Junior Development

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Big strong tough Gold Coast local Samuel Shannon is a Titans contracted forward and is also currently training with the Titans U20 Rookie Squad and is playing the 2021 season with the Burleigh Bears Hastings Deering’s Colts squad.

In early January 2021 Samuel Shannon started at lock for the Titans U19 side in their annual match against the Newcastle Knights in Coffs Harbour and was one of the Titans best in their dominating 40 – 6 victory.

Samuel Shannon was in the action almost immediately, being involved in a solid hit in the second tackle after the Titans kicked off. Also involved in the tackle were Ediq Ambrosyev and Isaac Matalavea-Booth.

Samuel Shannon showcased a variety of skills in the match including an outstanding first hit-up which came in the Titans second set of six tackles when he bent the Knights defensive line in the centre of the ruck backwards. Samuel Shannon also produced an outstanding charge from the second hit-up from the second half kick-off when he took the ball to the right of the play the ball and knocked two defenders as he made fifteen metres with the Titans scoring in the same set of six due to the knights defensive line back peddling.

The next skill attribute that Samuel Shannon showcased in the match was an outstanding off-load under heavy pressure to Ediq Ambroysev who was able to make additional metres.

Samuel Shannon highlighted another skill attribute in the 4th minute of the second half, when he showed that he has a one on one steal attribute in his game. When Newcastle on the attack just fifteen metres out from the Titans line, Samuel Shannon was able to get across on the right just as it seemed the Knights attacker was going to be able to split the Titans right sided defence. Samuel Shannon was able to get the ball out of the Knights players hands and then charge forty metres down the right touchline to fundamentally change the momentum of the match at that time.

Samuel Shannon’s game in the main is based on strength and power but in the first half against the Newcastle Knights, he showed some real subtly to put Thomas Weaver into a gap from which the half subsequently scored. Samuel Shannon moved into dummy half twenty five metes out from the Knights line and when he saw the Titans had the number down the blind side, Samuel Shannon ran out of dummy half to his left, running directly at the Knights A defender, holding him on place, before throwing a good short pass to his left to put Thomas Weaver into the gap to record an impressive try assist that many halfs/five eights would have been proud of.

To round out an exceptional match against the Knights, Samuel Shannon produced another outstanding off-load that led to a second Jaylan De Groot try. At the start of the play it appeared that Samuel Shannon was supporting a Jack Cullen hit-up, but at the last moment prior to contacting the defensive line, Jack Cullen put Samuel Shannon into a gap with a deft pre-contact offload. Samuel Shannon then produced his own off-load to send Thomas Weaver away, who subsequently off-loaded to Jaylan De Groot to score.

The off-load by Samuel Shannon was definitely not a simple one. Not long after breaking into space, Samuel Shannon was hit on his left side, but we maintained body control and balance, to get the ball into his right arm and get the pass to Thomas Weaver around the body of the Knights defender who as in contact with him.

At the completion of the Newcastle match, Samuel Shannon along with Thomas Weaver were named the Titans joint Player of the Match.

A week after the match against the Newcastle Knights Samuel Shannon once again lined up for the Titans U19’s starting at lock as the Titans took on a Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts squad with the Titans winning 32 – 20 with no conversions attempted.

Samuel Shannon was in the action almost immediately, taking the second hit-up after the Bears kicked off, making a typically strong charge to the right of the play the ball after receiving the ball from Ediq Ambrosyev.

As he did in the Newcastle match, Samuel Shannon produced some outstanding runs against the Bears including an 11th minute charge of a Titans tap kick from a penalty against a set Burleigh defensive line. Even though they knew Samuel Shannon was charging straight at them, the Bears defence could not stop Samuel Shannon from making seven metres post contact.

Like it was against Newcastle, Samuel Shannon’s off-loading ability was showcased against the Bears including a two handed off-load with his back towards his own line to Oskar Bryant who made additional metres from the off-load for the Titans.

In early March 2021, Samuel Shannon started on the interchange bench for the Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts side as they took on the Tweed Heads Seagulls in a trial. Samuel Shannon came off the bench in the 24th minute of the match immediately taking a hit-up to the right of the dummy half making eight metres in the first of multiple charges by the hard as nails young lock.

Samuel Shannon’s hard running style was on display once again just a few minutes later in the 28th minute when he charged into the Seagulls defensive line off the kick-off from Tyler Mahon’s try and then in the 29th minute, Samuel Shannon backed up a break from Cameron Brown, receiving the off-load before getting the ball away to his right to put Tyler Mahon away to score his second try in a five minute span.

Samuel Shannon continued to be heavily involved in the first half and in the last minute of the half charged into the Tweed Heads defensive line once again and on that occasion was able to get an off-load away with his back to the defence.

In a sign of the regard that the Titans hold in him, Samuel Shannon trained with the Titans Rookie Squad in the 2019-20 offseason and was part of the Titans Rookie squad that played against the Tweed Heads Queensland Cup side in early February 2020 in wet conditions at Cudgen. Even though the Tweed Heads Queensland Cup side prevailed in the match, the Titans Rookie side more than held their own, including Samuel Shannon.

Mid-way through the 2020 season Samuel Shannon commenced training with the Titans U20 Rookie Squad on a regular basis, such is the regard that the Titans hierarchy hold him in.

Samuel Shannon was also a key performer for the Burleigh MM side that drew 20 all with a Burleigh Colts selection in a trial that preceded the Titans v Burleigh NRL trial at Pizzey Park in February 2020. That night Samuel Shannon was as damaging as any forward on the field for either side.

Samuel Shannon started Round One of the 2020 MM Cup competition for the Burleigh Bears at lock and captained the Bears side against the Wynnum Manly Seagulls as well as scoring in the match after a powerful burst leaving a number of Wynnum Manly forwards in his wake on the ground. That run was not an isolated incident in the match.

Samuel Shannon made his GCRL First Grade debut starting in the second row for the Southport Tigers in Round Five against Tugun and maintained his place in the second row for the Tigers Round Six match against the Ormeau Shearers.

In Round Nine against the Mudgeeraba Redbacks, Samuel Shannon came off the bench in the Tigers 22 – 16 victory as he did in Round Ten against the Tugun Seahawks.

