After being crowned victors of the Hostplus Cup last Sunday, the Burleigh Bears will now take on the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL State Championship.
It’s been a decade since two Queensland teams won consecutive State Championship titles, though the Burleigh Bears have a chance to complete this feat following the Norths Devils victory over the Newtown Jets last year.
The Bears will have their work cut-out for them, as they prepare to face off against a historically strong New Zealand Warriors outfit littered with NRL experience and prodigious young talents.
The Warriors went 16 weeks straight undefeated from Round 7 to Round 24 this season, with the likes of Kalani Going, Tom Ale and Kayliss Fatialofa all being named in the NSW Cup Team of the Year.
It will be a reunion of sorts for Warriors’ playmakers Tanah Boyd and Taine Tuaupiki, both of whom played for the Burleigh Bears earlier in their careers.
In a similar vein, Burleigh dummy-half Paul Roache played two seasons with the Warriors’ reserve grade team in addition to debuting for the Warriors NRL side back in 2023.
There are a few shake ups in the Burleigh side following their Grand Final victory last week, with Creedence Toia and Kurt De Luis both dropping out of the side after sustaining injuries against the Norths Devils.
Nicholas O’Meley has moved into the vacant fullback role while Lochlyn Sheldon has joined the 17 after serving as 18th man last weekend.
Both Troy Leo and Guy Hamilton have been named to play, despite both nursing niggling injuries post-game last weekend.
This is the Burleigh Bears third State Championship appearance, after playing and losing in 2016 and 2019 to the Illawarra Cutters and Newtown Jets respectively.
