Live stream: FNQ Rugby League junior and senior 2024 grand finals
It came down to the first Saturday in September as a blockbuster clash between Brothers and Ivanhoe headlined a massive day of FNQRL junior and senior men’s grand finals. Relive the action inside.
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It all came down to this.
After 21 weeks of nailbiters, big hits, try saving wins, heartbreak and much more, the FNQ Rugby League came to an end for season 2024 with an action-packed Saturday of grand finals at Barlow Park.
Check out our match wraps of every final and the replays as the day progresses below.
Click to skip to your grade: A-GRADE | RESERVE GRADE | UNDER-19s | UNDER-17s | UNDER-16s | UNDER-15s | UNDER-14s | UNDER-13s
A-grade: Cairns Brothers v Ivanhoes Knights
Brothers have become the first team in 50 years to win three straight FNQRL A-grade premierships after an 18-14 win against Ivanhoes at Barlow Park.
The Brethren overcame the Knights in the major semi final two weeks to earn a week off, and they looked as refreshed as you’d expect as they ripped in from the opening whistle.
Brothers were all over Ivanhoes, gaining plenty of metres through their forwards, which laid the foundation for captain-coach and halfback Jordan Biondi-Odo and five-eighth Patrick Lewis to press the advantage.
Veteran backrower Nick Harrold crossed for Brothers in just the fourth minute, the man of the match in the 2022 grand final triumph proving his status as a big game player – again – despite stepping away from the game in 2023.
His hard-running, leadership and solid defence made him an easy choice for another player of the grand final gong.
Then, at the other end of the age spectrum, it was Elekana Suavai who got in on the tryscoring action, as the Queensland Emerging Origin star helped Brothers double their lead within 10 minutes.
Ivanhoes fought back.
ONE TOUGH KNIGHT
Ivanhoes were always up against it, but they weren’t going to roll over.
The Knights have a super squad but were forced into a 110-minute shootout with Innisfail in the preliminary final.
They also missed Gold Medal winner James Segeyaro, the NRL and Super League experienced hooker adjudged the best player in the competition this year and added a new dimension to the Ivanhoes attack.
Jacob Wallace, the 2021 Gold Medal winner, was superb as he finally had the chance to lead his beloved Knights into a grand final battle, as were halves Rhylee Herd and former Blues Origin star Josh Dugan, in the last game of his initial two-year deal with the Knights.
But the impact of that extra 30 minutes of elimination footy against Innisfail, keeping in mind these are not professional footballers and have worked at their day jobs through the week, was telling early on.
It took until the half-hour mark for Ivanhoes to hit the board, as Dugan set-up loyal Knight Kelly Valmadre for their first points of the night.
Then it was Wallace who crashed over under the sticks just five minutes later, and all of a sudden at 12-10, we had ourselves a grand final.
FIGHT TO THE END
Ivanhoes refused to roll over, Brothers refused to lose.
It set up an arm wrestle of a second stanza as they traded shots but couldn’t quite get the job done.
A desperate defensive effort here, pushed pass there, and poor discipline crept into the contest as they threw everything at claiming premiership glory.
Patrick Lewis handed Brothers a handy 18-10 lead in the 54th minute when he crossed close to the sticks, then Ivanhoes, who stayed in the fight, scored out wide through Beau Hodges with seven minutes left on the clock to make it a four-point game.
Ivanhoes threw everything at a winner but Brothers’ defence held firm, denying their rivals a fairytale finish and locking in their own dynasty.
RECORD BOOKS
Jordan Biondi-Odo’s name can stand alongside the greats of Cairns Brothers Rugby League Club.
Some eyebrows raised when the former Northern Pride-contracted Queensland Cup was appointed coach for the 2021 season, but his record has since has proved why it was every bit the correct call.
He claimed the minor premiership in 2021 only to disappointingly bow out in straight sets, but has steered this team to three consecutive A-grade premierships since.
Biondi-Odo’s team is the first to win three straight FNQRL A-grade titles since the great Kangaroos sides five decades ago, who claimed premierships from 1968-70, then a four-peat from 1972-75.
In Brothers’ history, the likes of Brad Arthur, Eric Smith and Stan Williams are held in the highest regard.
Williams coached A-grade teams to a grand final in five of his six seasons, with two premierships. Arthur took Brothers to six grand finals in eight seasons, winning four times. Smith won three of the four grand finals his Brothers side played in five seasons.
Biondi-Odo has entered the conversation to stand alongside those club giants.