Samuel Shannon started from the interchange bench for the 2019 Burleigh MM Cup side in their Round One match with the Norths Devils with Samuel Shannon contributing a try in in Burleigh’s great comeback to draw 38 all with the Devils.

In total in the 2019 MM Cup competition, Samuel Shannon played in all six of Burleigh’s matches starting the first four rounds from the interchange bench before moving into the starting side in the front row against Souths Logan in Round Five and also starting in the front row in Round Six against Wynnum Manly in Burleigh’s last MM Cup match of the season.

2019 also saw the Robina State High School student represent South Coast at the U18 QSSRL Championships starting from the interchange bench in the majority of South Coast’s matches in Toowoomba.

Samuel Shannon was named on the Burleigh’s Hastings Deering’s U20 extended bench for their Round Fifteen match against Ipswich and made his first appearance in that competition from the bench on Round Nineteen against Redcliffe and also came off the bench (on both occasions brother Daniel also started from the bench) in Round Twenty against the Western Mustangs scoring his first Colts try of the season in that match.

For his try Samuel Shannon ran a crash route from close range to the right of the play the ball and once he received the pass out of dummy half from Zac McCormack he was just too big strong and wanted to score more that the Western Mustangs defence wanted to stop him.

Samuel Shannon also spent time in the U18 Division One competition for Southport in 2019 including starting from the bench in their 28 – 20 Preliminary Final win over Ormeau and starting in the front row in their 28 – 12 Grand Final loss to Burleigh where he was at the forefront of the forward battle that raged over the course of the entire match.

In total Samuel Shannon played seven matches for Southport in the 2019 Gold Coast Rugby League U18 Division One competition including the two finals noted above.

To cap off an outstanding 2019 season Samuel Shannon was named in the 2020 U18 Queensland Emerging Origin Squad with fellow Titans Ediq Ambrosyev and Isreal Higgins.

The powerfully built Southport and Titans youngster started off the 2018 season in fine form being a stand out for the Gold Coast Vikings Viking’s White U16 side that played in the South East Queensland U16 pre-season competition.

From that competition Samuel Shannon was selected at lock for the South East Queensland White U16 side for the 2018 Queensland Age Championships and through his dominant performances in Mackay at those Championships, Samuel Shannon was selected on the bench for the Queensland U16 side that were narrowly defeated by New South Wales. Fellow Titan Ediq Ambrosyev (hooker) was also part of the Queensland U16 side in 2018.

For South East Queensland White U16 Samuel Shannon started all four of their matches at lock including their Championship final loss to South East Queensland Green.

Samuel Shannon played in eight 2018 U16 Division One matches in the GCRL competition with Southport and through the regular season had a 50% strike rate from his four tries. Samuel Shannon’s four tries came against Burleigh, Helensvale, the Runaway Bay Seagulls and the Currumbin Eagles.

Samuel Shannon’s 2018 club season came to an end in the U16 Division One Elimination final when Southport were defeated 44 – 4 by Helensvale, a match that Samuel Shannon started at lock and dominated for long stretches.

In 2017 Samuel Shannon was selected in the Queensland White U15 side for the ASSRL U15 Schoolboys Championships after playing for South Coast in the QSSRL U15 Championships held in Cairns. Samuel Shannon started primarily from the bench for South Coast after making the side from Robina State High School.

In 2017 Samuel Shannon played for the Southport Tigers in the U15 Division One GCJRL competition and performed strongly including scoring a double in Round Two against the Helensvale Hornets. In total in 2017 Samuel Shannon played eight matches scoring five tries to have a solid season in black and orange.

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Ediq Ambrosyev is a local young utility who signed a multi-year year deal to join the Titans JTS Program in 2018 after also being part of the Brisbane Broncos Elite Junior Program for a number of seasons.

Impressively Ediq Ambrosyev was one of a number of Titans rookie players that trained with the Titans NRL squad in the first five week block of the 2020/21 NRL pre-season and is playing the 2021 season with the Tweed Heads Seagulls Hastings Deering’s Colts side.

In early January 2021 Ediq Ambrosyev started at hooker for the Titans U19 side in their annual match against the Newcastle Knights in Coffs Harbour with Ediq Ambrosyev putting in an impressive performance in the Titans 40 – 6 victory.

Ediq Ambrosyev was in the action almost immediately, being involved in a solid hit in the second tackle after the Titans kicked off. Also involved in the tackle were Samuel Shannon and Isaac Matalavea-Booth.

Ediq Ambrosyev was heavily involved in the Titans first try of the match early in the first half. Out of dummy half Ediq Ambrosyev darted to his left to draw the Knights A defender and put his front rower Isaac Matalavea-Booth into a gap and the giant Titan rumbled ten metres to score adjacent to the right upright.

Ediq Ambrosyev was heavily involved in another one of the Titans first half tries, when from dummy half, Ediq Ambrosyev threw a good pass to his left a metre out from the line to bring left second rower Ryan Foran back underneath and onto the ball who was then able to crash over.

Over the course of the match, Ediq Ambrosyev judicially ran out of dummy half, when potentially his best run coming early in the second half when a drat out of dummy half to his right led to Ediq Ambrosyev making seventeen metres through the centre of the Knights ruck. Ediq Ambrosyev was immediately up trying to get a quick play the ball but with the Knights defensive line in disarray, the Knights forwards who eventually brought Ediq Ambrosyev down were forced to prevent the quick play the ball, thus conceding a penalty.

Ediq Ambrosyev’s intelligence was also on display in the match on multiple occasions, including a one on one strip in the 16th minute of the first half. Ediq Ambrosyev was involved in a two man tackle just ten metres out and in front of the posts from their own line, but the other Titans defender dropped off the tackle, Ediq Ambrosyev recognised this a stripped the ball back towards his own line for the Titans to regain possession.

Defensively Ediq Ambrosyev was also impressive in the match, including a good tackle early in the match, when the Knights half looked to isolate him on the right side of the field. Ediq Ambroysev found himself one on one with the half back who ran at him, a looked to beat Ediq Ambrosyev with a dummy half to his left and a subsequent left foot step. Ediq Ambrosyev did not fall for the dummy half and hit the half around the midrift with his left shoulder just as he was stepping to put him on the ground smartly.

A week after the match against the Newcastle Knights Ediq Ambrosyev once again lined up for the Titans U19’s starting at hooker as the Titans took on a Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts squad with the Titans winning 32 – 20 with no conversions attempted.

