Junior Development

[mdrew]

Keebra Park SHS’ Tana Tukaka has been named in the 2024 Burleigh Bears MM Cup squad.

[mdrew]

In 2023 Levi Rusin was part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls Cyril Connell Cup squad but in 2024 he moves to the Burleigh Bears CC Cup squad.

[mdrew]

In 2023 Zeph Takitaki played some outstanding matches in the School Boy Walters Cup for Keebra Park SHS and in 2024 Zeph Takitaki will start the season as part of the Burleigh Bears U17 Cyril Connell Cup squad where he will be looking to cement a position in the forward pack.

[mdrew]

2023 saw Koby Stone play for the Cudgen Hornets in the Group 18 U13 competition including starting at left centre in the Grand Final against the Tweed Heads Seagulls with Koby Stone scoring a long range solo try in the 24th minute when after receiving a long high cut-out pass from his right eighteen metres out from his own try line, Koby Stone charged down the left touchline and when he was still five metres inside his own territory Koby Stone produced a great in and away to beat the Seagulls fullback down the left touchline with Koby Stone then racing away to get the ball down ten metres in from the left corner post.

Earlier in the match in the 8th minute Koby Stone made a line break down the left channel from his own thirty six metre mark to make twenty one metres down the left touchline.

Koby Stone also did well defensively in the 28th minute when after chasing through a Hornets attacking grubber kick Koby Stone grabbed hold of the Tweed Heads right winger eight metres in from the left touchline with Koby Stone then rag dolling him over the touchline ten metres out from the try line to get the ball back for Cudgen in a great attacking position.

[mdrew]

2023 saw Kyhum Torrens line up for Cudgen Gold in the Group 18 U13 competition with Kyhum Torrens starting in the front row in the Grand Final against the Tweed Heads Seagulls with Kyhum Torrens making a line break in the 7th minute when after receiving the ball two passes to the left of the play the ball and eighteen metres out from his own try line, Kyhum Torrens charged through the centre of the field and after a left arm fend beat the initial defenders Kyhum Torrens broke five tackles as he carried the ball to within two metres of the halfway mark.

In the 26th minute from two passes to the right of a Cudgen penalty restart Kyhum Torrens received the ball ten metres inside his own territory and was able to carry the ball six metres into Tweed Heads territory. Kyhum Torrens backed up for another run in the 41st minute once again from a Hornets penalty restart with Kyhum Torrens breaking three tackles as he progressed the ball from twenty nine metres out from his own try line to within three metres of the try line with Kyhum Torrens then awarded a penalty after he was hit by a shoulder charge.

The 47th minute then saw Kyhum Torrens carry the ball from the right of the play the ball from fifteen metres inside his own territory to eleven metres into Tweed Heads territory. Then in the 4th minute of the first period of extra time Khyum Torrens carried the ball from thirty three metres out from his own try line to the halfway mark after taking possession of the ball two pass to the right of the dummy half.

[mdrew]

Great to see that the Evans Head Bombers will be back in the Group One Junior Rugby League in 2024.

[mdrew]

Two seasons ago the Tweed Heads Seagulls entered a team in the NRRRL U18 competition and since then they have made the semi-finals on both occasions.

In 2024 in a great development the Tweed Heads Seagulls are also entering teams in both the NRRRL First Grade and Reserve Grade competitions.

This adds an additional pathways to players in the Titans catchment area with the demise of the Hastings Deering’s Colts competition with the NRRRL First Grade competition the best regional competition in NSW. Seemingly these two sides will form the Seagulls Queensland Cup “Reserve” sides.

I can envisage quite a few young players taking advantage of the NRRRL First Grade competition to test themselves playing against men at 18 or 19 years old.

In 2023 Zane Harrison played a number of NRRRL First Grade matches for the Bilambil Jets as a 17 year old and now he is on a train and trial contract with the Titans NRL squad.