The success isn’t his alone; it belongs to everyone who has rolled up the sleeves over the years, including football manager Tim Rumford and former president Stephen Widt and numerous others, and has set a new standard for this competition to strive for.
It’s over to their rivals to discover who might step up to stop the juggernaut.
Reserves Grand Final: Cairns Brothers v Kangaroos
A late blitz by Kangaroos’ exciting outside backs has delivered a FNQRL reserve grade premiership to Vico Oval.
Kangaroos and Brothers share one of the storied and most fierce rivalries in the competition, and with premiership glory on the line, the atmosphere was more tense than ever.
Brothers had the upper hand in the first half, and went into the break with a 12-8 lead which showed just how close these teams were.
That’s how it remained for the first 20 minutes of the second half, the forwards exchanging big hits as the backs tried to capitalise.
Reserves: Brothers v Kangaroos
Kangaroos finally levelled the score in the 53rd minute via electric fullback Marley Wosomo, then took their first lead of the game on the hour mark when Jeremy Byquar crossed out wide.
Byquar is among the slew of Kangaroos who have come through the system at Vico Oval, playing in junior grand finals, under-18s deciders and now had a decisive reserve grade grand final try to his name.
Brothers tried to find their way to a winner only for poor handling in the face of Kangaroos’ intense defence to bring their attempts undone.
But the last word was left to Wosomo, who produced a long-range try in the final minute to put the icing on the premiership cake, and spark frenzied celebrations as they defeated their fiercest rival for the trophy.
U19 Grand Final: Kangaroos v Mareeba Gladiators
Kangaroos have affirmed their place as arguably the best developers of junior football talent in recent seasons after claiming a second straight FNQRL under-19 premiership.
Formerly the under-18s age group, Kangaroos have been a regular fixture in the decider for the past few years, and in 2023 finally ended their drought after a famous last-minute McFarlane Misi miracle to seal a comeback win against Mareeba.
The opponent might have remained the same in 2024 but the script could not be more different.
Kangaroos v Mareeba (U19)
Kangaroos, coached by Neville Nakata, went to work on the Gladiators from the outset and rarely relented, allowing just one try while running in five of their own at Barlow Park.
Simon Stephen bagged a double in a big afternoon for the centre, while Riley Anu, Jacky Mills and Wallace Charlie all scored a grand final try each as Kangaroos rarely looked troubled.
Gladiators winger Ashton Martin score their only try.
The win makes it two straight premierships in the age group for Kangaroos, both of which have come against Mareeba.
U17 Grand Final: Innisfail Leprechauns v Cairns Brothers
They were the two best teams in the FNQRL U17 competition through the year and Brothers have reigned supreme to claim the premiership.
Innisfail finished the regular season on top on points differential courtesy of their outstanding attack, and edged Brothers 22-14 in the major semi final a fortnight ago.
That script was flipped on Saturday, as Brothers ran in six tries to three to claim a decisive 34-14 triumph at Barlow Park.
Leprechauns v Brothers (U17)
They traded tries through the first 40 minutes, but Brothers went into the break with a 18-8 advantage, which was only helped by Lucas Russell’s radar-like boot.
Brothers set about turning the lead into a premiership from the start of the second stanza, and when Benjamin Callaghan crossed in the 48th minute it was 34-8 and Brothers were all but home.
A late converted try by flashy five-eighth D’Artanyan Connolly closed the margin, but the contest was well and truly over by then.
U16 Grand Final: Southern Suburbs v Cairns Brothers
A four-try blitz in the 20 minutes either side of halftime has powered Suburbs to a dramtic 20-12 in which two players were sin-binned as tempers flared late in the clash.
Brothers opened the scoring in just the fourth minute via winger Taani-Iave Torney, and the teams traded shots as they eyed premiership glory.
It was Suburbs who busted down the door first to break the Barlow Park clash open, with centre Jayce Salam-Hughes getting the Cockatoos on the board just four minutes out from the break.
Suburbs v Brothers (U16)
Please note: The first 17 minutes are unavailable due to a power outage at the venue
Cassian Andrews put Suburbs in front with a try on halftime, and when Johnathon Boelen and Jerome Murgha crossed in the first 10 minutes of the second 40 minutes they threatened to run away with it.
Cowboys-contracted junior Pitason Benioni helped Brothers close the deficit as Suburbs battled one man short for 12 of tbe final 16 minutes to hang on for victory.
U15 Grand Final: Atherton v Kangaroos
An ice-cold Jonty Coutts has kicked Atherton Roosters into the FNQRL history books with a dramatic 30-28 golden point victory in the Under-15 grand final.
