FOOTBALL WRAP: We name QLD’s top footballers and volunteers
STATE WRAP: From Cairns to the Gold Coast we’re shining a light on the state’s best grassroots competition. Find out who from your club cracked our top male and female players list here.
Sport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Sport. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The football action was exciting and fast across Queensland at the weekend.
Here’s our look at the best matches, players and the upcoming fixtures you need to watch.
Information in this column is provided and written by the Football Queensland Media Team.
Far North and Gulf
Southside Comets FC are through to the Kappa Queensland Cup regional final after a thrilling victory in their Round 5 clash with FQPL Northern heavyweights Brothers Townsville at Paradise Park in Townsville over the weekend.
The Comets opened the scoring courtesy of well-placed William Monin penalty and controlled the first half, before Haidyn Smith was sent-off at half time.
Brothers hit back shortly after the break to even proceedings at one-all, but it wasn’t long before substitute Kanja Kamara gave the visitors the advantage once again.
Being a man down didn’t help the Comets, with Brothers managing to once again square things up with just under 20 minutes left, with the match eventually ending two-all after 90 minutes.
A tight period of extra time followed as both sides defended valiantly to send the match to penalties.
Comets goalkeeper Michael Hood stepped up to the occasion, producing two brilliant saves to deny Brothers, with the Comets prevailing 3-2 in one of the matches of the tournament so far.
Southside Comets FC will now face FQPL Whitsunday Coast side Magpies FC or regional football powerhouses Across The Waves in the Regional Final for a place in the Kappa Queensland Cup Quarter Finals.
Results
Men
Redlynch Strikers 4 def Mareeba United 1
Stratford Dolphins 0 def by Marlin Coast Rangers 4
Postponed: Leichhardt FC vs. Edge Hill Tigers
Women
Postponed: Leichhardt Lions vs. Edge Hill Tigers
Postponed: Innisfail United vs. Southside Comets
Redlynch Strikers 10 def Mareeba United 2
Preview
We’ve got a box office top of the table men’s clash coming your way this Saturday night.
Round 10 sees leaders Marlin Coast Rangers face reigning Champions Leichhardt FC for the second time this season.
In their first meeting, the two sides shared the points in a one-all draw at Pennell Field.
Both sides remain undefeated so far in 2024, with Marlin Coast sitting five points ahead of Leichhardt on the ladder having played an extra game and the Lions drawing one extra match.
Get down to Leichhardt FC to catch all the action in what should be a gripping contest between two premiership rivals.
Fixtures
Men
Saturday, May 18
Innisfail United vs. Edge Hill United, Tiger Park, 7pm
Stratford Dolphins vs. Redlynch Strikers, Nick Brko Field, 7pm
Marlin Coast Rangers vs. Leichhardt FC, Leichhardt FC, 7pm
Sunday, May 19
Southside Comets vs. Mareeba United, Walker Road, 5pm
Women
Friday, May 17
Southside Comets vs. Mareeba United, Walker Road, 8.30pm
Saturday, May 18
Innisfail United vs. Edge Hill Tigers, Tiger Park, 5pm
The Sky’s The Limit For The Comets
South Coast
We were treated to some blockbuster matches across the FQPL South Coast competitions last weekend.
While there was only one match played in the men’s competition, the women’s competition was full of drama to conclude Female Football Week. We take a look at the players who performed best for their teams, as voted by the coaches
Men
Palm Beach vs Runaway Bay 4-1
Runaway Bay: Sam Wakeham 3, Thirone Correia 2, Reilly Piezas 1
Women
Palm Beach vs. Northern Rivers 1-0
Palm Beach: Alexandra Papalexiou 3, Syenna Thomas 2, Brydie Chandler 1.
Runaway Bay vs. Coomera 1-0
Runaway Bay: Kayla Fraser 3, Olivia Haines 2, Laura Hogg 1.
Nerang vs Musgrave 1-7
Nerang: Chinara Lau 3, Nahdia McClymont 2, Laura Phillips 1.
Musgrave: Chanelle Slyp 3, Georgia Grosskreutz 2, Sophie Bui, 1
NPL Men Match Preview
The current National Premier League (NPL) men’s league leaders Gold Coast Knights face off against second placed Lions FC in an eye-watering matchup between two of Queensland’s biggest and best football clubs.
