Round 8 Week 2 preview: Bears coach Stone hunts 150th Cup win

Burleigh Bears v Townsville Blackhawks
Head-to-head: Townsville Blackhawks 5, Burleigh Bears 4, drawn 1
Hashtags: #intrustsupercup #BEARSvTSVB
Broadcast: Kayo Saturdays via Kayo Freebies

• Burleigh Bears and Townsville Blackhawks kick off the second week of Round 8’s BHP Indigenous Round with their Saturday afternoon match.
• After a patchy start, the Bears have won their past three games.
• However, the Blackhawks will come into this match with plenty of confidence, having won the past two and three of the past four games against the Bears.
• The home side have two wins and a draw from their past three games played at Pizzey Park against the Blackhawks.
• Burleigh's four wins overall against Townsville have been by 10 points or less, with three of them by six points or less.
• Burleigh have won 14 of their past 16 games played at Pizzey Park.
• Townsville returned to the winners circle in their last game, but have lost their past two away games.
• This will be Bears coach Rick Stone's 218th Cup match in charge, moving him to equal second of all time with Wayne Treleaven and Jimmy Lenihan. Stone will remain one game behind record holders Ben Walker and Chris Walker.
• Stone (main image) is also looking to record his 150th Cup win, the first coach to reach the milestone - he has eight draws and 60 losses. 
• Townsville flyer Carlin Anderson requires two points to bring up 300 for the Blackhawks.
• This will be the 100th Burleigh game for fullback Kurtis Rowe – he has played in 98 Intrust Super Cup games and two National State Championship matches for the club.

Redcliffe Dolphins v PNG Hunters
Head-to-head: Redcliffe Dolphins 6, PNG Hunters 6, drawn 1
Hashtags: #intrustsupercup #PHINSvPNG

• The Dolphins have won their past two games by close margins and will be looking to notch their third win in a row when they face the PNG Hunters.
• After a strong start to the season, the Hunters have hit a rough patch and have lost their past two games.
• The head-to-head record for these two clubs is even, with both side scoring six wins; however, Redcliffe have won the past four, and five of the past six, games between these two sides, with the latest two wins being by a margin of 40 point or more.
• Redcliffe also have been strong at home and have four wins and a draw from the past five games between these two sides at Redcliffe. PNG's only win there was in their first-ever Cup match in 2014.
• The Dolphins have a strong overall record at home and have 10 of their past 11 games at home.
• The Hunters will be looking to find their feet after losing their past two away games.
• In team news, the Dolphins are set to have talented young five-eighth Patrick Gallen return to the line-up to partner Cameron Cullen in the halves in place of Sean O’Sullivan, while Eliesa Katoa remains as part of the Warriors line-up after getting called back up last weekend.

Ipswich Jets v Wynnum Manly Seagulls
Head-to-head: Wynnum Manly Seagulls 24, Ipswich Jets 19, drawn 3
Hashtags: #intrustsupercup #JETSvWYN
Broadcast: Kayo Freebies, 9Now, Intrust Super Cup app, QRL.com.au, Intrust Super Cup Facebook

• The top-of-the-table Wynnum Manly Seagulls have been in great form in 2021 and are yet to be defeated.
• Wynnum have won their past seven games; while Ipswich have lost their past two games, last posting a win in Round 5 when they defeated the Central Queensland Capras at North Ipswich Reserve.
• Wynnum have won the past two games between these two sides.
• While this will be the first Intrust Super Cup game played at this venue, it will be the second time the two teams face off in Toowoomba. Their first encounter was at Clive Berghofer Stadium Round 20 in 2013 for Country Week, with Ipswich winning 28-22 in a match that is remembered for Kurt French's length-of-the-field goal line dropout.
• This is set to be Kierran Moseley's 50th game for the Jets this week and his 88th overall, with the hooker having played previously for Burleigh Bears, Tweed Heads and Townsville Blackhawks. 
• In team changes, the Seagulls have had a few players called up to the Brisbane Broncos in recent weeks, including Keenan Palasia and fellow second rower TC Robati who made his NRL debut last night.
• For the Jets, Blake Lenehan returns from suspension and joins Hugh Sedger as ins for this weekend.

QRL Judiciary results - Round 8 - Week 1

*Statistics by Brad Tallon