Junior Development

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Xavier Tauaifaiga. The young Helensvale Hornets winger was part of the Titans U13 side that played a Western Mustangs U13 selection at Mudgeeraba in February, that afternoon playing on the left wing.

Xavier Tauaifaiga moved to Helensvale this season after playing the 2018 season U12 Division One season with Runaway Bay.

Xavier Tauaifaiga also played on the left wing for the 2019 Gold Coast Vikings U13 side at the Hill Stumer scoring the U13 Vikings first try of the competition in their first match against Brisbane Red.

After the completion of the competition, Xavier Tauaifaiga was selected in the South East Queensland U13 training squad.

Whilst he has been playing on the left wing for the Titans and in the representative arena, Xavier Tauaifaiga has primarily operated in the centres, specifically left centre for Helensvale in the GCRL U13 Division One competition this season.

Over the course of the 2019 regular season Xavier Tauaifaiga played in twelve matches for the Hornets in the U13 Division One competition and scored twelve tries amongst others against Southport (Round One), Runaway Bay (Round Four) Nerang (Round Five), Runaway Bay (Round Eleven), Currumbin (Round Thirteen) and Burleigh (Round Fourteen).

In Round Six Xavier Tauaifaiga scored a double as Helensvale defeated Ormeau 54 – 6, he also scored a Round Nine double against Southport and added another double in Round Twelve against Coomera.

In Week two of the GCRL U13 Division One Finals series Xavier Tauaifaiga started at left centre against Ormeau, scoring in the match which propelled Helensvale directly to the Grand Final.

In the U13 Division One Grand Final against Burleigh Xavier Tauaifaiga started the match at right centre scoring in the 26th minute of the first half when he dived over from dummy half from close range diving to his right out of dummy half. Helensvale went on to win the U13 Division One Grand Final 26 – 22 against Burleigh.

In the Grand Final Xavier Tauaifaiga also made an outstanding try saving tackle late in the first half on Burleigh centre Sam Stephenson.

Xavier Tauaifaiga made his GCRL U14 Division One debut from the bench in Round Nine against Beaudesert after scoring a double in the U13 Division One fixture earlier in the day. Xavier Tauaifaiga made his first U14 Division One start in Round Thirteen against Ormeau on the wing after starting in the centres in the U13 Division One match directly prior.

In total in the GCRL U14 Division One competition in 2019 Xavier Tauaifaiga played in five matches, on each occasion backing up from playing in the U13 Division One fixture earlier in the round (read day).

In 2018 Xavier Tauaifaiga played in thirteen U12 Division One matches for Runaway Bay scoring 32 points from seven tries and two conversions.

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The Titans have a number of outstnading halves/fiveeights in the JTS program and one that is not overshadowed by absolutely anyone is Coby Black.

The young Helensvale Hornets five eight played very well for the Titans U13 side in their 40 – 12 win over the Western Mustangs at Mudgeeraba early this year leading the Titans around the field well.

Starting at five eight Coby Black had a very good game and also recorded a try assist. Coby Black was operating on the left side of the field one off the ruck when he received the ball and subtly stepped off his left to push through the first defensive line and then as he was being tackled provided a great ball to Titans centre Juwann-Claude Wetere who ran around sixty metres to score an outstanding try.

Early in the 2019 season Coby Black was named in the Gold Coast Vikings U13 squad starting their three matches at five eight and for me was one of their best. In the Championships Coby Black put on a goal kicking master class including two superb efforts from the left touch line in Game One on Day One against Brisbane Red . For me regardless of age group Coby Black was easily the best goal kicker on display in the Championships.

After the completion of the competition, Coby Black was selected in the South East Queensland U13 training squad.

Coby Black started at five eight for Helensvale against Southport in Round One of the U13 Division One competition and had a huge game scoring a double and kicking five goals as Helensvale defeated Southport 56 – 6.

In Round Two as Helensvale defeated Nerang, Coby Black was in the points once again scoring a try and kicking an astounding fifteen goals as the Hornets prevailed 90 – 0.

Coby Black continued to show why he was asked to start at five eight for the Titans U13 side earlier this season in Round Three scoring two tries and kicking two goals as his Helensvale side defeated Coomera 28 - 10.

Round Four was also no impediment to Coby Black scoring three tries and kicking seven goals for Helensvale as they defeated Runaway Bay 50 – 10.

In Round Five against Runaway Bay, Coby Black scored an incredible thirty eight points from four tries and eleven goals in a big 104 – 8 win for the Hornets.

In Round Six Coby Black continued his outstanding form, scoring a try and kicking seven goals against Ormeau.

After missing two rounds due to representative commitments Coby Black made his return to the Helensvale side at five eight in Round Nine against Southport and picked up where he left off scoring a double and kicking four goals and in Round Ten against Ormeau added a try and a conversion to his individual points tally.

Coby Black had a big day with the boot in Round Eleven kicking eight goals as the Hornets had a big win against Runaway Bay. Amazingly the match was the first of the season where Coby Black did not score but regardless he had a huge impact on the result, proving that there is a lot more to rugby league than just scoring tries.

