QRL/NRL Vanuatu Appeal Weekend
EASTS TIGERS v CQ CAPRAS
Tapout Energy Stadium on Saturday, April 18 – 4.30pm
Referee: Nick Pelgrave
Head-to-Head: Easts 26 Central 9 Drawn 1
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #TIGESvCQC
Livestream: Tiger TV
Emotions will be running high at Tapout Energy Stadium when Central Queensland coach Jason Hetherington guides the Capras for the final time. Hetherington is stepping down from his role due to personal reasons, with assistant Lionel Harbin set to take the reins in an interim capacity after the match against Easts.
Central sits in 12th spot, but their ladder position probably isn’t a true reflection on their season to date. They have lost two games by two points and if those results were reversed, the Rockhampton club would be in sixth position.
Easts have been the dominant force in recent outings against CQ, having won four of the past five encounters. Craig Ingebrigtsen’s Tigers have also won their past four matches at home, the most recent a 52-0 thrashing of Souths Logan.
Shane Neumann and Grant Giess return from injury, while Dean Britt is back after serving a one match suspension. Saturday’s clash will be Dane Hogan’s 50th in the orange and black, while Donald Malone needs just 12 more points to bring up 700 Cup points.
SUNSHINE COAST FALCONS v WYNNUM MANLY SEAGULLS
Pinklands Sporting Complex, Thornlands on Saturday, April 18 – 5pm
Referee: Nick Morel
Head-to-Head: Wynnum 10 Sunshine Coast 2
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #SCFvWYN
Livestream: Wynnum Manly TV
Sunshine Coast Falcons have not won three games in a row since 2010. On Saturday, the rejuvenated Falcons get their opportunity to put together an overdue hat-trick of wins when they play the Wynnum Manly Seagulls.
All the signs are positive for the Falcons, who displayed plenty of character last weekend to overcome a tough Tweed Heads outfit at Piggabeen. However, this latest assignment is a whole new ball game, as they will be mixing it with one of the competition’s most professional outfits.
Wynnum Manly were ruthless last Sunday in disposing of the PNG Hunters 36-18. Seagulls coach Jon Buchanan may yet have to make a late change, with forward Tanu Wulf a likely withdrawal after an injury scare last week.
Matt Seamark requires 13 points to become the seventh player to score 1000 Cup points. He will have taken the most games to achieve the milestone. Seamark also requires four goals to become only the third player to kick 450 Cup goals.
NORTHERN PRIDE v NORTHS DEVILS
Barlow Park on Saturday, April 18 – 5.30pm
Referee: Chris Anderson
Head-to-Head: Pride 13 Norths 2 Drawn 1
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #PRIDEvDEVILS
The Pride got the monkey off their backs last weekend, recording their first win of the season. They left it until late however, getting over the top of the Dolphins with only moments to go to claim the 18-16 win. They trailed 16-0 early in the second half, before a hat-trick to rising star Linc Port sparked them back into action. This week coach Joe O’Callaghan has made only one change to his successful side, welcoming back Ben Spina at prop for Brent Oosen.
Norths played in a see-sawing game last weekend, but found themselves on the wrong side of the ledger, going down 24-18 to the Jets. Halfback Darren Nicholls didn’t play last Sunday and earlier this week it was confirmed that he had joined the South Sydney Rabbitohs for the rest of the season.
The side are unchanged this weekend, with young Brett Greinke named captain of the team. The Pride have had the better of the two sides for a long time and Norths have only won once in the past 10 games. Unfortunately for the Devils, they also have a terrible record at Barlow Park and have lost all eight games they have played there in the past.
IPSWICH JETS v BURLEIGH BEARS
North Ipswich Reserve on Sunday, April 19 – 1.40pm* (Live on Channel 9)
Referee: Jarrod Cole
Head-to-Head: Burleigh 19 Ipswich 14 Drawn 2
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #JETSvBEARS
Radio: Switch 1197am Brisbane, Valley FM 94.9 Esk; Phoenix Radio Ipswich
Burleigh fans will be hoping for a repeat of last year’s performance at the North Ipswich Reserve when the Bears thrashed the Jets 50-12. The visiting Bears were all over the Jets that day, inflicting Ipswich’s heaviest defeat at home since 1998.
Jimmy Lenihan’s Bears return to North Ipswich in good shape, despite a heartbreaking two-point loss to Easts last weekend. With three wins from six matches, Burleigh occupy sixth spot on the ladder. The sheer size and strength of Burleigh’s forward pack against the ‘attack at all costs’ Jets will ensure this is a television match not to be missed.
