From 1925 to 1972, the Bulimba Cup was where an Ipswich or Toowoomba player would prove himself on the Queensland stage and state their case for a Queensland Maroons jumper.
Toowoomba last won the Bulimba Cup in 1970, beating Brisbane 18-17.
Ipswich hoisted the trophy in 1966, beating Brisbane 7-2.
The games between Toowoomba and Ipswich would create history and bring both cities to a standstill to watch their best take each other on.
Jeff Denman, Noel Kelly, John McDonald, Allan Smith, Graham Yates and Gary Parcell would all play Bulimba Cup before selection for Queensland.
This week in the Hostplus Cup two historical Rugby League cities will stare each other down.
The Clydesdales have had the wood all over Ipswich in the Hostplus Cup with 18 wins to the Jets’ six wins.
However, Ipswich has taken home bragging rights in their past two matches against the Clydesdales, and to further rub salt in the wound for the men from the west, they’ve lost their past 22 games away from home.
The Jets recovered from their heartbreaking loss to the Blackhawks a fortnight ago, finding their first win at Redcliffe since 2019 last round, beating last year’s Grand Finalists 22-20.
Ipswich have centred their game plan around power through the middle, as the Jets have scored 21% of their tries through the centre of the pitch this season.
Burgeoning star hooker Oliver Pascoe has been key to the success of this gameplan for the Jets, with Pascoe being named as the best hooker of the round for three consecutive weeks.
Pascoe is a run first dummy half, though he possesses a great footy mind, keeping the ball in both hands and using his eyes to misdirect his marker.
His keen eye will spot any lazy marker looking for a rest, and he has a quick first step to punish defenders who take an extra second to catch their breath.
The Jets glaring weakness is they can clock off late in the tackle count, they have been scored against 10 times on the fifth tackle.
the Clydesdales have issues in defence too however, they show spunk and fight but can’t compete for 80 minutes.
Against the Magpies last week, they fought back from nil-12 to lead 22-12 in the 30th minute - but from there it all fell apart and by the 46th minute they were once again behind.
Kai Duggan tackles his heart out for the Clydesdales and made another 38 tackles against Souths Logan.
Duggan touches the ball more than anyone in the Hostplus Cup, but he doesn’t always get to show his attacking wares because he’s called on to tackle so much.
His 343 tackles are the most tackles in the Hostplus Cup with his opposing number 9, Oliver Pascoe, rounding out second place.
That’s a telling stat, Pascoe has made 52 less tackles than Duggan which leaves him fresh to make his attacking impact.
The Clydesdales will be looking to celebrate their coach Jason Alchin’s 50th Hostplus Cup game with a win and head back up the Warrego with two points over their historical foe.
You can catch every game of the 2025 Hostplus Cup season live and on demand via the Queensland Rugby League’s home of live streaming – Qplus.tv with subscriptions as low as $4.99 for a Round Pass.