Sitting six points clear atop of the tree after 10 matches, Knights could make a real statement in their premiership defence with a win at Luxury Paints Stadium.
A 4-1 demolition of struggling Redlands United last weekend will put Knights in a confident mood, however two goal hero Bradden Inman will be a doubt after sustaining an apparent hamstring injury in the 25th minute last weekend.
While Inman has led the line well for Knights this season, they still possess plenty of firepower in the form of Godfrey Debele, Sam Klein, Joel Russell and rising star David Bolongi.
Standing in the way of a potential 8th league win in a row are Lions, who dismantled Wynnum Wolves 7-0 last weekend to leapfrog the Wolves into second place on the ladder. Boasting a fearsome attacking line of their own, Lions and Knights look to be the two sides to beat heading into the second half of the season.
The match kicks off at 7pm on Saturday night at Luxury Paints Stadium in Richlands.
Whitsunday Coast
Round 8 of the FQPL Whitsunday Coast was heavily affected by the wet weather, with only one match played across the men and women’s competitions.
Country United hosted Magpies FC at Tiger Park on Friday night, resulting in a high-scoring contest with 11 goals scored.
Magpies FC made a strong start, finding the back of the net within the first minute of the match.
They maintained their momentum, heading into halftime with a commanding 3-1 lead.
The second half saw Magpies continue their dominance, scoring three quick goals to extend their lead.
Despite a brief resurgence from Country United, with two goals in as many minutes, Magpies FC responded with another two goals to secure an impressive 8-3 victory.
Round 9 fixtures
Women
Friday, May 17
Dolphins FC v Country United, Dolphins Park, 8pm
Magpies FC v Mackay Lions, Magpies FC, 8pm
City Brothers v Mackay Wanderers, City Brothers Field, 8pm
Saturday, May 18
Mackay Rangers v Whitsunday United, Rangers FC, 6pm
Men
Saturday, May 18
City Brothers v Whitsunday United, City Brothers Field, 7pm
Mackay Lions v Mackay Wanderers, Lions Field, 7pm
Darling Downs
Footballers throughout Australia celebrated Female Football Week last weekend.
In our own backyard, USQ held a female only level 4 refereeing course at Tora Park last Saturday, while Football Queensland broadcast the top of the table FQPL 3 Darling Downs women’s matchup between Willowburn White and Highfields Green.
“Female Football Week 2024 was an incredibly special celebration of all the women and girls involved in shaping and advancing our game across Queensland,” Football Queensland CEO, Robert Cavallucci said.
“Throughout the week it was exciting to see so many clubs and members from the Queensland football community coming together across the regions to participate in and deliver various programs aimed at celebrating, acknowledging, and supporting the football journeys of their female referees, coaches, volunteers, and players.”
Review
The Darling Downs FQPL competition rolls on, with some high scoring matches and surprise results around the grounds. Check out the 3-2-1’s as voted for by the coaches!
Men
Highfields FC vs St Albans (3-2)
Highfields FC: Daniel Heit, 3 Chase Miller, 2 Matthew Eilers, 1
St Albans: Bailey McDonald, 3 Scott Forknall, 2 Lachie Atkinson, 1
Warwick Wolves vs West Wanderers (1-2)
Warwick Wolves: Liam Hackenberg, 3 Harry Mcmahon, 2 Tarj Willmot, 1
West Wanderers: Callum Zadow, 3 Ryan Knight, 2 Saher Khidir, 1
Willowburn vs Gatton Redbacks (1-4)
Willowburn: Zachary Lucido, 3 Matt Meiklejohn, 2 Trent Ingleton, 1
Gatton: Adam Halstead, 3 Nicholas Edwards, 2 Ian Nagle, 1
Women
Highfields Gold vs. Chinchilla (0-6)
Highfields Gold: Sienna Schmaling, 3 Leah Harrison, 2 April Mammino, 1
Chinchilla: Mikayla Mason, 3 Jorja Keating, 2 Annie Johnson, 1
Highfields Green vs. Rockville Rovers (4-1)
Highfields Green: Marlina-Rae Pern, 3 Chloe O’rourke, 2 Bridget Peden, 1
Rockville Rovers: Madison Lockwood, 3 Jessica Spence, 2 Christina Harman, 1
Warwick Wolves vs. USQFC (3-2)
Warwick: Lucy Waldron, 3 Emmaline Newley, 2 Elise Wyvill, 1
USQFC: Peppa Hoare, 3 Tobi Hamilton, 2 Joyce De Wit, 1
Willowburn Black vs. Willowburn White (2-7)
Willowburn Black: Tanieka Knowles, 3 Jade Gaske, 2 Amber Moon, 1
Willowburn White: Steffanie Goodwin, 3 Zoe Doyle, 2 Emily Clarke, 1
Northern
In a fiercely contested matchup in the men’s Regional Round 5 of the Kappa Queensland Cup, Brothers Townsville clashed with Far North and Gulf qualifiers, Southside Comets at Hi Vista Park on Saturday.