In Round Twelve against Coomera, Coby Black scored twenty of Helensvale’s forty eight points (41.67%), from two tries and six goals against Coomera.

Coby Black continued to score in bunches in Round Thirteen scoring a try and kicking six goals as Helensvale smashed Currumbin 78 – 0. Coby Black then added two conversions in Round Fourteen against Burleigh.

In total in the GCRL U13 Division One regular season competition, Coby Black played in twelve matches scoring a staggering 224 points from nineteen tries (third leading try scorer in the competition) and seventy four goals to average 18.67 points per game in what can only be described as an outstanding season for the young play maker. Coby Black was also by far the leading point’s scorer in the U13 Division One competition as well as the leading goal kicker.

In the 2019 GCRL U13 Division One Grand Final Coby Black kicked three conversions from four attempts, with his only miss hitting the goal post from the right touch line.

Unfortunately Coby Black had to leave the field in the Grand Final late in the match with what looked like a shoulder injury but helping to ease the pain was the fact that Helensvale won the Grand Final 26 – 22 over Burleigh.

Whilst I have noted the three conversions that Coby Black kicked in the Grand Final there were two plays that deserve mention that in many ways were far not noteworthy. The first was with Helensvale under pressure after a Burleigh try, Coby Black angled the ball expertly from the kick off to find touch and get Helensvale the ball back immediately.

The second key play was also when Helensvale were under pressure, Burleigh grubber kicked into the in-goal and it looked like they were going to get a repeat set before Coby Black got to the ball first and instead of conceding the tackle produced a great run to get out of his in-goal ensure Helensvale finished the first half in front.

In 2019 Coby Black was also a key member of the Coombabah State High School Year 8 Renouf Cup school boy side starting at half and scoring a second half try as Coombabah overcame a six point half time deficit to defeat Forest Lake State School 36 – 16 in the Renouf Cup Grand Final.

Coby Black was operating on the left side of the field and took the ball one off the ruck, running at the defence with the ball out in front in both hands. Cody Black then dummied to his left and broke through an arm tackle to run fifteen metres to score under the posts.

In 2018 Coby Black was a key member of the Helensvale Hornets U12 Division One side that won the premiership as a result of a 28 – 6 Grand Final win over Burleigh White with Coby Black starting the match at five eight and contributing a conversion in the win.

In total in the U12 Division One competition in 2018 Coby Black played in nine matches scoring 30 points from four tries and seven goals. All four of Coby Black’s four tries came in separate matches against Nerang, Mudgeeraba and Burleigh White in two separate matches including week two of the finals. All seven of Coby Black’s goals were also kicked in separate matches.

2018 was the second season in a row that Coby Black had played in the U12 age group. In 2017 even though he was still U11 eligible he played the season in the Helensvale U12 Division Two side amassing forty six points from nine tries (100% strike rate) and five goals.

Coby Black scored four tries in a late May 2017 match against Ormeau and scored a double a fortnight prior against Runaway Bay.

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Lachlan Offley. The Ballina Seagulls flyer’s 2019 season can favourably be compared to anybody’s in the entire Group One Junior Rugby League competition and for that matter all of Northern New South Wales.

For Ballina in the 2019 Group One U14 competition Lachlan Offley finished the season scoring in all of his ten matches and finishing as the competitions leading try scorer with twenty seven tries for an out of this world strike rate of 270%. Lachlan Offley also kicked seven conversions to finish as the competitions leading point’s scorer as well with 122 points to average more than twelve points per match.

In addition to scoring five tries against Kyogle in June Lachlan Offley scored five hat tricks including in each of his first three 2019 Group One U14 matches against South Grafton, Casino RSM and Clarence Coast respectively. Lachlan Offley added hat tricks against Clarence Coast and Lismore Marist Brothers later in the season.

Lachlan Offley also scored a finals double against South Grafton and tries against Grafton in two separate matches.

Lachlan Offley also played in five Group One U15 matches in 2019 and once again showcased his try scoring prowess scoring seven tries (140% strike rate) including a Grand Final double against Clarence Coast, unfortunately Ballina went down 14 – 10 in a tight encounter.

In addition to his Grand Final double, Lachlan Offley also scored U15 doubles against Lismore Marist Brothers and Kyogle as well as scoring on his Group One U15 debut against Clarence Coast in May.

In late 2019 Lachlan Offley started at fullback in all three of the Group One U14 representative sides matches at the New South Wales Country U14 Age Championships scoring on Day One against Maitland. On Day Two Lachlan Offley started at fullback in matches against Group 21 and Central Coast.

To prove that his try scoring feats in 2019 were no fluke Lachlan Offley scored twenty one tries and kicked thirteen goals in Ballina in the 2018 Group One U13 competition to record 110 points.

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One of the most recent signings to the Titans JTS program is Jeremaiah Tamepo.

The young centre from Auckland New Zealand found his way over to the Gold Coast to continue his schooling at Keebra Park and was due to part of their Open Rugby League program.

