Local Rugby League Wrap: All the latest local footy news from the big leagues around New South Wales 5/6 July

The new HNWP season started with a bang, a new top dog emerged in Cronulla, an underdog caused a boilover in Illawarra and a Newcastle side snapped a losing run in style. FULL STATEWIDE WRAP.

The start the Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership headlined a big weekend around the grounds in NSW and the ACT.

There’s a new outright ladder leader in Cronulla, a Newcastle contender

Catch up with all of that and more in our local footy wrap:

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HARVEY NORMAN WOMEN’S PREMIERSHIP

The premier NSW women’s competition returned at the weekend in line with the start of the NRLW.

It all began on Thursday as the Sharks played host to the Eels, with two late tries guiding Cronulla to a 26-18 victory.

Stephanie Faulkner put the Sharks in front with 10 minutes to play, before Tia-Jordyn Vasilovski sealed the win five minutes from time.

A Tess Staines masterclass saw the Knights recruit score four tries as Newcastle overcame Canterbury 20-14 at Belmore.

The former Eel and Tiger scored a second-half hat-trick with a Hannah Makira double not enough for the Bulldogs.

Mounties started strong and finished better to knock off St George 30-16.

They led 12-0 within six minutes, before finding themselves behind after a Jayme Millard double.

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Mounties was then able to score four tries over the final 19 minutes, including two to Charis Toli.

Defending premiers Illawarra got their title defence off to a winning start, taking down the Wests Tigers 32-14.

The Steelers shot out of the blocks to lead 18-0, before Tiresa Leasuasu helped get the Tigers back within eight.

Kiara Kostovski’s second of the afternoon settled the nerves and was enough to guide them home.

Penrith made a winning start to its first HNWP season, downing Central Coast 22-14.

A back-and-forth encounter saw the two locked at 10-all early in the second half, before Danica Talitonu and Abigayle Sekitoga were able to lift the Panthers to victory.

The Rabbitohs got their season off to a flyer, downing Wenworthville 22-20.

The two were evenly matched throughout, tied inside the final 10 minutes before Seli Mailangi spotted a gap from dummy half and put Souths ahead.

Yasmine Baker scored out wide to give Sarah Colman a chance to force a tie, but she was unable to slot the sideline conversion.

STANDINGS: Illawarra 2, Mounties 2, Penrith 2, Cronulla 2, Newcastle 2, South Sydney 2, Wentworthville 0, Canterbury 0, Parramatta 0, Central Coast 0, St George 0, Wests Tigers 0

Hannah Makira scored twice for Canterbury against Newcastle. Picture: Warren Gannon Photography

CANBERRA

Tuggeranong maintained pace with the top five after edging past Woden Valley 30-26.

Trailing by eight with 15 minutes remaining, the Bush Rangers had to dig deep.

They produced a miracle try, with Eddie Tiaina breaking the line and producing a no-look flick for Cooper Taekata to score.

Then they sealed the win with nine minutes remaining when Lachlan Davis scored his second with a strong effort close to the line.

Gungahlin remains in the mix after downing Goulburn City 22-10.

Apenisa Driti and Earldric Pehara both scored twice for the Bulls.

The Queanbeyan dominance continued at the top of the table.

The Blues were too strong for Belconnen United to the tune of 46-4, while Samuel Williams and Lucas Thomson both scored twice in a 56-4 Kangaroos rout of Yass.

STANDINGS: Kangaroos 16, Blues 16, West Belconnen 13, Woden Valley 11, Gungahlin 8, Tuggeranong 8, Belconnen United 7, Goulburn City 5, Yass 4

With three teams on a bye, just the two games of Katrina Fanning Shield action took place.

Woden Valley edged out Tuggeranong 22-14, while Gungahlin overpowered Goulburn City 48-10.

STANDINGS: West Belconnen 13, Woden Valley 13, Belconnen United 8, Gungahlin 8, Yass 6, Tuggernanong 4, Goulburn City 0

GROUP 9

Wagga Kangaroos suffered their first defeat of the season, going down to Gundagai 22-10.

A blistering first half saw the Tigers race out to an 18-0 advantage through Royce Tout, Derek Hay and Will Herring.

Troy Dasey made it 22-4 early in the second half and the Kangaroos had no response, their first blemish of the season.

Albury took the Challenge Cup, but went down in heartbreaking fashion as Young prevailed 23-22 at Greenfield Park.

A double to Viliame Cerai inspired the Thunder to a 22-16 margin inside the final 10 minutes, only for Josh Noakes to power his way over and tie things up.

Albury had a chance at field goal, but missed, with Thomas Giles going down the other end to slot it for the win.

Chase Bernard scored a hat-trick for Junee as they trounced Brothers 68-0.

Tumut sits in fourth after a Bayley Maher hat-trick inspired them to a 28-8 victory over Cootamundra.

Hamish Starr started and finished things for second-placed Temora as they held off a spirited South City, prevailing 26-10 at Harris Park.

STANDINGS: Wagga Kangaroos 20, Temora 17, Gundagai 16, Tumut 15, Young 12, Albury 10, Junee 8, South City 8, Cootamundra 4, Brothers 0

Troy Pieper was strong for the Canaries. Picture: Denis Ivaneza

ILLAWARRA

A stunning second half saw Dapto come back from 10-0 down to knock off Wests 24-14.

Tautau Moga had a first half double for Wests, before the fightback started with Troy Pieper putting Campbell Lyons over, before Jack Piccirilli capitalised on an error deep in Devils territory to level the scores.