Other young players who played in the NRRRL First Grade competition in 2023 included Brady Turner, Cooper Nelson, Isaac Harrison, Riley Buchanan, Creedence Donovan, Tashahn Cora, Aaron Singh-Goesel, Harry Chadburn and Micah Perkins Leaupepe.

[mdrew]

2023 saw Cooper Buchanan play for the Tweed Heads Seagulls in the Group 18 U13 competition including starting at halfback in the Grand Final against the Cudgen Hornets with Cooper Buchanan scoring a try and kicking two conversions.

Cooper Buchanan scored a smart solo try in the 14th minute when after taking possession of the ball to the left of the dummy half thirty five metres from the try line, Cooper Buchanan ran at the defensive line and at the last possible moment Cooper Buchanan put in a left foot grubber kick behind the Cudgen defensive line for himself and with the ball bouncing low on the ground and the Tweed Heads fullback moving forward Cooper Buchanan grubbered the ball off the ground with his left foot and after chasing the ball through, Cooper Buchanan scooped the ball up off the ground whilst at full speed with his right hand three metres out with Cooper Buchanan then diving over to score next to the left goal post. Cooper Buchanan then stepped up and converted his own try with a good left foot strike.

Cooper Buchanan kicked his first conversion in the 5th minute with a good left foot strike from three metres to the right of the goal posts. Cooper Buchanan then kicked his second conversion (to convert his own try) in the 14th minute from next to the left goal posts.

Cooper Buchanan was also involved in a Seagulls try in the 36th minute when after taking possession of the ball to the left of the play the ball and sixteen metres from the try line, Cooper Buchanan continued to his left before straightening up his run by stepping off his left foot and getting an off-load away to his right to his five eight who then off-loaded to the right for one of the Tweed Heads second rowers to score under the posts.

Cooper Buchanan did well defensively in the 26th minute to race to his left and make a smart cover defending tackle on the Cudgen right winger who had made a line break down the touchline but Cooper Buchanan was able to bring him down thirty metres from the try line.

With the Grand Final on a knife edge with Cudgen having the momentum Cooper Buchanan produced two almost identical pieces of play which swung the momentum back to the Seagulls. On the first occasion in the 46th minute Cooper Buchanan, for a Seagulls kick-off drive a hard left foot kick-off along he ground to his left with the ball going into touch just after crossing the ten metre mark to get the ball back to the Seagulls. Cooper Buchanan executed a similar kick-off in the 51st minute, this time it was a low flat kick-off to his left that on the first bounce bounced over the left touchline around thirty one metres from the try line.

In the 2nd minute of the second period of extra time Cooper Buchanan put up a high bomb towards the left corner from the left of the play the ball and twenty three metres from the try line which proved to be too good for the Hornets defence with knocked the ball on.

[mdrew]

In early September 2023 Reico Ratana was named on the bench in the Courier Mail’s PBC SHS Rugby League Team of the 2020’s to date.

[mdrew]

2023 saw Sunee Wharekawa Poa line up for Cudgen Gold in the Group 18 U13 competition with Sunee Wharekawa Poa starting at lock and captain in the Grand Final against the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

Sunee Wharekawa Poa scored two tries in the tough extra time loss in the Grand Final with Sunee Wharekawa Poa scoring the first of his two tries in the 28th minute when after taking possession of the ball two apsses to the right of the play the ball and twelve metres from the try line, Sunee Wharekawa Poa ran to his right and burst through two attempted tackles when ten metres out with Sunee Wharekawa Poa then straightening up his run by way of a right foot step with Sunee Wharekawa Poa crashing through two more tackles to get the ball down mid-way between the goal posts and corner post on the right side of the field.

Sunee Wharekawa Poa scored his second try of the Grand Final in the 43rd minute when after taking possession of the ball three passes to the right of the play the ball in the centre of the field and twenty metre out, Sunee Wharekawa Poa ran to his right and produced two left arm fends to dispose of the initial two defenders he confronted with Sunee Wharekawa Poa then beating the Tweed Heads left winger to score six metres in from the right corner post.

