NSWRL Junior Reps: Final round coverage of Harold Matts, Lisa Fiaola, SG Ball, Tarsha Gale Cup
The NSWRL Junior Reps regular season has been completed with finals teams confirmed. Catch up on all the happenings from round nine, plus see the finals matchups for all four grades.
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The final round of the NSWRL Junior Reps season is in the books.
Catch up on round nine action below, plus check out the finals match-ups for next week.
JUMP TO
Lisa Fiaola - Tarsha Gale - Harold Matthews - SG Ball
LISA FIAOLA
SHARKS HOLD ON
Cronulla pulled out a big defensive second half to deny the Wests Tigers 18-14 at Shark Park. A top-four spot was on the line and the Tigers showed some great early urgency, scoring first after Mia Tonga put Saige Tautalafua through a gaping hole close to the line.
Their lead became 10 when Tonga threw a dummy and fended off a defender to score a classy try.
That sparked the Sharks into action, firstly through a nice sidestepping effort from front rower Heni Mayers and then a barnstorming run from replacement forward Tyra Lee to give them the lead.
That margin became 18-10 at the break after Charlotte Teplicanec pounced upon a bouncing ball from Tahli Weigand.
Defence was the order of the second half, before a rare Sharks mistake gifted the Tigers a prime attacking opportunity, which Tautalafua pounced upon to get them back to within four with eight minutes remaining.
The Tigers had one last chance after forcing a mistake at the scrum courtesy of a big push, but it was Zahri Lester who saved the game with a cover tackle to seal a Sharks win.
ROOSTERS PROVE TOO CLASSY
A dynamic opening proved the difference as Central Coast locked in a top-two spot courtesy of a 28-0 win over Illawarra at Woy Woy Oval.
The visitors came into the contest needing a win to keep their hopes of a top-eight finish alive.
But it was the Roosters who started hot, with Shenae Cassidy, Meg McPhail and Coco Butcher scoring in a 10-minute span to open up a 16-0 advantage.
Illawarra held solid for the next half-hour, before their resistance gave out as Talea Tonga stretched the lead to 20.
Marsters scored her second in the closing stages, meaning the Steelers rely on Manly to beat Canberra by five or more points tomorrow for Illawarra to qualify.
ONE-WAY TRAFFIC
Penrith clinched their spot in the finals with a commanding 46-0 shutout of St George at Jubilee Stadium.
Betsy Fifita scored a double, and the Penrith super-sub was matched by Patricia Heihei and winger Rihanna Petelo as the Panthers piled on nine tries against the lowly ranked Dragons.
Fullback Isabella Ferguson crossed in the 13th minute, and had a fine day with the boot, landing five goals for a personal tally of 14 points.
DOGS SOUND THE ALARMS
It was one versus two at Kellyville, and Canterbury showed why they’re the side to beat with a convincing 46-10 win over Parramatta.
Still the only undefeated side in under-17s, Canterbury conceded the opening try to Georgia Wansey, but from there it was one-way traffic as the reigning premiers turned it on, scoring nine tries to two.
Centre Jayda Peo powered over for a double either side of halftime. As they often do, after streaking clear 32-4, Canterbury eased up after the break, adding another three with winger Lala Vaea and Grace Macgregor rounding out the scoring.
Wansey scored both Eels tries, the centre grabbing her second just after halftime.
BEARS MAUL RABBITS
North Sydney finished its season on a high, smashing South Sydney 34-6 at Kenthurst.
A comprehensive first half saw the Bears race in four unanswered tries as they opened up a 22-point margin in the blink of an eye.
Victoria Loleni gave the Rabbitohs the perfect start to the second half, but Asia Petusa’s second try of the afternoon swiftly shut the door on any hope of a comeback.
The Bears finished the year in 10th with two wins to their name.
RAIDERS ADVANCE
The Raiders are into the Lisa Fiaola finals in their first season after downing Manly 24-8 at Narrabeen.
Canberra came into the contest needing to win or lose by no more than four points to advance, but they found themselves chasing when down 8-0 through nine minutes.
Adelaide Norris and Jade White helped level the scores at the break, before a double from Ocean Kaiwai-Rangikauhata helped to open up a big enough buffer.
TARSHA GALE
TIGERS SURVIVE INSANE FINISH
The Wests Tigers locked in a top-four spot after downing Cronulla 18-14 at Shark Park.
