her enthusiasm. I know she was at the top of the best and fairest voting when they last released the votes so that‘s really overdue recognition for her as she’s been a great player for a lot of years. The last one would be Maria Graf, who we bought over from Brazil. She’s done very well and I think her efforts are going to change a lot of people’s perceptions of where we can grow the game.”

Biggest strength: “When we defend well we give ourselves good opportunities in attack. It all comes off the back of when we get stuck in, in the middle.”

Need improvement: “I think it‘s just consistency. We still quite often pull together a set where we do 90 per cent of things well but just one person turns their head and isn’t looking or they don’t slide in defence which can cost you a try. We’ve just got to get out of those habits I think.”

Season expectation: “Definitely I think we still have to look at being one of those top four teams. That’s been our big weakness the past few years is that we compete well against the bottom half of the ladder but not against the top. If we can snag a few wins along the way against those top teams it will put us in a good position for the rest of the season.”

Prediction: Matches away from home have seemed to be the Pirates‘ enemy this season with the women in blue and yellow yet to lose a match at their home ground. Four of their final six matches will be played at home but they will be against top half teams. They would have to pick up a win away against either Beerwah or Nambour, plus win at least two matches at home to be in with a shot at securing a place in the top four. Noosa have taken a big step this year, playing a more structured brand of footy that compliments their attacking flair and with the last spot in the finals still up for grabs, the Pirates are in with a real shot at making it their own.

Overall mid-season grade: C+

GYMPIE DEVILS: 6th

Wins: 2 Losses: 7 Draws: 0 Pts: 16

Head Coach: Michael Buckley

Gympie Devils women's players Amy Atkinson and Caite Sing.

Standout players: “Caitlin Sing has been outstanding and Amy Atkinson. They’re both going really good and we’ve got a lot of new players that have never played the game before so it’s been a struggle but we’re working through it as best we can.”

Biggest strength: “I think we’ve learnt to take the good times with the bad times. When you’ve got new players having their first crack it takes time to adjust and to learn but that’s also been good seeing them improve and take positives out of each result.”

Need improvement: “Probably falls under the same thing, we’ve just got a heap of new players so it’s taking some time for them to adapt and get a better understanding of the game.”

Season expectation: “Just to finish the season to be honest. We’re just trying to keep a team on the paddock and compete. We’ve got quite a few players that work away so we only get them every few weeks which makes it tough.”

Prediction: It’s been another tough season for the Devils women‘s side. Having to fight to field a team each week makes getting results tough for Buckley and his side but when fit and when available the Devils have produced a good brand of footy.

Overall mid-season grade: C+

NAMBOUR CRUSHERS: 7th

Wins: 0 Losses: 9 Draws: 0 Pts: 8

Head Coach: Yolanda McKewin

The 2023 Nambour Crushers women's team. Picture: Facebook.

Prediction: A tough season is an understatement for Yolanda McKewin and her side with the Crushers unable to record a victory in the seven matches they have officially played this season. The side has blooded plenty of young talent and look to have some promising players if they can keep players retention high next season.

Overall mid-season grade: D

Originally published as Sunshine Coast rugby league mid-season report card: Every team graded, analysed