Earlier in the Grand Final in the 18th minute Sunee Wharekawa Poa ran onto the ball two passes to the left of a Cudgen scrum win with Sunee Wharekawa Poa able to carry the ball from thirty metres out from the try line to sixteen metres out with only multiple Seagulls eventually to get Sunee Wharekawa Poa to the ground.

The Tweed Heads kick-off to the first period of extra time saw Sunee Wharekawa Poa return the ball to the twenty eight metre mark. Then in the 3rd minute from two passes to the left of the play the ball and after carrying the ball from his own thirty metre mark to within nine metres of the halfway mark, Sunee Wharekawa Poa was able to get his right arm free and get an off-load away to his right.

[mdrew]

Marsden SHS's Fabion Cowan recently became a National U14 Oztag Champion with his Sotrm side winning the National Oztag Championships.

[mdrew]

In 2023 Max Murphy played a number of matches in the second row for the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad but in 2024 Max Murphy will line up for the Burleigh Bears MM Cup squad.

[mdrew]

In late September 2023 Cooper Humphries was named in the 2024 Burleigh Bears U17 Cyril Connell Cup squad.

In late September 2022 Cooper Humphries was named in the 2023 Burleigh Bears U16 Cyril Connell Cup representative squad.

[mdrew]

In mid-October 2023 Bailey McConnell was named on the bench in the 2023 Courier Mail Fans Choice 2023 Queensland School Boy Rugby League Team of the Year.

[mdrew]

Ethan Van Gelderen moved up to Northern New South Wales and played for the Bilambil Jets in the 2023 NRRRL U18 competition including a strong Grand Final performance at lock in a 28 – 10 Jets victory against the Murwillumbah Mustangs. For the Jets in 2023 Ethan Van Gelderen started the majority of his matches in the front row but also started a number of matches at lock.

In the 2023 NRRRL U18 Grand Final against the Murwillumbah Mustangs, Ethan Van Gelderen recorded a line break that led to a Will Doyle try in the 41st minute when from the left of the play the ball Ethan Van Gelderen took possession of the ball on the halfway mark and after using a right arm fend Ethan Van Gelderen charged downfield and after getting to within twenty four metres of the try line, Ethan Van Gelderen got a good ball away to his left to Harry Chadburn who subsequently off-loaded the ball to Will Doyle who dived over to score near the left corner post.

Ethan Van Gelderen charged onto the ball to the right of the dummy half to get the ball from the halfway mark to thirty eight metres from the try line. Then in the 16th minute from a Bilambil penalty restart Ethan Van Gelderen made a huge run that saw him carry the ball from twenty nine metres out from his own try line to within two metres of the halfway mark.

Ethan Van Gelderen made a good kick-off return to get the ball out to the twenty three metre mark in the 20th minute and then Ethan Van Gelderen made another good kick-off return in the 27th minute to carry the ball out to the twenty four metre mark.

Then in the 35th minute from a Bilambil penalty restart Ethan Van Gelderen charged onto the ball ten metres inside his own territory and carried the ball eight metres into Murwillumbah territory, then a tackle later from the left of the play the ball Ethan Van Gelderen got the ball to within thirty metres of the try line. Then in the 49th minute to the left of the play the ball Ethan Van Gelderen produced a yardage carry that saw him carry the ball from twenty two metres from his own try line to thirty five metres out after running the ball through the centre of the field.

Ethan Van Gelderen then did well in the 56th minute when defending on his own try line and in front of his posts, Ethan Van Gelderen reacted quickly to field a hard grubber kicked straight at him on the bounce with Ethan Van Gelderen then able to get the ball twelve metres out from the try line.

Defensively Ethan Van Gelderen hit the Murwillumbah front rower No. 10 twenty metres out from the try line and after Ethan Van Gelderen drove his right shoulder into his opponent, Ethan Van Gelderen lifted him up and drove him onto his back.