In 2019 Jeremaiah Tamepo represented the Countries Manukau Stingrays representative side at the New Zealand National Youth U15 tournament starting in the centres in all four of the Stingrays matches which were against the Auckland Vulcans, one being the Tournament Final which Counties Manukau lost 18 – 6 with the other a pool match, the Wai-Coa Bay Stallions and the South Island Scorpions.

In the 2019 Auckland Rugby League U15 club competition Jeremaiah Tamepo played eight matches for the Manurewa Force scoring five tries over the course of the season to finish with a 62.5% strike rate.

Also in 2019 Jeremaiah Tamepo played for Counties Manukau Maori in the New Zealand Maori U15 tournament and at the completion of that tournament was named in the All-Tournament team in the centres.

In 2019 Jeremaiah Tamepo was also a key performer for the Wesley College U15 side in their Auckland school boy rugby league competitions.

Also in 2019 the former New Zealand Warriors Development Squad player was part of the U15 Auckland Vulcans Development Trial representing the U15 Open South side and in 2018 represented the U14 Open South side at the 2018 U14 Auckland Vulcans Development Trial.

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The 2019 season that was for Titans contracted Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa.

The big strong young Southport front rower was in devastating form for the Tigers in the GCRL U14 Division One competition in 2019 and early in 2020 signed a contract with the Titans that will see him in Titans colours for the next three seasons at least.

For Southport in the 2019 GCRL U14 Division One regular season competition Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa played in nine matches scoring eleven tries (122% strike rate) including a Round Three hat trick against Currumbin and doubles in Round Ten and Round Twelve against Ormeau and Mudgeeraba respectively.

Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa also scored in matches against Runaway Bay twice, Helensvale and Beaudesert to account for his eleven tries.

In Week One of the Finals series Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa started in the front row in Southport’s 26 - 22 loss to Runaway Bay.

In Week two of the U14 Division One Finals series, Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa started in the front row and scored a hat trick against Mudgeeraba as Southport progressed to the Preliminary Final.

In the Preliminary Final against Runaway Bay Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa once again started in the front row and scored a double as Southport fell 22 – 16 to Runaway Bay to end their season one win short of the Grand Final.

After performing well for the Gold Coast Vikings U14 side at the 2019 Hill Stumer Championships held at Ipswich this season, Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa started in the front row for the South East Queensland White side at the Queensland U14 Age Championships where he was a handful for opposing defences in each of SEQ Whites matches.

Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa started all four of South East Queensland White’s matches in the front row and scored when he crashed over against Central on Day Two of the Championships.

In early October 2019 Taelon Te Whiu-Hopa was named on the bench for the 2019 Nga Hau e Wha Maori Tournament U14 Boys Merit Team at the completion of the tournament.

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The 2019 season that was for Eli Morgan:

The Titans linked forward started from the interchange bench for the Burleigh MM Cup side in their 2019 Round One match with the Norths Devils with Eli Morgan contributing a try in in Burleigh’s great second half comeback to draw 38 all with the Devils.

In total in the 2019 MM Cup competition Eli Morgan played in all six matches spending time both in the second row and in the centres as well as coming off the interchange bench in Round One against Norths. Eli Morgan played four matches in the centres with first of which was in Round two against Ipswich and started in the second row in Round Six against Wynnum Manly.

In his six 2019 MM Cup matches Eli Morgan scored three tries which came in Rounds One, Four and Five against Norths, Townsville and Souths Logan respectively.

In Round Four against Townsville Eli Morgan scored his second MM Cup try of the 2019 season when he dived over in the left corner. Playing left centre Eli Morgan was on hand to receive a pass from left winger Trey Peni who had taken a bomb on the full a few metres out from the Blackhawks try line and was able to off-load to his left to Eli Morgan who had looped around.

Almost immediately after the competition of the 2019 MM Cup competition, Eli Morgan moved to the Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts side making his debut off the bench in Round Nine against Redcliffe. Eli Morgan moved into the starting line-up in Round Twelve against the Sunshine Coast Falcons starting in the second row.

Eli Morgan’s 2019 Hastings Deering’s Colts season came to an end when he started on the interchange bench for Burleigh as they went down 23 – 16 to Sunshine Coast in the Preliminary Final.

In total in the 2019 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition Eli Morgan played in nine matches two of which were finals. Eli Morgan made two starts in the second row, his second coming against Souths Logan in Round Sixteen with the remaining seven of his matches from the bench.

Eli Morgan also played four matches in the 2019 GCRL U18 Division One regular season competition, mostly off the bench for Burleigh and scoring his sole try against Ormeau.

Eli Morgan made his 2019 GCRL U20 debut in Round Nineteen when he started at lock for Burleigh against Helensvale for his sole match in that competition in 2019.

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The 2019 season that was for Trey Peni:

in January of 2019 Trey Peni was part of the Titans U18 squad that played a trial in Coffs Harbour against the Newcastle Knights U18 SG Ball squad.