Coutts, who added a try-scoring double in regular time, saved his biggest moment for last booting a penalty goal from out wide to deliver premiership glory to the tablelands.
Atherton Roosters v Kangaroos (U15)
It was an enthralling grand final in the Under-15s with the two sides trading the lead at different stages before a rampaging Peter Leary locked the game up a minute from full time.
Both teams had their opportunities to take the victory in extra time, with Coutts missing a 40 metre attempt at penalty goal.
A shanked 20m restart attempt from the ensuing restart gave Coutts a second look at the grand final winning moment, this one he wasn’t going to pass up.
U14 Grand Final: Kangaroos v Innisfail
Fleet-footed centre Joel Maka has inspired the Kangaroos Joeys to an underdog grand final win the FNQRL Under-14s competition.
Maka had the Innisfail defence at sixes-and-sevens on multiple occasions, with his burst of speed off a standing start and sharp footwork both ways causing plenty of headaches.
Innisfail Leprechauns v Kangaroos (U14) - FNQRL grand finals
Maka scored two tries as the boys in yellow came home strong in a 34-16 win.
Lock forward Ralphael Misi was perfect from the kicking tee as well, knocking over five conversions and two penalty goals to put the result beyond doubt.
It was only the second loss all year for the impressive Innisfail side, who had come into the grand final outscoring all rivals 254-70 in their past five games.
U13 Grand Final: Innisfail v Edmonton
Towering front row forward Oscar Rogers has inspired Innisfail to a dominant victory in the FNQRL Under-13 grand final.
It was a day for the big men, with Rogers and tearaway teammate Bao Pham both notching four tries each as the Leprechauns ran away with a 56-24 win over the Storm.
Innisfail Leprechauns v Edmonton Storm (U13)
Rogers, who stood head and shoulders above the field, made an impact with every run, with his stiff arm fends causing chaos for the Storm.
Edmonton attempted to fight fire with fire, sending prop Ngarima Temu charging into the teeth of the Leprechauns defence, with the prop grabbing a hat trick of tries of his own.
A-GRADE: CAIRNS BROTHERS v IVANHOE KNIGHTS
2024 meetings record: Brothers 2, Knights 1
Last time they met: Brothers set the tone early with back-to-back tries inside the first 15 minutes to take a 10-0 lead before the Knights settled.
Ivanhoe would go on to score three of the next four tries which gave them a lead of 20-16 before Elekana Suavai and Falcon Peni combined to take back the lead with just over two minutes remaining. Brothers claimed a 22-20 lead.
What we know: Brothers looked like they were going to go undefeated this season, that was until the Knights shut them down in the final round of the year to claim a 28-16 victory. The Brothers will be looking to make sure that doesn’t happen again while the Knights have continued to show they are not to be underestimated, especially playing a full 110 minutes in the preliminary final to claim 36-32 victory over Innisfail Leprechauns.
Who wins it: Brothers by 6.
RESERVES: CAIRNS BROTHERS v KANGAROOS
2024 Meetings record: Brothers 2, Kangaroos 0
Last time they met: You have to go all the way back to round 9 to see when these two teams played off against each other last. The Roos exploded out of the block, scoring a try in the opening minute and four out of the first six to claim a 16-12 half time lead.
But the accuracy in front of goal for Brothers and a second half dominance lead them to a claim a narrow 28-22 victory.
What we know: The Kangaroos last lost in round 16 and since then have not been challenged, claiming five wins on the trot including knocking out minor premiers Tully Tigers. While Brothers were handed a 12 point loss to fellow finals side Ivanhoe in the final round of the year but were too strong for the Tigers in the second week of the finals to book a grand final birth.
Who wins it: Kangaroos by 8
UNDER-19: KANGAROOS v MAREEBA GLADIATORS
2024 Meetings record: Kangaroos 2, Mareeba 0
Last time they met: The Kangaroos claimed a 28-16 win over the Gladiators in round 17 thanks to a dominant display from Lock Vai Nanai.
Nanai scored two tries to go along with his four conversions and was too strong for the Gladiators defence.
The Gladiators held a 10-6 lead at the 30 minute mark before the Roos claimed the next four tries, three conversions to break it out to a 28-10 lead in the 60th minute.
What we know: The Kangaroos have been the best side all year, not dropping a game and making it look like light work through out the season. But Mareeba have won their last three games, all being finals and are on a seriously strong run and will look to use the form of the last three weeks to over run the Roos.
Who wins it: Kangaroos by 6.
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Originally published as Live stream: FNQ Rugby League junior and senior 2024 grand finals
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