Pieper and George Jennings traded blows, before Thomas Freebairn landed the knockout punch with eight minutes to play.

Thirroul claimed its third win of the season, stunning Collegians 38-24 at Thomas Gibson Park.

A dominant first half saw them open up a 22-4 advantage at the break, stretching it out to 30 before Collegiants scored four tries in 13 minutes to add some respectability to the score.

Joshua Latham, Elijah Paea and Khai Currie all scored doubles for De La Salle in a crushing 54-20 win over Corrimal.

STANDINGS: Collegians 14, Wests 10, De La Salle 10, Dapto 10, Thirroul 6, Corrimal 4

NEWCASTLE

Third and tenth is separated by just four points as the race for finals spots heats up.

Kurri Kurri defied a double from Mapu Uasi to shock South Newcastle 16-12.

The Bulldogs fought back from 8-0 down, with Jordi Madden starring in the second half, scoring a try and setting up Josh Moffitt with a perfect cross-field kick.

Cessnock ended a four-game losing run with a big 28-20 victory over Wests.

The two went back-and-forth for much of the afternoon as the Goannas held a slender two-point margin with 20 to play.

It became Cessnock’s for the keeping, first through a spectacular dive in the corner from Harvey Neville, before halfback Angus Ernst pounced on a Luke Huth grubber to seal the win.

Kurri Kurri scored a key win over Souths. Picture: Peter Lorimer

The Entrance climbed into a share of third with a thrilling 36-32 win over Macquarie.

The Scorpions outscored the Tigers seven tries to six, but the perfect boot of Nicholas Newman proved the difference, converting all six tries.

Doubles to Harley Ridge and Tony Pellow propelled The Entrance to a 36-22 lead with six minutes to go, and despite a Dean Morris hat-trick, Macquarie ultimately fell short.

Central Newcastle’s winning run extended to four after knocking off Lakes United 30-12.

The Butcher Boys were dominant throughout, leading 24-0 at halftime with a double to Ty Fletcher leading the way.

Maitland kept a share of top spot in dominant fashion, smashing Northern Hawks 38-4 with Ethan Parry scoring twice.

STANDINGS: Maitland 17, Wyong 17, Wests 14, Souths 14, Cessnock 14, The Entrance 14, Central 12, Kurri Kurri 12, Lakes United 10, Macquarie 10, Northern Hawks 2

Lakes United moved into outright second with a thrilling last-ditch 22-16 win over Central Newcastle.

The match was set for a certain draw, before Seagulls halfback Matilda Jones sliced through the defence, finding Sarah Stewart on her inside, who in turn had Tazmyne Luschwitz chasing to score the winner in thrilling style.

Maitland remains in top spot after a 30-14 win over Northern Hawks, with centre Leelah Marks scoring a double.

South Newcastle led from start to finish as it raced out 22-12 winners over Wests.

STANDINGS: Maitland 14, Lakes United 13, Central 10, Souths 9, Wests 6, Northern Hawks 6

PETER MCDONALD PREMIERSHIP

The competition had a league-wide bye.

STANDINGS: Dubbo CYMS 16, Mudgee 16, Orange CYMS 16, Forbes 15, Wellington 14, Bathurst St Pats 12, Orange Hawks 11, Dubbo Macquarie 8, Parkes 8, Nyngan 6, Bathurst Panthers 4, Lithgow 4

Gymea Gorillas claimed a win over Joeys at the weekend. Picture: Adam Wrightson Photography

SOUTHERN SYDNEY

Gymea sits alone at the top of the Cronulla tree after a surging 34-24 victory over Joeys at Corea Oval.

The task was tough for the Gorillas, trailing 18-0 just before the break and 24-12 midway through the second half.

The comeback started with Nick Pantelis touching down in the corner, before Lawson Cotter made a break to set up Corey Willis to bring the margin back to two.

It was complete when big Jordan Bradley spun his way to the line, with Ethan Ward sealing the crucial two points.

Blake Wardrobe scored a hat-trick for Bosco in a 40-4 win over Engadine, while Will Stewart did the same for De La Salle as they recorded the exact same scoreline, a 40-4 defeat of Como Jannali.

STANDINGS: Gymea 28, Bosco 26, Joeys 26, De La Salle 26, Como Jannali 15, Engadine 11

WOODBRIDGE CUP

Oberon is outright first after a thrilling 32-30 win over Cowra in a top of the table showdown.

Ryan Jervis scored twice for the Tigers as they overcame a sin bin in the second half.

Ricky Whitton and Sam Ingram both scored two for the Magpies as they just fell short.

Trundle caused a major upset as they handed Manildra its second defeat of the season with a 38-22 win at Berryman Oval.

Oscar Ryan was at his best with a hat-trick for the Boomers as they turned in their best performance of the season.

Cargo scored its first win of the season in a high-scoring 32-26 victory on home soil.

The Blue Heelers led 16-10 at the break and looked all set for victory after Daniel Madden’s second extended their lead to 12 inside the final five minutes.

Curtis Wykamp helped set up a grandstand finish, but Cargo held on late.

Robert Beilby had a double for Peak Hill in a 50-0 defeat of Condobolin, while Andrew Bennett scored twice for Canowindra as they downed Molong 42-10.

STANDINGS: Oberon 20, Manildra 18, Cowra 18, Canowindra 14, Orange United 14, Trundle 14, Peak Hill 13, Condobolin 12, Molong 11, Eugowra 10, Grenfell 6, Cargo 4

Originally published as Local Rugby League Wrap: All the latest local footy news from the big leagues around New South Wales 5/6 July