Despite a hard-fought battle, the match concluded with both teams deadlocked at 2-2 by full-time.
With extra time failing to produce an outcome, the only option left was a penalty shootout.
The tension was high during the penalty shootout, keeping spectators on the edge of their seats. Despite their best efforts, Brothers suffered a narrow 3-2 loss, in what proved to be an intense battle of the ages.
Results
Round 8 results and top performers from the weekend recognised by their coaches:
Women
Townsville Warriors 0-3 Brothers Townsville
Darcy Bailey 3, Emily Benton 2, Addison Corrie-Bolger 1
Burdekin FC 0-3 MA Olympic FC
Riverway JCU 3-2 Saints Eagles South
Jessica Loto 3, Janae Pearce 2, Flore Wormi 1
Men
Burdekin FC 1-3 MA Olympic FC
Tom Berzinski 3, Daniel O’Donovan 2, Padraic Glasheen 1
Estates FC 4-0 Rebels FC
Juma Hussein 3, George Coleman 2, Diego Benitez 1
Riverway JCU 4–1 Saints Eagles South
Mateo Campbell-Ruiz 3, Zach Knight 2, Mark Gadzikwa1
FQPL Northern Round 9 Fixtures
Women
Saturday, May 18
Townsville Warriors v Brothers Townsville, Melrose Park, 5pm
Burdekin FC v MA Olympic FC, International Park, 5pm
Riverway JCU v Saints Eagles South, Joe Baker Field JCU, 5:30pm
Men
Saturday, May 18
MA Olympic FC vs Estates FC, Olympic Park, 6pm
Rebels FC vs Saints Eagles Souths, Greenwood Park, 7pm
Sunday, May 19
Townsville Warriors vs Riverway JCU, Melrose Park, 4pm
Brothers Townsville vs Burdekin FC, Hi Vista Park, 7pm
Harvey Norman U19 countdown: Western Clydesdales
Harvey Norman junior rugby league countdown: Everything you need to know ahead of the Harvey Norman under-19s Western Clydesdales 2025 season.
’One of the quickest players I have seen’: TRL club makes massive signing
TRL TRACKER: There is excitement around one TRL club after it made two explosive signings ahead of the 2025 season, including a player who the coach describes as “one of the fastest players seen”. Check out all the major TRL signings in our tracker here.
NAMED: The 80+ stars of Darling Downs junior football
With the new year upon us, we are shining a light on the Darling Downs junior football stars who were unstoppable in 2024 and those who are set to make their mark in 2025.
Eels pay heartfelt tribute to great dad and husband at carnival
Clad in a specially designed bright yellow and blue jersey, a league team paid special tribute to a ‘father and husband’ lost after a tragic event. See the tribute here as well as all the action from annual Warriors Reconciliation Carnival.
Search for the next Konstas: The guns flying at U17 nationals
NSW Metro skipper Yash Deshmukh spun his side to victory in a player of the match display in Thursday’s under-17 male national cricket championships final over Queensland. Get the full wrap up of the tournament at Launceston here.
Brown reveals how he will top near perfect V8 Supercars title win
V8 Supercars ace Will Brown is not satisfied with a ‘near perfect’ championship win. Less than a month out from the start of his title defence he has revealed how he will improve on 2024 victory.