We rank every win from round three of the 2022 TRL finals

With premiership hopes on the line and grand final spots on offer, Toowoomba Rugby League’s top teams thrilled fans with some exciting games. Check out our TRL Finals Power rankings here.

LEAGUE: With 80 minutes of football the difference between a shot a premiership glory and finals obscurity – Toowoomba Rugby League’s top teams saved their best for last at the weekend.

Toowoomba’s Clive Berghofer Stadium played host to four preliminary finals thrillers with 210 points scored across the matches.

With week three of the finals in the bank we’ve ranked the four winning performances.

4. Highfields Reserves

An early Highfields broadside all but decided the outcome of this game.

The Eagles were tremendous in the opening 15 minutes scoring 16 unanswered points.

Fortunately for the trailing Gatton Hawks they were eventually able to find their rhythm and kept the Eagles scoreless for the remainder of the opening half.

Much like the opening stanza the second half was all one-way traffic with the Eagles to secure a 40-4 win.

Six different players crossed the line for the Eagles in what was an excellent all-round performance.

3. Highfields Under-19

The opening 20 minutes of this match was a tense affair as both teams battled controlled – before Highfields blew the game wide open.

Connor Nicholls scored in the 21st minute and suddenly the floodgates were open.

Chad Lebsanft scored in the following set of six and Jai Purser also crossed the line to seal an 18-0 lead for the Eagles with the three tries scored in the space of four minutes.

Jayden Tucker scored for Warwick to reduce the gap to 18-4 at the break.

The Eagles picked up where they left off in the second half taking the score out to 24-10 before going on to secure a 36-10 win.

Just like their Reserve Grade clubmates the young Eagles built their success on the back of great team work.

2. Newtown Women

The Lions showed great resilience and composure against a fast finishing Goondiwindi.

After starting the game strongly, Newtown raced out to 18-6 lead at halftime off the back of a four tries to one performance.

With a handy lead in place Newtown were the favourites to head into the final, but Goondiwindi had other ideas.

Toni and Deb McGrady scored tries to level the scores at 18-18 to set up a thrilling finish.

With the match in the balance Tia Hinch scored to book Newtown’s first grand final spot.

1. Gatton A-grade

This one had it all.

Send-offs, sin bins and 15 tries.

Gatton Hawks get the plaudits here as 42-38 winners but Highfields were more than impressive in a game of the season contender.

The Hawks held a 28-18 advantage at halftime but it was anyone’s guess as to who would go to win the game.

The second half was a fiery encounter with Eagles centre Brenton Clement dismissed and his teammate Nick Bainbridge sent to the sin bin for dissent just minutes later.

The two teams traded hard tackles and tries throughout the second half in a back and forth contest.

Highfields never held the lead in the game but at the same time were never out of the contest with Gatton’s start all that ultimately separated the sides.

Jarrod Lee for Highfields. TRL Hutchinson Builders A Grade semi final, Gatton vs Highfields. Sunday, September 11, 2022. Picture: Nev Madsen.