Ediq Ambrosyev was almost on the score board early in the first half but was held up when he got out of dummy half to the right from close range but in the end was held up under the posts.

In early March 2021, Ediq Ambrosyev started at hooker for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Hastings Deering’s Colts side in their final trial against Burleigh with Ediq Ambrosyev showcasing his defensive technique in the opening minute of the match when he got his shoulder under the ribs and Burleigh front rower Daniel Shannon and lifting his legs off the ground and putting the front rower on his back.

Ediq Ambrosyev was at his elusive best in the 10th minute of the match with Tweed on the attack in Burleigh’s territory. After an errant pass Ediq Ambrosyev tracked back to retrieve the ball, cutting to the left side of the field and darting eighteen metres downfield only to be eventually caught on the Burleigh twenty metre mark.

Ediq Ambrosyev was at his attacking best once again in the 24th minute of the match. After shaping to pass out of dummy half to his right, Ediq Ambrosyev darted out of dummy half in the same direction, as the defensive line reacted to the run, Ediq Ambrosyev grubber kicked through the line and was very unlucky not to regather the ball and continue to attack.

In his stint on the field in the second half Ediq Ambrosyev switched positions spending time at half back.

In a sign of the regard that the Titans hold in him, Ediq Ambrosyev trained with the Titans Rookie Squad (U20) in the 2019-20 offseason and started from the bench coming on to play in the dummy half role for the Titans Rookie squad against the Tweed Heads Queensland Cup side in early February 2020 at Cudgen in wet conditions.

Mid-way through the 2020 season Ediq Ambrosyev commenced training with the Titans U20 Rookie Squad on a regular basis, such is the regard that the Titans hold him in.

Ediq Ambrosyev also spent a fair portion of the 2019/20 off season training with the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts squad even though he was still MM Cup eligible such is his skill and maturity level.

Ediq Ambrosyev started Round One of the 2020 MM Cup competition for the Tweed Heads Seagulls at hooker against the Northern Pride scoring in the 54th minute of the Seagulls big first up 52 – 20 victory diving over to score adjacent to the left upright.

It was a near certainty that Ediq Ambrosyev would have moved immediately to the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts squad at the end of the 2020 MM Cup season, adding to his two Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts games that Ediq Ambrosyev played late in 2019 for the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

Ediq Ambrosyev moved to the Runaway Bay Seagulls in 2020 from the Currumbin Eagles, immediately making a big impact in the Seagulls Red, White and Blue. Such was Ediq Ambrosyev’s impact, that he was named to make his Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade debut in Runaway Bay’s critical semi-final in Week One of the Finals against the Mudgeeraba Redbacks.

In January 2019 Ediq Ambrosyev started at hooker for the Titans U18 side against the Newcastle Knights U18 SG Ball squad in Coffs Harbour and provided great service and outstanding running out of dummy half and also scored when he took advantage of some tired Newcastle Knights defence to his left close to their own line in the first half when he darted out of dummy half to score under the posts.

Ediq Ambrosyev started both halves at hooker, all be it in different coloured head gear and mid-way through each half alternated with Jed Edwards in the dummy half role for the Titans.

Ediq Ambrosyev started on the bench for the 2019 Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup side in their Round One match with the Western Mustangs with Ediq Ambrosyev contributing a second half try in a big 58 – 18 Seagulls win.

Ediq Ambrosyev’s 2019 Round One MM Cup try was one of the strangest that I have ever seen. After Tweed Heads lost the ball whilst attacking the Western Mustangs line, the Western Mustangs fullback retrieved the ball and kicked it downfield, assuming that the referee would stop play. The referee however deemed that the kick downfield constituted the Western Mustangs taking their advantage and ruled play on.

Tweed Heads winger Troy Duckett was able to prevent the ball from going into touch before offloading to centre Caleb Hodges who in a tackle offloaded to Ediq Ambrosyev who beat two defenders in a forty run to the line to score midway between the touchline and uprights on the left side of the field.

After also starting from the bench in their Round Two victory over the Townsville Blackhawks, Ediq Ambrosyev moved into the starting line-up at hooker for the Round Three local derby against the Burleigh Bears.

Ediq Ambrosyev also started at hooker in Round Six against the Mackay Cutters and scored in a big 72 – 0 Seagulls victory. After passing to his right fifteen metres out from the Cutters line, Ediq Ambrosyev chased through a Toby Sexton kick which initially looked too long off the boot, but Ediq Ambrosyev would not give up on the chase, diving full length and managing to get the ball down centremetres from the dead ball line.

In total in the 2019 MM Cup competition, Ediq Ambrosyev played in all eight of Tweed Heads matches starting two from the bench and six at hooker including both their semi-final and Grand Final victory over Wynnum Manly. In the 2019 MM Cup Player of the season voting Ediq Ambrosyev finished with two votes.

In the Grand Final Ediq Ambrosyev scored Tweed Heads second try in just the 2nd minute when he pounced on a dropped bomb and was also named player of the final. Post-match Ediq Ambrosyev was named Player of the Match in the Queensland MM Cup Grand Final.

Ediq Ambrosyev was equally effective in the U18 National Championship match against the Illawarra Steelers, constantly snipping in the centre of the field from dummy half.

Ediq Ambrosyev played fifty five nine minutes in the National Final, running for thirty three metres (ten post contact), broke a tackle, played the ball at an average speed of an exceptional 2.4 seconds and made nineteen tackles at a tackling efficiency of 73.1%.

Early in the 2019 season, Ediq Ambrosyev was selected in the South Coast U18 side for the QSSRL U18 Championships starting primarily from the interchange bench in the U18 QSSRL Championships in South Coasts matches.

At the Championships Ediq Ambrosyev was outstanding including scoring a first half hat trick on Day Three as South Coast went through the Championships undefeated including coming from behind to defeated Northern in the final 22 – 16. Ediq Ambrosyev was subsequently named in the Queensland School boy’s side for the Australian School boy Championships.

At the 2019 ASSRL U18 Championships Ediq Ambrosyev started all of his Queensland matches at dummy half.

Post the MM Cup competitions Ediq Ambrosyev went back to playing for Currumbin, starting Round Six of the GCRL U18 Division One competition at five eight and scoring as Currumbin defeated Ormeau 38 - 12. Ediq Ambrosyev made it two tries from as many matches when he scored coming off the bench in Round Nine against Burleigh.