A flash of brilliance from Evie McGrath to grubber, regather and offload to Tiresa Leasuasu opened the scoring for the Tigers, with their lead doubled after McGrath found Chaela-Lee Falls out wide who carried three defenders over the line.
Cronulla hit back in a big way to tie the scores at 8-all at the break through Tarnee Ingram and Koffi Brookfield.
Not to be outdone, the Tigers were able to retake the lead when dummy half Ellie Barnett caught defenders napping close to the line.
We were tied up again just minutes later when Rosabella Asiata Alainuuese Oli showed her strength to power through defenders with 10 to play.
A brain explosion from Mikayla Langer saw her sent from the field after making contact with the referee. Repeated infringements saw the Tigers slot two late penalty goals to seal the win in a crazy finish.
EELS SINK DOGS
In arguably the greatest finish of the season, Parramatta have come from the clouds to sink the previously undefeated Bulldogs 20-18 with a stunning late try to Sualo Lafoga.
Desperate to maintain their unbeaten run to the finals, Canterbury clung to an 18-16 lead with five minutes to go. But it was the fifth place Eels who had the final say, staking their claim as a genuine finals darkhorse.
With time running out and the Eels on attack, fullback Dallis Graham-Withell took the ball to the line and alongside Sammy-Lee Gunn-Tauai, the pair threaded the line before the No.6 sent Lafoga over for the winner in the left corner.
Canterbury led 12-6 at the break following a double to winger Elizabeth MacGregor, but it was the Eels who finish stronger, posting three tries to one in the second half.
TOP-TWO STEELERS
Illawarra confirmed their spot in the top-two with a slender 26-24 win over a gutsy Sydney Roosters at Woy Woy.
Already assured of a spot in the finals, the Roosters showed they’ll be no pushover in a preview of what fans can expect next week, crossing twice in the first half to trail 14-8.
Billie Va’a gave Illawarra the early jump, and the lead quickly blew out to 10 when Trinity Tauaneai crossed just before halftime.
After putting the Tricolours on the board, winger Manisha Seebeck returned to orchestrate a second half comeback, striking twice within a period of the three minutes as the Roosters closed to within 20-18.
In a surprise appearance, Indie Bostock put the result beyond doubt with Illawarra’s fifth try, before the Roosters struck late to once again edge to within two points.
EELS SINK DOGS
In arguably the greatest finish of the season, Parramatta have come from the clouds to sink the previously undefeated Bulldogs 20-18 with a stunning late try to Sualo Lafoga.
Desperate to maintain their unbeaten run to the finals, Canterbury clung to an 18-16 lead with five minutes to go. But it was the fifth placed Eels who had the final say, staking their claim as a genuine finals darkhorse.
With time running out and the Eels on attack, fullback Dallis Graham-Withell took the ball to the line and alongside Sammy-Lee Gunn-Tauai, the pair threaded the line before the No.6 sent Lafoga across for the winner in the left corner.
Canterbury led 12-6 at the break following a double to winger Elizabeth MacGregor, but it was the Eels who finished stronger, posting three tries to one in the second half.
PANTHERS CLIMB LADDER
Penrith have booked their spot among the top four sides following a comfortable 30-10 win over St George.
A scintillating opening saw the Panthers race across for four unanswered tries to lead 16-0 in the 31st minute before the Dragons hit back through Merinda Mihajlovic and Ana Ahmat.
Up by six and with more to play for, Penrith struck back through Danica Talitonu and kicked well clear with two more tries through Mya Muller and Kayla Henderson.
BEARS, RABBITOHS UNABLE TO BE SPLIT
North Sydney and South Sydney played out a thrilling 22-all draw to end their seasons at Kenthurst.
The Bears led 18-6 early in the second half after a Logan Lemusu try before the Rabbitohs stormed home, taking a 22-18 lead with four minutes to play when Keilani Manu crossed.
Souths gave away a penalty at the restart when picking the ball up early, allowing Norths one last chance.
They took it a moments later when Losa Lasalo dived over from dummy half, giving Charis Toli a tough chance to win the match with her boot.
The flags stayed down with both sides leaving with a point.
CANBERRA ENDS ON RIGHT NOTE
Canberra closed the season out with its fourth-straight win after defeating Manly 38-6 at Narrabeen.