Trey Peni started the 2019 season proper as part of the Burleigh Bears MM Cup side coming in to the side on the left wing in Round Three. In the Round Three match against local rivals the Tweed Heads Seagulls Trey Peni scored his first MM Cup try when he pounced on an inch perfect kick from Tweed Heads five eight Brodyn Gudgeon to score close to the left touch line in goal line.

In Round Four against the Townsville Blackhawks Trey Peni recorded a try assist when he took a cross field bomb to his left wing on the full a few metres out from the Townsville line and then under pressure was able to off-load to Eli Morgan who had looped around the back of him to score in the left corner.

In total for Burleigh in the 2019 MM Cup competition, Trey Peni played in four matches starting three on the wing and one, being Round Six in the centres against Wynnum Manly with Burleigh finishing their 2019 MM Cup season off on a high after beating the previously undefeated Seagulls 23 - 22.

Post the 2019 MM Cup competition, Trey Peni played Round One of the 2019 GCRL U18 Division One competition for Nerang scoring in that match as well.

Trey Peni received a deserved call-up to the Burleigh Colts Hastings Deering’s Cup side for their 2019 Round Nine match against Redcliffe and had an outstanding debut scoring a double from the right wing.

In relation to both of his tries, Trey Peni scored by positioning himself well by staying on the side line outside of his direct opponent and as a result having a direct path to the try line. Trey Peni was certainly happy to score his first try, pumping his fist even before crossing the try line. Trey Peni could have had a hat trick but the ball went to Jayden Campbell to score when it could have quite easily have gone to Trey Peni instead.

Trey Peni came back into the Burleigh Colts side starting on the right wing and scoring in Round Twenty against the Western Mustangs when he scored an easy try in the right corner after good work inside by the Burleigh playmakers including Cameron Brown and Jayden Campbell.

In total in the 2019 Hastings Deering’s Colts regular season competition for Burleigh Trey Peni played in four matches starting all on the right wing scoring the three tries noted in the paragraph’s noted above.

Trey Peni’s 2019 Hastings Deering’s Colts season came to an end when he started on the left wing for Burleigh as they went down 23 – 16 to Sunshine Coast in the Preliminary Final.

Trey Peni also performed well for Keebra Park in 2019, including scoring a double in their Round Two Langer Cup victory over Ipswich State High School and started on the right wing in the Langer Cup derby against PBC also scoring a double in the match with both tries coming in the second half.

Trey Peni’s first try came when he retrieved a chip kick and stepped inside the fullback to score and for his second try Trey Peni flew down the right touch line executing a dive to place the ball down in his right hand in the right corner of the field.

Trey Peni also started on the right wing for Keebra Park in their Queensland GIO Cup quarter final win over Coombabah State High School 42 – 12 and also started on the right wing in their tough loss to Wavell State High School in the their Queensland GIO Cup semi-final.

Trey Peni also represented South Coast at the 2019 U18 QSSRL Championships playing on the right wing at the Championships. Trey Peni scored on Day One against Northern in the right corner after outstanding lead up work by fellow Titan James Torrens on his inside.

South Coast went through the Championships undefeated including coming from behind to defeat Northern in the final 22 – 16. Trey Peni was subsequently named in the 2019 Queensland School boy’s side for the Australian U18 School boy Championships.
At the 2019 ASSRL U18 Championships Trey Peni started all of Queensland matches, including the Championship Final on the right wing, scoring in the 10th minute of the second half in Queensland’s second match of the Championships against New South Wales Combined High Schools.

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In March 2019 Titans contracted Solomon Torrens was selected in the South Coast U18 side for the 2019 QSSRL U18 Championships and started in the front row for South Coast in the QSSRL U18 Championships. One Day One of the Championships, Solomon Torrens was his typical hard charging self, scoring when he collected a grubber kick that had bounced around through a number of feet to score near the right upright.

South Coast went through the Championships undefeated including coming from behind to defeated Northern in the final 22 – 16.

Solomon Torrens was subsequently named in the Queensland School boy’s side for the Australian School boy Championships and in fact was named Player of the Tournament.

Solomon Torrens was the captain of the 2019 Queensland U18 ASSRL side playing in all of his Queensland’s matches starting in either the front row or second row although he did some matches with an injury.

Solomon Torrens played in all eight matches for the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup side in 2019 and was particularly outside in their semi-final win against Souths Logan including being heavily involved in the Seagulls first try.

Operating on the left, Solomon Torrens used impressive late footwork to get outside of the Magpies right second rower and get the ball to the outside, leading directly to a try for fellow Titan, centre Caleb Hodges.

In the 2019 MM Cup Grand Final against Wynnum Manly Solomon Torren was one of Tweed Heads best and scored the match sealing try late in the second half when he cut back in after receiving he ball and crashing over for an outstanding try.

Solomon Torrens was also at his rampaging best in the National U18 Grand Final against Illawarra proving to be a real handful for the Steelers defence every time he took the ball up.

Solomon Torrens played thirty six minutes in the National Final, running for an incredible 150 metres (forty six post contact), broke two tackles, played the ball at an average speed of 3.83 seconds and made fourteen tackles at a tackling efficiency of 87.5%.