In total for Currumbin in the GCRL U18 Division One regular season competition, Ediq Ambrosyev played in three matches scoring fourteen points from two tries and he also kicked three goals in Round Thirteen against Tugun.

Ediq Ambrosyev’s tries came in his first two U18 Division One matches of the season against Ormeau and Burleigh.

Ediq Ambrosyev in 2019 was once again part of the PBC Open A rugby league side including starting from the interchange bench in the Langer Cup derby against Keebra Park in June.

Ediq Ambrosyev also started at hooker for PBC in their Queensland GIO Cup quarter final win over St Mary’s High School Toowoomba 50 – 6 scoring in the second half. Ediq Ambrosyev darted out of dummy half to his right and was just too quick for the St Mary’s defence running ten metres to score before the St Mary’s defence had a chance to get itself set.

In the second half of the match, Ediq Ambrosyev actually spent some time in the halves for PBC as the coach rang the changes with PBC well on top.

Ediq Ambrosyev was a solid performer for PBC when he started at hooker in their tough Gold Point loss in the Queensland GIO Cup semi-final loss to Marsden State High School.

Ediq Ambrosyev made his Hastings Deering’s Colts debut In Round Twenty Three against the Northern Pride starting on the bench and scoring in the 29th and 38th minutes of the match as Tweed Heads qualified for the finals on the back of a 36 – 10 win. When he came on Ediq Ambrosyev played in the dummy half role.

His try in the first half was a typical Ediq Ambrosyev try, the play before Ediq Ambrosyev brought a forward onto the ball from dummy half with a well-timed short pass and after a quick play the ball Ediq Ambrosyev dived over to his left out of dummy half from close range to score his debut try in his debut game under the posts.

Ediq Ambrosyev played his second Hastings Deering’s Colts match for Tweed Heads in their Week One Elimination Final loss to the Mackay Cutters 23 – 10 starting from the bench and when came off the bench provided his usual spark.

To cap off an outstanding 2019 season Ediq Ambrosyev was named in the 2020 U18 Queensland Emerging Origin Squad with fellow Titans Isreal Higgins and Samuel Shannon.

Ediq Ambrosyev was part of the 2018 Queensland Academy of Sport U16 squad and was late last year named as part of the 2018 U16 Emerging Origin squad that finished their first camp on the Sunshine Coast in February 2018.

Ediq Ambrosyev also started for the Titans in an U15 match against the Balmain Tigers in late 2017 at Cudgen in northern New South Wales and also represented the Titans in late 2015 against a Toowoomba U14 side, a match which saw him score two tries including a long range effort in the second half after he took an intercept to run eighty metres to score. In that particular match Ediq Ambrosyev played left centre.

Prior to the commencement of the 2018 Gold Coast Rugby League season, Ediq Ambrosyev starred for the U16 Gold Coast Vikings White side in the South East Queensland U16 Championship and post that competition was been named in South East Queensland U16 Green squad.

At the 2018 Queensland Age Championships for SEQ Green Ediq Ambroysev played three matches at hooker. Titans linked team mates in the SEQ Green side were Daniel Butterini and William Parslow (former Titans linked players) all of whom played in the Championship final with Ediq Ambroysev scoring a good try with a snipping run in the first half.

Ediq Ambrosyev was named to start from the interchange bench for the Queensland U16 side when they play New South Wales at Suncorp Stadium but in fact ended up starting the match at hooker. Fellow Titan Samuel Shannon (inter change) was also in the Queensland side.

For the Currumbin Eagles in the 2018 Gold Coast Rugby League U16 Division One competition Ediq Ambrosyev was in outstanding form in the regular season finishing with a strike rate of 113% through eight matches. In all of those matches Ediq Ambrosyev started at five eight.

Ediq Ambroysev’s tries in the 2018 regular season came against Mudgeeraba, Helensvale, Runaway Bay and Nerang in a match that was played as a curtain raiser to the Titans verses South Sydney NRL match at Cbus Stadium recently. Ediq Ambrosyev continued his try scoring trend in Round Six against Southport, the only difference is that he scored a hat trick in that match.

Post the hat trick Ediq Ambrosyev also scored against Mudgeeraba and Southport. In only one 2018 regular season game did Ediq Ambrosyev not score which was in the final regular season round against Southport.

In the 2018 GCRL U16 Division One Finals series, Ediq Ambrosyev started at five eight in all four of Currumbin’s matches including their Grand Final loss 24 – 8 against Currumbin. He did however have a great time against Burleigh in two Finals matches being a Week One victory 30 – 14 and a 28 -26 Preliminary Final victory scoring doubles in each of those matches.

Ediq Ambrosyev has also been in outstanding form for PBC including scoring the match winning try against Keebra Park in their Langer Cup match at Pizzey Park and was also involved in their 24 – 18 victory over Ipswich State High School. Ediq Ambrosyev also played for PBC in their Langer Cup match against Marsden State High School at Waterford which ended in a 38 – 10 win for the Gold Coast based school.

Ediq Ambrosyev was also part of the Titans U16 side that played matches against PNG and New South Wales Country U16’s and in fact scored against NSW Country on a wet afternoon at Cudgen. Ediq Amrbosyev’s try was as a result of a smart and quick dart out of dummy half.

Over the course of the 2017 season Ediq Ambrosyev played in the U15 Division One competition on the Gold Coast with the Coomera Cutters, playing in a total of eight matches, including scoring a hat trick late in the season against Burleigh and early in the season also scored against the Southport Tigers.

The PBC student also represented South Coast in the 2017 QSSRL U15 Championships and from there was selected in the Queensland U15 White side for the ASSRL U15 National Championships where Ediq Ambrosyev played a variety of positions. In those Championships Ediq Ambrosyev crossed on Day Two in a 44 – 0 Queensland White victory over the ACT.

In 2016 Ediq Ambrosyev was part of the dominant Gold Coast Vikings U14 side that went through the 2016 Hill Stumer Championships undefeated playing a number of positions over the course of the three matches that the Vikings played including playing on the wing in the Sunday match against the Ipswich Diggers. Post Hill Stumer Championships, Ediq Ambrosyev was named on the inter change bench for the U14 South East Queensland Green team for the Queensland Age Championships.