A ruthless first half saw them race in six tries, including a hat-trick to Eliza Taylor and a double to Gabriella Savage.
The Sea Eagles put up more of a fight in the second half, but it was Canberra’s day in every sense of the word.
HAROLD MATTHEWS
RABBITOHS ADVANCE PAST DOGS
South Sydney kept its season alive with a come from behind 30-18 victory over Canterbury at Hammondville Oval.
Needing a win to solidify their spot in the finals, the Rabbitohs were left stunned after what appeared to be a knock on was given a try to Braith Sloane.
There was nothing controversial about Canterbury’s second try as Wesley Papalii-Afoa strolled over on the wing to put his side ahead 8-0.
The Rabbitohs finally applied some pressure and a dummy half scoot from Zane Hill caught the retreating defence out for Darcy Feltham to score under the sticks.
They pounced late in the half to take a 12-8 lead when Keone Anitelea Tsioussis put Anthony Mailangi through a huge hole.
The Bulldogs hit back on the stroke of halftime however, as a lovely offload from Mikal Papalii-Talanai freed up Kden Carter to score and tie the scores.
Payton Tarau hit Taj Aufai-Farani with a short ball to put the visitors ahead, but it was only temporarily as Papalii-Afoa’s second of the morning edged the Bulldogs in front.
It was yet another lead change that put Souths ahead 20-18 approaching the final 10 minutes as Feltham found Dennishely Taukafa out wide.
They maintained the pressure and sealed the result when Riley Bourne touched down out wide.
STEELERS RETURN TO BEST
Illawarra bounced back from its first loss of the season with a solid 32-10 defeat of Balmain at Leichhardt Oval.
Looking to seal a top-two spot, the Steelers opened the scoring through star fullback Oliver Burton and finished the half with a 16-0 lead on the back of Tayler Humphries and Hunter Fangupo going back-to-back.
By the time Callum Cooney crossed and Burton posted his second, the visitors were in full control at 26-0.
Sioeli Iongi gave the home fans something to cheer about, but it was short-lived as Burton completed his hat-trick.
SHARKS STAYING ALIVE
Cronulla kept its season alive with a convincing 38-16 win over St George at Kogarah.
Needing a victory to give them any hope of advancing in the U17s, the Sharks came out with a red-hot first half to put them in the frame.
Four tries in the first half, including a double to Daniel Green, put them ahead 20-0 at the break.
That continued straight after halftime with Chase Junior Stanley scoring inside two minutes and Thomas Beattie capping off a brilliant 65m team try to push the margin to 32.
St George finally got on the board in the 44th minute after Jasais Ah Kee linked with Phoenix Johns for a nice play from dummy half for Ah Kee to score.
Any momentum was quickly lost after Jayden Best got out of dummy half and crashed over for the Sharks.
The win moved the Sharks into eighth, meaning they will hold that spot if Manly defeats Parramatta on Sunday and Canberra wins by 44 points or less against Melbourne.
RAIDERS SIGN-OFF IN STYLE
Canberra proved too strong for Melbourne, heading south to defeat the winless Storm 38-20 at Broadmeadows.
Despite charging to a 26-8 halftime lead on route to a resounding fourth win, the young Raiders finished just shy of cracking a spot inside the top eight.
Kye Anderson scored a double and kicked five goals for 18 points. In a day to remember, the electric fullback set the scene in the first minute with a solo length of the field try.
Skipper and backrower Geordan Amaiu quickly crossed for the Raiders’ second, and after extending the margin to 18, they kicked on after the break through BJ Pumpa and Isaiah-Timothy Cornforth.
Archie Wyley opened Melbourne’s account with the first of his side’s two first half tries. They added two in the second half to Anaias Teao and Wivenshalom Tyrell.
GIANT KILLING PANTHERS
With just their second win of the season Penrith have closed out the season in style, knocking over the high-flying Central Coast 32-16 at Windsor.
Following early tries to lock Charlie Xuereb and Leo-Stipe Latu, Penrith returned to the sheds full of confidence and a 12-4 advantage.
Tries were traded just after the break, but the young Panthers pounced, adding the next three to put the game to bed.
Latu notched a double, and was followed across by Kingston Siracusa and Ryan Cloey. Samuel Michie scored the final try of the day for Central Coast.