Solomon Torrens started Round Two of the Langer Cup for PBC on the bench against St Mary’s but when he was injected into the match mid-way through the first half, Solomon Torrens put PBC on the front foot with some big charges through the middle and started at lock against Keebra Park.

2019 also saw Solomon Torrens start in the front row for the Titans U18 side in their match against North Queensland that was played as the curtain raiser to the Titans/ Warriors NRL match in June 2019.

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PNG born and raised Jahream Bula moved over to Australia to attend Keebra Park State High School at the start of 2018 and since then has showcased his elite athleticism both on a rugby league field as well as on a basketball court for Keebra Park.

As a result Jahream Bula has recently signed a multi-year contract with the Titans and was set to play for the Tweed Heads Seagulls in the 2020 MM Cup competition as well as completing his senior year of schooling at Keebra Park and being part of the JTS Program with the Titans.

In his two years of playing rugby league for Keebra Park, Jahream Bula played primarily for the Langer Reserve side but in both 2018 and 2019 played two Langer A Cup matches with the Keebra Park Open A side including scoring against PBC in their local derby this season.

In his first year at Keebra Park being 2018 Jahream Bula was named the Langer Cup Reserve Most Valuable Player and was also awarded the Most Valuable Player at the Year 11 level at the Keebra Park Rugby League Sports Specialisation Awards night towards the end of that year.

As noted Jahream Bula also played basketball for Keebra Park in both 2018 and 2019, playing in five matches each year in the CBSQ Boys Fourth Division competition. In 2019 Jahream Bula averaged a team leading 11.6 points from his five games including scoring a career high twenty two points in the final game of the season against Mt Maria College. Jahream Bula added twelve points in matches against Brisbane Bayside State College (Game One) and Pacific Pines State High School (Game Three).

In 2018 in the CBSQ Fourth Boys Division competition Jahream Bula averaged a team leading (again) twelve points a game including scoring fifteen points in the final game of the 2018 season against Springfield Central State High School.

Impressively in 2018 Jahream Bula scored in double figures in each of his five matches. In addition to his season high fifteen point match noted above Jahream Bula also scored in double figures in 2018 against Alexandra State High School, Pacific Pines State High School, Immanuel Lutheran College and St Andrews Catholic College.

In 2019 Jahream Bula played for the Hurricanes in the North Coast Basketball Association in the U17 – U20 competition.

In 2018 Jahream Bula also represented North Gold Coast at the U18 Boys Division Three Queensland State Championships scoring fifty six points from seven matches at an average of eight points per game made up of twenty five two point shots and six free throws. Jahream Bula scored thirteen points (six two point shots and a free throw) in Game Three against Redlands and added twelve (six two point shots) in Game Six against the Trojans.

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The 2019 season that was for new 2020 Keebra Park student Zinzan Kahu:

In 2019 the young half played a lot of rugby league including representing Victoria in both the U15 ASSRL Pool B school boy Championships and at the U15 New South Wales Country Age Championships, Southern Zone. Zinzan Kahu also played for the Waverley Panthers in the NRL Victoria U15 club rugby league competition.

For the U15 Victorian school boys side in the 2019 U15 ASSRL Championships, Zinzan Kahu started at half in all four of Victoria’s matches including the Pool B final against the ASSRL ATSI Invitational side, unfortunately Victoria went down 20 – 14 in the final.

In his four matches at the U15 ASSRL Championships Pool B competition for Victoria Zinzan Kahu finished with a 50% strike rate from his four matches, scoring in Game One against the ASSRL ATSI Invitational side and Game Three against the Northern Territory. Zinzan Kahu was named Victoria’s best against the ASSRL ATSI Invitational side in Game One of the Championships.

Post the Championship Final the former Keysborough College Melbourne student (now Keebra Park State High School student of course) was named at half in the U15 ASSRL Pool B Merit Team.

2019 was the second season that Zinzan Kahu represented the U15 Victorian side at the ASSRL U15 Championships after also being part of the 2018 side when he played four matches at hooker as a 14 year old.

Late in 2019 Zinzan Kahu started at half in all four of NRL Victoria’s matches at the New South Wales Country U15 Age Championships kicking a conversion on Day One against Illawarra.

On Day Two Zinzan Kahu played in matches against Group Six and Group Seven and the following week was part of the NRL Victoria side that went down in their Final series match against Group Three.

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2019 GPS school boy First XV season for Syris Schmidt:

After starting the majority of TSS’s First XV 2019 GPS trials at fly half (No. 10), Syris Schmidt started there in Round One against Nudgee College and had a solid game in their heart stopping after the final siren one point win.

Syris Schmidt also started at five half in Round Two against Churchie producing an assured performance highlighted by some deft short passing and some raking left foot tactical kicking. For his performance, Syris Schmidt was awarded one point in the 2019 TSS First XV Rounds Two points’ award by the First XV coach.

Syris Schmidt continued his solid form in Round Three once against starting at No. 10 against Brisbane State High and was very effective defensively and also started at No. 10 in Round Four against Toowoomba Grammar School, producing an assured display.