Previously Ediq Ambrosyev represented Qld at the U12 level, where he was selected in the second row. In Ediq Ambrosyev also started from the inter change bench for the U13 Titans development squad in a game against an U14 Toowoomba selection.

In that Titans development squad match Ediq Ambrosyev played a significant portion of the game in the centres, scoring two tries including an 80m run away intercept try when he raced down the left hand side of Pizzey park with the Toowoomba defenders chasing in vain.

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Powerhouse former Marsden State High School centre, five eight or fullback Tony Francis is a Titans contracted youngster who started training with the Titans after a number of seasons in the Brisbane Bronco’s junior development system after moving to Brisbane from Sydney where he was part of the Manly Sea Eagles Junior Development Program.

In addition to his duties with the Titans, Tony Francis will play the 2021 season with the Burleigh Bears Hastings Deering’s Colts squad.

In January 2021 Tony Francis was part of the Titans U19 squad that took on the Newcastle Knights in their annual match in Coffs Harbour, starting the match at left centre with the Titans recording an impressive victory 40 – 6 against the Knights.

Tony Francis’s first involvement in the match was when he chased through a Thomas Weaver midfield high kick and crunched the Knights fullback just as he took possession of the ball.

Tony Francis performed exceptionally well in the match, scoring in the second half when he charged onto a pass from Oskar Bryant down a short blind side, running over a defender before getting the ball down under heavy pressure.

Tony Francis proved a handful for the Knights right sided defence on multiple occasions in the match including a bustling first up run when he beat two Knights defenders to make his presence in the match felt. Tony Francis was at it again late in the first half when he surged fifteen metres down field, a majority of which was post contact metres when he ran off a good pass from Oskar Bryant who had darted out of dummy half.

Tony Francis also had some good moments defensively in the match, including a heavy well timed hit on the Knights right centre (No. 3) early in the match. From a Newcastle scrum win the Knights threw the ball out to their right, with a long pass being thrown to the right centre. Tony Francis identified the situation early and come out of the line to hit the Knights centre front on just a fraction after the ball got to the centre. Tony Francis drove his shoulder literally through the centres chest , stopping all of the Knights, and the centres, momentum.

A week after the match against the Newcastle Knights Tony Francis once again lined up for the Titans U19’s starting once again at left centre as they took on a Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts squad with the Titans winning 32 – 20 with no conversions attempted.

Tony Francis did not take long to make an impact in the match, taking a strong hit-up in the opening set of six from the kick with a twelve metre surge down the left side of the field.

Just minutes later, Tony Francis had an even bigger impact on the match when he charged into a gap, receiving a good pass from Jaylan De Groot in the process to charge fifteen minutes to get the ball down five metres in from the left corner after a twelve metre burst.

Tony Francis was again in the action in the 25th minute of the first half with yet another strong charge down the left of twenty metres after being put into a gap by Thomas Weaver.

Tony Francis followed up his 25th minute line break with an even more impressive thirty five metre effort just five minutes later when he rumbled downfield, initially bumping off two defenders who had tried to tackle him chest on. Tony Francis then got rid of two further defenders in quick succession with right arm fends.

Just weeks after Tony Francis suited up for the Titans against Burleigh, Tony Francis was in a Burleigh jersey lining up for the Bears in a Hastings Deering’s Colts trial against the Easts Tigers at Langland’s Park. Starting at left centre, Tony Francis was one of Burleigh’s best, alongside fellow contracted Titan Isaac Matalavea-Booth in the match that ended up in a twenty all draw.

Tony Francis was one of the Bears try scorers when he crossed for a powerful try late in the first half. Tony Francis came back underneath Cameron Brown who had run to his right and passed back to Tony Francis who received the ball ten metres out charging onto the ball and beating three defenders to score ten metres away from the left upright.

Tony Francis also had a first half line break assist, when he showed quick hands to catch and pass to his left to put the Burleigh left winger into space down the left touchline for a thirty metre gain.

Earlier in the match, in the 25th minute to be precise, Tony Francis made a strong ten metre charge when he, like he did for his try, ran on underneath play with Cameron Brown to make a ten metre gain.

Defensively Tony Francis was also very strong in the match including a big front on tackle in the 27th minute of the first half on his opposing centre which forced the Easts Tigers centre sideways.

When he came back onto the field late in the second half, Tony Francis showed his versatility, playing right centre.

The following week in the Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts trial against the Tweed Heads Seagulls, Tony Francis was once again in the starting side but this time at right centre and was once again as his damaging best scoring a first half double as Burleigh rounded out their 2021 Hastings Deering’s trial campaign with a solid win.

It took only four minutes for Tony Francis to score his first try of the match. Tony Francis was able to get on the outside of his direct opponent within ten metres of the try line and from there was able to hold the defender off with his left arm whilst maintaining his balance and running line to score two metres in from the right corner post.

Tony Francis’s second try of the first half came in the 20th minute when Tony Francis received the ball on is inside from Jacob Hall and once gain got outside of his opposing defender and bumping off another to get the ball down four metres in from the right corner post.

In the 24th minute Tony Francis continued his outstanding start to the match with a strong twenty metre charge through centre field, breaking three tackles before three additional Tweed Heads had to commit to the tackle to bring Tony Francis down.

Tony Francis came back onto the field for his second stint in the second half, once again at right centre and it came as no surprise when in the 62nd minute Tony Francis proved exceptionally difficult to stop. Tony Francis made a great bullocking run across field that ultimately made twenty five metres down field breaking four tackles before he was put on the ground.

Tony Francis’s strength was highlighted in the 64th minute when he came in off the right side to bend back Tweed Heads Ben Liyou who ran the ball to Tony Francis’s side of the field.

Tony Francis deservedly took the final hit-up of the match with the final siren sounding just as he was going to ground in his own twenty metre area.

In 2020 Tony Francis was part of the Marsden State High School Langer Cup Open A school boy side spending time at both five eight and left centre for the Mako’s.

Tony Francis started Round One of the 2020 Langer Cup at five eight for Marsden State High School against St Mary’s College Toowoomba and also started at five eight in Round Two against Keebra Park. Round Three of the 2020 Langer Cup against Wavell State High School saw Tony Francis line up at five eight once again and in Round Five against PBC.