EELS INTO THE EIGHT
Parramatta secured the final spot in the Harold Matthews finals after a gritty 26-20 win over Manly in Narrabeen.
Knowing the urgency of the task at hand, the Eels came out of the blocks in emphatic fashion, scoring three tries in a six-minute period to lead 16-0 through 15 minutes.
The pick of the bunch was a leaping Christopher Moala getting under a bomb and reaching out to score the second of the morning.
Two penalty goals stretched their lead to 20 at the break, before Manly’s comeback commenced.
Tom Longland and Max Prykiel went back-to-back for the Sea Eagles to cut the margin to eight.
The fightback was stopped by Moala, who swooped on a loose ball 10 minutes from full-time to seal the win and keep the year of the Eels alive.
ROOSTERS CLIMB THE LADDER
The Roosters finished the regular season in second after a stunning fightback saw them down the Warriors 26-24 in Pukekohe.
The two sides were evenly matched throughout the first half, before Lucian Mikaele and Jeremiah Lemana went back-to-back right before the break to open up an 18-6 margin.
Mikaele brought up his double just moments into the second half, before the Roosters started to ease back into the game.
Charlie Webb crossed first, before a Kalen Cashin double got them back to within two points with seven minutes remaining.
The comeback was complete when the Roosters opted against taking a penalty goal in the dying stages, only for Lachlan Metcalfe to take the line on and score to give them the win.
MAGPIES HOLD OUT NORTHS
Western Suburbs overcame a slow start to run down North Sydney 26-20 in their finale at Kenthurst.
The Bears raced out to a 14-6 lead before the Magpies took the ascendancy, with Curtis Lakeman’s score putting them ahead 24-14 with 20 minutes remaining.
The win moved the Magpies into 11th spot on the ladder.
SG BALL
DOGS PRODUCE BIG FINISH
Canterbury is into the SG Ball finals after a dramatic 30-28 victory over South Sydney at Hammondville Oval.
The Bulldogs needed a win to lock their finals spot, and started hot with Jai Callaghan putting Paul Johnson over out wide, before Sosaia Alatini spun through a tackle to make it 10-0 through as many minutes.
Souths responded in style however, firstly through a tough effort from Dayne Jennings close to the line and then Maddax Fui who busted through the defence and found Taj Alvarez to give the visitors a 12-10 lead.
That became eight at the break as Matthew Humphries put a surging Alvarez through a gap to finish his second.
Alatini had his second soon after halftime and Alvarez brought up his third, before classy five-eighth Rielly Laverty got the Bulldogs back to within two, setting up a thrilling finish with 18 minutes remaining.
A burst from Toby Batten saw him find Jai Callaghan backing up, giving the Dogs the lead once again.
With time winding down and Souths trailing by six, Jennings made a break near the sideline, passed around the back of a defender to Jacob Fong, who passed inside while being thrown over the touchline to Humphries to score in the corner.
He couldn’t convert his own try however, meaning the Bulldogs sneak into the finals.
RAIDERS LOCK IN SECOND
Canberra secured second spot on the ladder and eliminated Wests in the process with a classy 48-30 victory over the Magpies at Belconnen.
Saint Fuatimau gave the visitors the perfect start as they looked to keep their season alive, before Luke Tuialii, Sylas Simon and Chaev Kolone helped the Raiders to an 18-4 advantage.
Sonny Edwards-Moeke produced a back-to-back double in the space of three minutes to keep the Magpies in the hunt before the break, before Simon’s second put the Raiders ahead by 10 at halftime.
Simon scored his third just minutes into the second half and Braydan Darmody scored one his own to push it out to 36-14 in quick order.
Just as the Raiders looked home, Wests went back-to-back through Fuatimau and Riley Oitmann to get within two converted tries with 11 minutes remaining.
The comeback was thwarted and Wests’ season over when Luke Cannon worked across field and sliced through the line to score.
DRAGONS FIND FIRE
St George have finished the season in style, ending Newcastle’s season and climbing off the bottom of the ladder with a surprise 28-20 win at Jubilee Stadium.
With a slim chance of making the eight, Newcastle had everything to play for but failed to fire a shot as the Dragons found their spark, surging to their first victory of the season with a clinical 20-4 first half.
Lewis Sargent-Wilson had a day out for the Red V. Clever as ever, the No.7 struck in the third minute, and after Toby Winter counted for Newcastle, the Dragons half continued to pick holes in the defence.