Round Five against Brisbane Grammar School also saw Syris Schmidt in the No. 10 jersey for the TSS First XV scoring his career first GPS First XV try in the match.

In the critical Round Six match against BBC Syris Schmidt had limited ball playing time due to the rushing defence but more than held his own as TSS remained undefeated on the back of a 23 – 20 away win.

Syris Schmidt added a try assist in Round Seven in a big 54 – 24 win against Gregory Terrace when he put up a pin point left foot kick which literally went the entire width of the field and was perfectly weighted.

Syris Schmidt started the critical Round Eight match against Ipswich Grammar School once again at fly half as TSS won the GPS First XV Premiership after drawing 29 all.

Syris Schmidt post the 2019 GPS First XV competition was named at fly half in the fam nominated Courier Mail GPS First XV Team of Year after receiving 34.4% of the votes for the fly half (no. 10) position.

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2019 GPS school boy First XV season for Titan Orlando Swain:

Orlando Swain was part of the Ipswich Grammar School U16A GPS school boy rugby side in 2019 but made his deserved First XV debut on the right wing in Round Eight of the 2019 season against TSS on the Gold Coast.

Orlando Swain had a great debut including a first half try assist when he threw a left arm over the head flick pass to Roosters bound Sam Walker to score in the first half. Even though he was playing on the right wing, Orlando Swain had a licence to roam on the match, regularly chiming into the backline on the left side of the field after set pieces.

Orlando Swain played his second GPS First XV match in Round Nine against Gregory Terrace, once again starting on the right wing and scored his first try when he was on the end of an Ipswich Grammar School movement to score wide out on the right in the first half.

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2019 GPS school boy First XV season for Titan Kedan Chan-Tung:

Kedan Chan-Tung started Round One of the GPS School boy First XV competition at fullback for Ipswich Grammar School contributing two tries as IGS had a big win over Brisbane State High School.

Kedan Chan-Tung’s first try came about when he was on hand after a long break to take the ball and dive over close to the line. His second try came from a scrum move and after receiving the ball he flew thirty five metres down the left touch line to score out wide, unfortunately not long after that he limped off with what looked like an ankle injury, missing Round Two as a result.

Kedan Chan-Tung was back at fullback for Round Three against Toowoomba Grammar School contributing a try to the IGS victory. The ball was spun out to the left, Kedan Chan-Tung received the ball in space, dummied to his left and strolled over from fifteen metres out.

Kedan Chan-Tung also had a try assist in the match, he fielded a kick on the full on the half way mark, and simply spilt the Toowoomba Grammar School defence right through the centre of the ruck, he could have beaten the fullback who was flat footed but instead he threw a long pass to his left to his winger who crossed out wide untouched.

Kedan Chan-Tung also produced an outstanding break in the second half, he folded around the back of the play on the left side of the field and after receiving the ball produced a great right arm field to gain separation before stepping off his left foot to break the line and charge down the centre of the field for a thirty metre run before the Toowoomba defence converged.

Kedan Chan-Tung moved to outside centre for Round Four against Nudgee College and whilst me may not have had the space he did at fullback still as a major contributor including scoring his 4th try of the season when he pounced on a mistake by the Nudgee fullback to score late in the first half.

In Round Five against Brisbane Boys College, Kedan Chan-Tung started at fullback and had a busy afternoon, making at least three try saving tackles in the first half alone as well as standing in at half back when IGS were reduced to 14 men in the first half.

With the ball Kedan Chan-Tung did not get too many opportunities after the opening minutes, but his first run of the match was outstanding when he broke three BBC tackles returning a kick in general play.

Kedan Chan-Tung was at his elusive best from fullback in Round Six against Anglican Church Grammar School scoring a try and setting up one both in the second half but Ipswich Grammar School went down 24 – 22 in a bit of an upset.

In relation to his try assist Kedan Chan-Tung took the ball in the right field and took the ball right to the line, copping a hit to the ribs for his trouble before popping a great short ball for his outside centre to slice through a gap to score.

Kedan Chan-Tung had a lot of work to do for his try, he received the ball once again on the right side of the field from Sam Walker, stepping off his right foot immediately upon receipt of the ball to get inside the immediate Churchie defender before accelerating over the ten metres to the line to dive over under pressure from three cover defenders.

After an Ipswich Grammar School Round Seven bye Kedan Chan-Tung started Round Eight against TSS at fullback and was dangerous as the match ended in an exciting 29 all draw with both teams having chances that they could not convert.

In Round Nine being the final round of the GPS School Boy First XV competition, Kedan Chan-Tung had two try assists from fullback both when he drew the Gregory Terrace fullback and passed to Roosters bound Sam Walker to score.

Post the GPS season Kedan Chan-Tung was named in the U18 Reds Academy Maroon side for a double header at Nudgee College in late September with Kedan Chan-Tung starting the match against the News South Wales Waratahs Academy from the bench.