Tony Francis was also part of the Marsden State High School school boy rugby league program in 2019, including playing in the Queensland GIO Cup Grand Final against Kirwan State High School, with Tony Francis making one memorable line break in the second half down the left side of the field which ultimately led to a try to TC Robati. Unfortunately Marsden SHS went down in the Grand Final to their North Queensland opponents.

Tony Francis was simply dominating over the course of the 2019 school boy season in both the GIO Cup and the Langer Cup school boy cup competitions and a description of some of his multiple impressive moments are noted below:

Playing left centre against PBC, Tony Francis chased through a short stab kick towards the PBC right corner post, Tony Francis wanted the ball more than the three PBC defenders trying to defuse the kick but Tony Francis bustled this way through the take the ball off a head high bounce and after flipping over a PBC defender was able to get the ball down three metres in from the left corner post.

Tony Francis recorded an outstanding try assist against Wavell State High School when he produced an outstanding flick pass off load out of the back of his left arm to his unmarked left winger to score in the left corner.

Against Ipswich State High School, Tony Francis produced in of the most outstanding pieces of play that I saw in school boy rugby league in 2019. Playing at left centre, Tony Francis split the Ipswich SHS right sided defence twenty metres out from his own line with the cover defence coming from everywhere. Tony Francis was initially dragged down just over the halfway mark but the tackler fell off Tony Francis, who smartly get back to his feet whilst surrounded by defenders to continue his run. Tony Francis then drew the Ipswich SHS fullback to send his left winger away untouched to the try line.

One of the first occasions that Tony Francis wore a Marsden jersey was in early 2019 when a Marsden Open side played a trial against a Wests Tigers Development U17 side. Tony Francis had an outstanding match, including a superb long range line break. Tony Francis, playing left centre, took a pass fifty five metres out above his head. Tony Francis produced an outstanding left arm fend to beat the initial attempted tackle before cutting back to his right to beat another. IT was only a last ditch effort that dragged Tony Francis down just short of the line.

2019 also saw Tony Francis represent Met East at the QSSRL U18 Championships where he was impressive with his hard charging runs and one handed off loads, alternating between starting and coming off the bench.

In 2019 Tony Francis also represented Tonga U18’s at the QPIIC Carnival scoring an outstanding try against Samoa. Tony Francis charged onto the ball from a pass from the dummy half to the left of the play the ball from fifteen metres out, dragging two Samoan defenders with him with those two defenders still trying to hold on even as Tony Francis crashed over the line.

Tony Francis has also played some club rugby since his move from Sydney, playing for the Colleges Knights in the Gold Coast District Rugby competition, primarily at outside centre. Some of his tries in club rugby for Colleges Knights when he terrorised the Helensvale Hogs are noted below.

Playing outside centre (No. 13) Tony Francis was operating on the left side of the field when he took receipt of the ball seventy five metres out from the try line in space. Tony Francis highlighted his impressive speed to outpace the sliding defensive line before producing a strong right arm palm to get rid of the Hornets fullback and bring the ball around under the posts to make the conversion a simple one.

Tony Francis was defending on the left side of the field when the Helensvale fullback kicked to try to clear the ball away from his own territory. Tony Francis took the clearing kick on the full forty two metres out from the Hogs line and brushed past two defenders, one with a fend and another with a shoulder into the defender to score in the left corner.

Probably Tony Francis’s best try of the three against Helensvale came once again when he was on the left side of the field. Tony Francis received the ball forty five metres out from the Hogs line whilst he was standing still after it appeared that the attacking play had broken down. Tony Francis exploded off the mark, cutting to his right to beat the first defender, stepping off his right foot to beat the second to break into open space before outpacing the Hogs fullback to dive over to score in the left corner.

Tony Francis moved to Brisbane in early 2019 after playing for the Manly Sea Eagles in the U16 Harold Matthews Cup in 2018 including starting in the Harold Matthews Cup Grand Final against the Parramatta at five eight and scoring as the Sea Eagles won the premiership decider 26 – 18.

Tony Francis’s first match in the 2018 Harold Matthews Cup competition for Manly came in Round Two when he started at left centre against the Parramatta Eels. Tony Francis maintained his place at left centre in Round Two against the Bulldogs and also started there in Round Three against the Central Coast Roosters, a match which saw Tony Francis score his first points of the competition, kicking three conversions.

Tony Francis had a big match in Round Five against the Illawarra Steelers in Round Five from left centre scoring two tries and kicking three conversions for a fourteen point individual haul. Tony Francis then elipsed that in Round Six against the Canberra Raiders scoring eighteen points from a try and seven conversions and added eight points from a try and two goals against the Balmain Tigers in Round Seven.

Tony Francis moved to five eight for Round Eight against St George kicking a conversions and in Round Eight started at half against the Western Suburbs Magpies adding a try and a conversions to his 2018 points haul.

In Week One of the finals against the Parramatta Eels Tony Francis started at half before moving to five eight for Week Three of the Finals against the Penrith Panthers and as noted above Tony Francis started the Grand Final at five eight.

In total in the 2018 U16 Harold Matthews Cup for the Manly Sea Eagles, Tony Francis played in eleven matches and scored fifty eight points from six tries and seventeen conversions.

Tony Francis’s try against the Balmain Tigers in Round Seven came when after he received the ball in a reasonable amount of space, Tony Francis stepped off his right foot and produced a sild fend to break through the Tigers defensive line and then it was a twenty metre surge to the try line for the left centre.

As noted above Tony Francis also scored in the 2018 Harold Matthews Grand Final. Tony Francis received the ball two passes to the left of the play the ball just to the right of the goal posts twelve metres out. Tony Francis immediately broke two tackles and dragged three other Eels defenders over the line to get the ball down under heavy pressure two metres from the right goal post.

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Great to see Caleb Hodges set to start on the wing for the Tweed Heads Seagulls in Round Two of the Queensland Cup this afternoon.

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Giant Titans contracted forward Xavier Stowers yesterday afternoon, started Round Four of the MM Cup for the Ipswich Jets against the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

Xavier Stowers came into the match at half time, wasting no time getting involved by taking the first hit-up of the second half after Tweed Heads kicked off the second half to get the ball out to near the twenty metre mark.

Only two minutes later in the 38th minute, Xavier Stowers one again broke tackles after making thirteen metres from a hit-up to the left of the dummy half to get two metres over the halfway mark.