Ipswich has now won five in a row and a victory over the Bears on Sunday will put them within one game of equalling their seven-game winning streak in 2013. Jets flyer Marmin Barba is in doubt due to illness. But if he plays and scores a try, he will join the likes of Steven West, Brendon Lindsay, Donald Malone, Brendon Marshall and Chris Lawler as players to have scored 200 points or more for the Jets. The match will be Kurtis Lingwoodock’s 100th in the Intrust Super Cup and he will have a big role to play with Rod Griffin out with a broken thumb.
The Ipswich club will again demonstrate their community spirit by collecting donations towards the NRL Vanuatu Appeal. The Jets will also honour troops serving overseas as part of the Soldier On program and will stage their own Disability Awareness game with the ALARA Jets v Burleigh Bears disability touch football match at 1.10pm.
REDCLIFFE DOLPHINS v TOWNSVILLE BLACKHAWKS
Dolphin Oval on Sunday, April 19 - 2pm
Referee: Clayton Sharpe
Head-to-Head: First Game
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #PHINSvTSVB
Currently sitting at the top of the Intrust Super Cup ladder, the Blackhawks are on a four-game winning streak and will be looking to continue their run when they face Redcliffe at Dolphin Oval on Sunday.
The home side will be smarting following their narrow loss to the Pride in Cairns in Round 6, where they let a 16-0 lead slide at the back-end of the second half. After the game, coach Troy Lindsay admitted it was a game the team felt they lost – rather than Pride had won; with minimising their errors something the side will focus on going into this game against a potent Townsville side.
In a blow for Redcliffe, they will be without Joe Bond who suffered a suspected ACL injury last weekend. Kyle Van Klaveren has been named at fullback for this weekend in the only change to the team. The Townsville Blackhawks are unchanged.
Off the field, the Dolphins will assist Queensland Police reveal the message behind the “Oi” social media campaign that has been promoted through QPS social media in the past few weeks. Fans at the game will see a game involving Police Rugby League players and can meet police horses, police puppies and NRL ambassadors Petero Civoniceva and Tallisha Harden.
PNG HUNTERS v MACKAY CUTTERS
Kalabond Oval, Kokopo on Sunday, April 19 – 2.30pm
Referee: Tim Rutherford
Head-to-Head: PNG 1 Mackay 1
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #PNGvMC
The Mackay Cutters are one of the form teams of the competition at the moment and will travel to PNG this weekend confident of their chances of staging an upset.
They have now won five games in a row – the last two of them being especially close ones – including last weekend’s 14-12 result over the Capras, where the boot of Liam Taylor again proved vital to them.
After starting well, PNG have struggled to hit their straps and it seems like their two losses on the road has taken a lot out of the team. However, they are back at Kokopo this weekend and will be looking to regroup and claim the scalp of a competition frontrunner.
This week, there are some big ‘ins’ for the side injured duo Thompson Teteh and Adex Wera returning, as well as Lawrence Tu’u from suspension. Utility Ase Boas has not been named and is said to be waiting for a badly bruised forearm to heal. Warren Glare has also not been named while Edward Goma has dropped to an extended bench.
For the Cutters, coach Kim Williams has named an extended bench for the away trip, with new faces Gavin Bennion and Alex Farrell included in the squad.
TWEED HEADS SEAGULLS v SOUTHS LOGAN MAGPIES
Piggabeen Sports Complex on Sunday, April 19 – 3pm
Referee: Liam Kennedy
Head-to-Head: Tweed 14 Souths-Logan 11
Twitter: #intrustsupercup #THSvSLM
Both teams will put their hands up and admit they have not played as well as they would have liked to so far this season. Last weekend, the Seagulls let a good early lead slip against a resurgent Falcons. Despite a late comeback that ensured a tense final few moments, it was not enough to prevent the Gulls from going down 28-24.
The Magpies had a lot of rebuilding to do following their heavy loss to Easts in Round 5 – and things did not start well for them last weekend against Townsville. Down 34-0 at halftime, the Magpies showed great character in the second half to score four tries before eventually going down 46-20.
Coaches Josh Hannay and Aaron Zimmerle will both be looking at this weekend as a good chance for their teams to get back on track with a victory. In team news, Tweed Heads are unchanged from last weekend, with Hemi Mullen on an extended bench the only addition.
For the Magpies – Travis Waddell returns from a one-game suspension and will play at lock. Rez Phillips and Kailem Perkins are on an extended bench, while Simanu Crichton has been named to play for Logan Brothers in the BRL.
While this weekend clubs across the state will be collecting donations to support the NRL / QRL’s Vanuatu Relief Appeal – the Seagulls have already committed to help rebuild homes and the school at Eton village via the givealittle fundraising page. Tweed Heads and Souths Logan fans can donate to the cause now via the website or can donate on the day at the football.