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2019 GPS school boy First XV season for Titan Kaleb Ngamanu:

Kaleb Ngamanu kicked off his 2019 school boy rugby campaign for TSS in late April 2019 when he was part of the TSS Second XV side that defeated touring New Zealand School New Plymouth Boys High 36 – 0, starting the match at inside centre. Kaleb Ngamanu then was on the bench for the TSS First XV side that went down 31 – 29.

Kaleb Ngamanu made his TSS First XV run on debut in a trial against Brisbane State High School in May with TSS winning 57 – 12.

Kaleb Ngamanu was once against part of the TSS First XV squad for the next set of GPS rugby trials against Brisbane State High School and Gregory Terrace at the TSS campus, in late May with Kaleb Ngamanu named on the bench. TSS won the trial against Gregory Terrace but went down against BSHS in the second match.

Kaleb Ngamanu started TSS’s next trial against Nudgee College in the right wing (No. 14) for the TSS First XV. Kaleb Ngamanu moved to the left wing (No. 11) for the TSS First XV’s next trial against Ipswich Grammar School at Ipswich.

Kaleb Ngamanu started at outside centre for the TSS First XV in their final GPS rugby trial prior to their Round One fixture against Nudgee College with TSS winning 10-5 against Sunshine Coast Grammar School.

In Round One of the 2019 GPS school boy rugby competition, Kaleb Ngamanu started on the right wing for TSS against Nudgee College and was outstanding defensively for TSS, both in terms of initial contact and cover defence.

The ball did not get out to his right wing a great deal but Kaleb Ngamanu did have an outstanding run late in the second half where he dragged a number of Nudgee defenders five or six metres. Kaleb Ngamanu actually crossed the line in the second half but the final pass was called back for being forward. To be fair it was only two or three metres forward.

Kaleb Ngamanu also showcased his hands in Round One taking producing a great contest catch of a TSS box kick under extreme pressure to maintain TSS’s momentum in a pivotal moment of the first half.

Kaleb Ngamanu was also outstanding in Round Two as TSS thrashed Churchie 64 – 7 with Kaleb Ngamanu starting on the right wing but moving into inside centre around the 10 minute mark after an injury.

From that position Kaleb Ngamanu scored his first First XV try of the career. At a set piece about fifteen metres out from the Churchie line, Kaleb Ngamanu originally lined up in the left of the piece but rotated around to the right receiving the ball in space.

Kaleb Ngamanu ran at the opposition defensive line which started to back pedal holding the ball in both hands and after shaping to pass the ball to his right before running through the resultant gap in the line to score mid-way between the touch line and goal post on the right side of the field.

After finishing Round Two at inside centre, Kaleb Ngamanu started there in Round Three against Brisbane State High School. In the first half Kaleb Ngamanu focussed primarily on ball playing for his outside backs but in the second half ran the ball more and came close to scoring twice.

Kaleb Ngamanu also started at inside centre in Round Four against Toowoomba Grammar School in Toowoomba scoring his second try of the season as well as recording a try assist and also being heavily involved in a few others.

Kaleb Ngamanu’s try assist came in the second half and was as a result of a great sleight of hand from a set play. From a TSS scrum win on the Toowoomba Grammar School twenty metre line Kaleb Ngamanu received the ball to the right of the scrum and produced an outstanding no look pop up pass to his right as the TSS left winger looped around to charge through the resultant gap to score adjacent to the left upright.

Kaleb Ngamanu’s try (his second of the season) came late in the match, Kaleb Ngamanu picked up the ball on from the back of a ruck and drove to his left to score from close range to round out a 62 – 3 TSS route.

Round Five against Brisbane Grammar School saw Kelab Ngamanu continue at inside centre scoring for the second week in a row and third for the season. Kaleb Ngamanu’s try can only be considered a superb effort. In the 16th minute of the first half, Kaleb Ngamanu received the ball to the right of the ruck and ran diagonally to his right and used a great fend which literally knocked the Brisbane Grammar School fly half, being Connor Te Kani off his feet.

Once that occurred Kaleb Ngamanu ran through the resultant gap to score mid-way between the goal posts and the right corner flag under pressure from two more BGS defenders.

In Round Six Kaleb Ngamanu started once again at inside centre against fellow unbeaten school Brisbane Boys College at Toowong in Brisbane in essentially what was the GPS First XV Premiership decider between the only remaining unbeaten schools.

Unfortunately Kaleb Ngamanu was forced off the field with a cheek bone injury in the early minutes of the second half in TSS’s 23 – 20 victory in front of a massive crowd at Toowong in Brisbane’s west.

The win ensured that TSS were the 2019 GPS School Boy rugby First XV Champions and it is a touch ironic that it came against BBC which was the school that Kaleb Ngamanu’s two older brothers starred for being Cullen and Jayden Ngamanu.

Kaleb Ngamanu in 2019 was also part of the Queensland U18 Reds Academy Rugby side that defeated Victoria 46 – 18 with Kaleb Ngamanu coming off the bench to play on the right wing and mid-way through the second half set up a try when he drew the Rebels fullback and passed back inside to the Reds outside centre to score after a long run down the right touch line

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You won’t find a hard working player in the Queensland Cup competition than Rory Lillis.