Then in the 43rd minute Xavier Stowers once again ran to the left of the dummy half before cutting back towards the play the ball to make thirteen metres. Xavier Stowers bounced quickly to his feet but was dragged back down and subsequently was awarded a penalty. From the next set of six after the penalty restart, Xavier Stowers was back in the action, getting to within ten metres of the try line before twisting and offloading with his right arm to Josiah Pahulu who got within two metres of the line before finally being stopped.

Even though Ipswich were out of the match with ten minutes to go, that did not dissuade Xavier Stowers from his task and in the 62nd minute, Xavier Stowers made eleven metres from a hit-up to the right of the play the ball with more than 50% of the metres that he made from the run were post contact.

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Titans contracted Jaylan De Groot started at fullback in Round Four of the MM Cup for Tweed Heads against the Ipswich Jets yesterday afternoon and whilst he did not score, still had a strong contribution to the Seagulls victory.

As usual Jaylan De Groot hunted just behind the play the ball and in the 17th minute he got into dummy half, darting out of that position to his left to make twenty metres through the centre of the ruck to get the ball to within twenty metres of the try line.

Jaylan De Groot also produced a strong defensive play in the 22nd minute when after chasing back to corral an Ipswich line break, Jaylan De Groot picked up the Ipswich right second rower (No. 12) and putting him on his back and taking all of the momentum out of the Jets sails.

Fullbacks need to continuously focus in their positioning and it was that attention to detail that meant Jaylan De Groot was positioned correctly in the 67th minute to field a hard grubber on his own line directly adjacent to the right upright. By being in the right position Jaylan De Groot ensured that he was not trapped in the in-goal.

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Titans contracted Ryan Foran started in his usual left second row position for Tweed Heads yesterday afternoon in Round Four of the MM Cup against Ipswich.

Ryan Foran produced a strong performance on the left side of the field, with the first of his multiple contributions coming in just the 5th minute with a run down a short left blindside of twelve metres that to take Tweed Heads across the halfway mark. Later in the same set of six, Ryan Foran made a further fifteen metres to get the Seagulls into their attacking twenty metre zone.

Ryan Foran recorded a try assist in the 19th minute, when he received a pass from Thomas Weaver down a short left blindside and ran downfield before passing to his left to Kruz Remine who once again crossed in the left corner.

Ryan Foran’s slick hands were on display in the 29th minute when he reacted quickly to get his hands down low and to his right to cleanly take an Ipswich grubber kick and then Ryan Foran was able to bring the ball back towards the twenty metre mark.

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Titans contracted front rower Jack Cullen started in the front row for Tweed Heads yesterday afternoon in Round Four of the MM Cup against Ipswich.

Jack Cullen scored his try in the last minute of the first half when he ran a 45 degree angled run to the right of the dummy half to barge over midway between the goal posts and corner post on the right side of the field.

Even prior to scoring Jack Cullen proved to be more than a handful for the Jets defence including a strong twelve metre effort at the 14 minute mark when he burst onto the ball to the left of the play the ball in the set of set from the kick-off after Kruz Remine’s first of four tries.

Once again in the 23rd minute Jack Cullen charged into the Jets defensive line, on that occasion making fourteen metres into the Ipswich twenty metre zone.

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Titans contracted Kaleb Ngamanu started at left centre in Round Four of the MM Cup yesterday for Tweed Heads against the Ipswich Jets and was close to if not the Seagulls best in their big 28 – 24 victory.

Kaleb Ngamanu was into the action early in the match in just the second minute with a strong run to the right of the dummy half before cutting back into the area behind the play the ball to make eleven metres to bring the ball out of the Seagulls twenty metre area.

Kaleb Ngamanu continued his strong start to the match in the 3rd minute with a run that made ten metres to get Tweed Heads within twenty metres of the try line. Just two minutes later, in the 5th minute, Kaleb Ngamanu charged onto the ball to the right of the play the ball before cutting off his right foot to gain sixteen metres.

Late in the first half in the 27th minute Kaleb Ngamanu once again was key in getting Tweed Heads out out their own territory, on that occasion Kaleb Ngamanu made eighteen metres to get the ball across the halfway mark.

Even with the game well and truly won, Kaleb Ngamanu’s effort did not drop off as was evidenced in the 67th minute, when he took a hit-up to the right of the dummy half with the run starting one metre out from his own line and Kaleb Ngamanu bringing the ball out to seventeen metres out from his own line.

It was not just off the play the ball that Kaleb Ngamanu was able to make ground as in the 23rd minute, Kaleb Ngamanu made fifteen metres down a wide left blindside off a Tweed Heads scrum win, with Kaleb Ngamanu then making a further ten metres more to get to the Ipswich forty metre mark later in the same set of six.

Kaleb Ngamanu was also heavily involved in a Tweed Heads try in the 12th minute when Thomas Weaver threw a long pass to his left to find Kaleb Ngamanu who went into the line before passing to his left also to Kuuz Remine who dived over in the left corner. It was the exact same combination of players and the exact same play in the 32nd minute that led to another Kruz Remine try.

Kaleb Ngamanu was also strong defensively in the match including a sithing low tackle on the Ipswich right second rower (No. 11), cutting him down expertly.

Kaleb Ngamanu’s calmness under pressure was also on display in the match in the 7th minute when he left high to take a cross field bomb on the full under heavy pressure.

Late in the match in the 61st minute Kaleb Ngamanu almost produced a try out of nothing. Ipswich were attacking the Tweed Heads line down their right side but the ball went to ground, Kaleb Ngamanu got to the ball first and toe’d it through and then around the halfway mark kicked the ball off the ground for the second time, unfortunately in the subsequent foot race the ball was knocked forward just ten metres out from the try line.

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Titans contracted Thomas Weaver started in his usual half back position for Tweed Heads yesterday afternoon in Round Four of the MM Cup against Ipswich.

In yesterday’s match, Thomas Weaver kicked six goals from nine attempts (his three misses were all from the touchline) with a number of his goals coming from right on the touchline including to convert Kruz Remine’s first and fourth tries.

Thomas Weaver also recorded two try assist in the Seagulls 48 – 24 victory.