Hot prospect Cyrus Stanley-Traill dominated upfront, and the towering prop paved the way for winger Samuel Mardini to dive over in the scoreboard corner.
Striking in waves, the Dragons proved untouchable before the break. Sargent-Wilson sent Viliami Hikila across, before backrower Cooper Meldrum put the result to bed with a slashing four-pointer on the stroke of halftime.
With the change of ends, five-eighth Charlie Boyle kept the scoreboard ticking over, kicking for Mardini’s second, and the margin pushed out to 24 when Hikila burrowed across for his double.
Starved of opportunities, Knights winger Aidan Gow looked like heading home empty handed until the speedster snuck into the corner, scoring his 19th in a remarkable campaign.
And amid a late flurry of consolation tries, the Newcastle No.5 doubled down with the final try of the match.
RED HOT ILLAWARRA
A red hot Illawarra tuned up for the finals with a comprehensive 54-6 dismantling of Balmain at Leichhardt.
A hat-trick to Aaymon Fitzgibbon set up the nine-try avalanche. Prop Leeroy Weatherall crashed over in the 15th minute, and it opened the door for the five-eighth to rattle off three of his own in the space of 19 minutes either side of halftime.
Oozing class, Fitzgibbon danced through brittle Tigers defence to score twice, and backed up fullback Lucas Borg to finish a lightning length of the field effort.
Following an outstanding season, the Tigers’ finals hopes rested on another victory. Hooker Jared Haywood gave them hope after the break to make it 18-6, but it wasn’t to be as Illawarra kicked again with the final six tries.
Weatherall crossed for another, while halfback Kade Reed struck late and kicked eight goals for a personal haul of 20 points.
SHARKS SURVIVE MAJOR FRIGHT
Cronulla are finals bound after the Sharks survived an almighty scare, almost blowing a 36-point lead against a fast finishing Melbourne.
Cronulla kicked off the Shark Park clash in sixth spot, just one place above Melbourne, with both sides needing a win to be assured of extending their season.
It was all Nikora Williams in the first half, as the centre turned up the heat on the right edge, crossing for two slashing tries as the Sharks exploded to a 30-0 halftime lead.
Winger Bailey Leach also crossed twice, and Ratu Viliame Koroitamana joined the highlights reel, the backrower barging through the frontline to run away for an impressive solo effort.
When Elijah Paea added a seventh just minutes after the resumption, Cronulla had bolted 36 points clear.
In an exciting end-to-end clash, fullback Amaziah Murgha won the race to a kick that opened Melbourne’s account in the 40th minute.
As far as stunning turnarounds go, this was among the best. In a stunning 19-minute blitz, the tries kept coming and with 11 minutes to play the Storm trailed 36-30 and appeared favourites to go on with the job.
With their season hanging by a thread, Williams lifted Cronulla spirits with a sublime pass to send Paea across for what turned out to be the matchwinner.
Melbourne’s Lockyer-Azile Foliola struck with three minute remaining bit it was as close as they would get before the final siren.
ROOSTERS LOCK IN FOURTH
The Roosters rocketed into the top four with an emphatic 32-16 defeat of New Zealand in Pukekohe.
The visitors were never headed as they raced in four first half tries without response to lay the platform for victory.
New recruit Itula Seve scored on either side of the break in a strong outing from the interchange.
The home side showed some fight in the second half with three tries of their own, but it wasn’t enough to get close to bridging the gap.
PARRA GOES UNDEFEATED
Parramatta made it an undefeated regular season with a comfortable 46-10 victory over Manly in Narrabeen.
The Eels flexed their muscles early in racing out to a 22-0 advantage before Max Davies gave the home side a boost just before the break.
It mattered little in the end as Parra piled on another five tries in the second half, including a Dom Farrugia double, to run out easy winners.
It means they play the Roosters in the opening week of the finals.
PANTHERS FIND BEST
Penrith recorded its second win of the season after knocking off North Sydney 36-22 at Kenthurst.
The Panthers raced out to an 18-6 lead at the break and held the margin throughout to finish their season on a winning note.
Harry Wald had a haul of 16 points, courtesy of a try and six goals.
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Originally published as NSWRL Junior Reps: Final round coverage of Harold Matts, Lisa Fiaola, SG Ball, Tarsha Gale Cup
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