In late February 2020 Rory Lillis started at lock for the Tweed Heads Seagulls A Grade side in their trail against Burleigh.

Rory Lillis started Round One of the 2020 Queensland Cup competition for the Tweed Heads Seagulls from the bench against the Northern Pride and impressing in his forty six minutes on the field. Rory Lillis ran for 106 metres (thirty eight post contact), broke four tackles, played the ball at an average speed of 4.42 seconds and made twenty seven tackles at a perfect tackling efficiency.

In 2019 Rory Lillis was part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls Queensland Cup squad playing in ten matches, starting eight from the bench and Rounds Twenty Three and Twenty Four at lock.

In total in the Queensland Cup in 2019 Rory Lillis played 339 minutes, ran for 715 metres (249 post contact), broke sixteen tackles and made 194 tackles at a 91% tackling efficiency.

Rory Lillis had a career match in Round Twenty Three against the Northern Pride, in fact it was his first Queensland Cup start. In his fifty six minutes on the field, Rory Lillis ran for 207 metres, eight three of which were post contact and made twenty eight tackles.

2019 also saw Rory Lillis made eight appearances for the Tugun Seahawks in the GCRL First Grade competition scoring three tries, including a late season double against Southport and also scoring the following week against Ormeau.

Rory Lillis made his Queensland Cup debut in 2018 for Tweed Heads playing three matches in total, running for 165 metres and making fifty five tackles at a 90.16% tackling efficiency.

In 2018 Rory Lillis played four matches in the GCRL First Grade competition for the Tweed Heads Seagulls with his matches coming against Burleigh twice, Currumbin and Tugun.

The local young second rower originally from the Mullumbimby Giants just south of the border moved back to the Gold Coast mid-way through the 2016 season playing for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Colts side before making the Titans Holden Cup squad for the 2017 season and played in twenty Two matches in the Holden Cup for the Titans including scoring his solitary 2017 NYC try in Round twenty Three against the St George Dragons.

Rory Lillis started in all twenty two of his 2017 NYC matches, all in the second row outside of Round Three against the Parramatta Eels when he started at lock. In total across the 2017 NYC season Rory Lillis carried the ball on 199 occasions making 1 786 metres, one line break, two try assists, six off loads and 663 at a tackling efficiency of 86% all whilst on the field for 1 652 minutes. Rory Lillis’s 2017 NYC per game season averages included running for 81.2 metres from 9.1 hit-ups and 30.1 tackles in 75 minutes of game time.

On fifteen occasions Rory Lillis played all 80 minutes including from Rounds Ten to Nineteen when he did not come off the field in those eight matches. On four occasions Rory Lillis ran for more than 100 metres with his highest number of metres in a match coming in Round Fourteen against the Warriors when he ran for 137 metres from fourteen charges into the Warriors defence.

Defensively Rory Lillis had an outstanding year in 2017, making the most tackles by a Titans NYC player both in terms of total tackles and tackles per match with 663 and 30.1 respectively. In all twenty two matches that he played Rory Lillis made in excess of twenty tackles including making more than 30 tackles on eleven occasions including a huge game against the Cronulla Sharks when he made 39 tackles in Round Nineteen.

In 2016 Rory Lillis played the season with the South Sydney NYC side where he played a total of eight matches, scoring one try in the process which came against the Newcastle Knights in Round Two. Of the eight matches Rory Lillis played, he started at either lock or second row in five of those and came off the interchange bench in the other three rounds that he played in. In two of the matches that he started Rory Lillis played the entire 80 minutes, which were in Rounds One and Three against the Roosters and Dragons respectively, showcasing his endurance abilities.

In the remaining six rounds Rory Lillis averaged around 40 minutes a match to finish to an average of 50 minutes per match during the 2016 NYC season. His 2016 averages also included an average of eight runs for 70 metres and 20 tackles per match. From a run metres perspective his best match was against Newcastle in Round Two when he ran for 105 metres and in Round Three he made 31 matches against St George. In addition to the NYC matches that he played in 2016, Rory Lillis also played two matches for La Perouse United in the local South’s Sydney A grade competition which were against the Coogee Dolphins and Moore Park.

Upon his return from Sydney in mid-2016 Rory Lillis linked with the Tweed Heads Seagulls Queensland Cup Colts squad making his first appearance for them in Round 17 against the Sunshine Coast Falcons and proceeded to play eight matches straight, including scoring three tries which came on debut, in Round 22 against the Toowoomba Clydesdales and in Round 25 against the Redcliffe Dolphins. Rory Lillis lined up in the second row in all of the matches that he played for the Tweed Heads Colts in 2016.

Prior to moving to Sydney, Rory Lillis had a distinguished junior representative career on the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales, including representing Group 18 at the U15 level in 2012 and playing in the CC Cup competition in 2013 and the MM Cup competition in 2015 including scoring a try against the Redcliffe Dolphins in Round Three. Rory Lillis was also part of the South Coast team for the 2015 QSSRL U18 championships where team mates includes Tyrone Roberts-Davis and AJ Brimson who will be Titans NYC team mates this year.