Thomas Weaver’s first ty assist came in the 23rd minute of the first half when he kicked across field to the right corner with Thomas Weaver putting the ball right onto the chest of Campbell Watchairs as he crossed the try line

Thomas Weaver added a second try assist in the second half in the 63rd minute and on that occasion Thomas Weaver produced a perfect kick to the left wing and put it on the chest of Kruz Remine to score his fourth try of the match. The kick was a lot more difficult than it sounded as the ball only got to Thomas Weaver after bouncing twice and then with limited time, very limited, Thomas Weaver kicked the ball off just one step.

The impressive thing about the two kicks was that they were to both wings and both were inch perfect.

In addition to his two try assists, Thomas Weaver was also heavily involved in a number of other Tweed Heads tries including in the 12th minute when Thomas Weaver threw a long pass to his left to find Kaleb Ngamanu who went into the line before passing to his left also to Kruz Remine who dived over in the left corner. It was the exact same combination of players and the exact same play in the 32nd minute that led to another Kruz Remine try.

Thomas Weaver produced a similar pass in the 19th minute, this time to Ryan Foran who ran downfiled before passing to his left to Kruz Remine who once again crossed in the left corner.

Thomas Weaver’s kicking game, in addition to his two try assist (noted above) was exceptional all match and was only added to in the 11th minute, when Thomas Weaver’s hard, low kick-off could not be taken by the Jets, going dead with Tweed Heads getting the ball back from an Ipswich goal line drop out.

Thomas Weaver was not just involved in scoring points in the match, he was also involved in saving points when in the 29th minute Thomas Weaver produced a great low one on one tackle on the rampaging Ipswich Jets right second rower (No. 11) just five metres out from his own line.

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Titans contracted started for the Ipswich Jets in Round Four of the MM Cup in hot conditions yesterday afternoon against the Tweed Heads Seagulls and was one of the best players on the field.

Josiah Pahulu made an immediate impact in the match with a strong twelve metre run over the halfway mark in Ipswich’s first set of six in the match and continued on from there.

In just the 3rd minute of the match, Josiah Pahulu produced another strong charge of the ball down a short blindside on the left to bring the ball over the halfway mark, making twelve metres and then Josiah Pahulu made a further fifteen metres later in the same set of six tackles that took the Jets into their attacking twenty metre zone.

Even the incredibly hot conditions that the match was played in could not stop Josiah Pahulu as in the 9th minute, Josiah Pahulu once again ran the ball into the Tweed Heads defensive line, making a strong run to the twenty metre mark and was then awarded a penalty after the Tweed Heads defensive line refused to allow him to his feet to get a quick play the ball.

Then in the 15th minute, Josiah Pahulu made an impressive eighteen metre charge from an Ipswich penalty restart to get Ipswich to near their attacking twenty metre zone. Josiah Pahulu once again proved difficult to handle in the 26th minute making thirteen metres over the halfway and once again was awarded a penalty after the Seagulls defence laid all over him to prevent the quick play the ball.

After playing the entire thirty five minutes of the first half Josiah Pahulu was back into the action when he took the second hit-up of the second half to get the bell to the Ipswich thirty metre line.

Josiah Pahulu then produced his best run of the match in the 38th minute when he charged onto the ball near the half way mark, tearing through the centre of the Seagulls ruck and running over the Tweed Heads fullback before being dragged down from behind around ten metres out.

After that long line break Josiah Pahulu did not rest on his laurels and was back in the action in the 59th minute with a fifteen metre run to get the ball to the forty metre mark.

Defensively Josiah Pahulu was also exceptional against Tweed Heads producing a number of crunching tackles including in the 42nd minute on Tweed Heads forward Bailey Martin but it was a tackle in the 40th minute that really stood out for me. Coming out from their own territory, Ipswich turned the ball over with it being picked up by Seagulls winger Kruz Remine who darted away, somehow Josiah Pahulu willed himself to chase back and drag the Seagulls winger down from behind less than ten metres away from the try line even though the winger had a head start on Josiah Pahulu.

The match also showed that Josiah Pahulu does not just put his head down and run at the line. In the 67th minute, Josiah Pahulu received the ball on the left side of the field and charged at the line, but just before he was set to contact the defence, Josiah Pahulu propped and send a well weighted pass to his left to put Xavier Stowers into a big gap making ten more metres.

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Giant and powerful Andreas Mariner has moved over from Auckland, New Zealand to the Gold Coast to attend Titans partnered Keebra Park State High School in 2021.

In late 2020, Andreas Mariner started from the bench for the Auckland U16 side that played a South Islands U16 squad with Andreas Mariner performing well in his stints in each half in Auckland’s big victory.

Andreas Mariner played his club rugby league in Auckland in 2020 with the Marist Saints after playing for the Glenora Bears previously. Also in 2020 Andreas Mariner played rugby league for Kelston Boys High in their various rugby league competitions.

Also in 2020, Andreas Mariner captained the Hakula Rugby League side when they travelled to Sydney to play a Sydney based Tongan heritage side with Andreas Mariner captaining one of the U16 sides.

Playing for the Auckland U16 side in 2020 was not the first time that Andreas Mariner has made a representative side, with the powerhouse being named in the Akarana Falcons U15 side for the 2019 New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament and in 2018 Andreas Mariner represented the U14 Auckland representative side.

Andreas Mariner has also previously played rugby and in 2017 at the U13 level, he started at No. 8 for the Auckland Schools representative side from Wesley Intermediate School.

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Titans contracted Caleb Hodges started Round Two of the Queensland Cup on the wing for the Tweed Heads Seagulls against Wynnum Manly on Sunday and played all eighty minutes.

In the match, Caleb Hodges ran for seventy five metres (thirty two post contact and twenty one kick return), broke two tackles, played the ball at an average speed of 2.91 seconds and made seven tackles at a 100% tackling efficiency.

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Great to see Titans partnered Marsden State High School qualify for the Bronco's Cup school boy rugby league competition (Year 7) on the back of winning the Tonie Carroll Cup competition earlier this year.

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Titans partnered school PBC also qualified for the Bronco's Cup after going down in the Tonie Carroll Cup final to Marsden SHS.

Great to see the two Titans partnered schools play in the final and the third Titans partnered school, being Keebra Park also qualified for the Bronco's Cup after going down in their Tonie Carroll Cup semi-final to PBC.

Not bad at all to see all three of the Titans partnered school's make the Tonie Carroll Cup semi-finals and all qualify for the Bronco's Cup.