The Preliminary Finals have concluded, and the Grand Final equations have been solved as the 26th of September will see the Sunshine Coast Falcons and Redcliffe Dolphins duelling for premiership glory in the Hostplus Cup, while the Souths Logan Magpies and Burleigh Bears will face off in the BMD Premiership Grand Final.
The Burleigh Bears were the first team to secure their spot in the big dance today, holding off a fast-finishing Brisbane Tigers outfit to win 24-22.
The Bears struck first through their in-form fullback Sienna Laing, who was the beneficiary of a stellar line break from five-eighth Memory Paitai.
The Tigers would return serve minutes later as centre Aleksandra Tunufai crashed over in the 14th minute.
This would be the last time the Tigers scored points in the first half, as the Bears would dominate the next twenty minutes, scoring two tries in quick succession to enter the break with a commanding 16-4 lead.
The Bears would go on to continue their momentum after the first-half break, as Sienna Laing once again opened the half’s scoring, this time needing no assistance from her teammates as she bulldozed over four Tigers for her four-pointer.
Tavarna Papalii scored in similar fashion minutes later, as the Queensland representative earned a reward for her stellar defence on opposing centre Courtney Robinson.
Down 20 points with 20 minutes to go, the Tigers’ chances of victory looked dire, with close to no hope left of finding a Grand Final berth.
However, an audacious cut-out pass from Tigers’ fullback Tahlia Marshall would provide an opportunity for winger Saupo-Mina Toeleiu to finish off a stellar try in the corner, and give the home side a fighting chance for victory.
Toeleiu’s try seemed to have catalysed the Tigers, as the orange and black scored a further two tries in ten minutes, through Tahlia Marshall and Pauline Piliae-Rasabale respectively, to find themselves a converted try away from levelling the match.
Having rolled down the field and now playing the ball on the Bears’ tryline, Piliae-Rasabele threw an exaggerated dummy from dummy-half before diving for the tryline, catching the Bears napping and reducing the deficit to a mere two points.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, Piliae-Rasabale wasn’t able to convert her own try, leaving the score 22-24 to the Bears.
An exhausted Bears team eventually held on for victory and will return for their second consecutive Grand Final appearance next Saturday against the Souths Logan Magpies.
Unfortunately for Burleigh, they were unable to make it two from two victories in their respective Preliminary Finals, as the Bears’ Hostplus Cup side fell to a star-studded Redcliffe Dolphins outfit at Kayo Stadium in Redcliffe.
Signs were positive for the visitors, with winger Troy Leo crossing early to give Burleigh an early six-point lead.
This lead was quickly relinquished, however, as the Dolphins went on a points-scoring bonanza, notching three tries in ten minutes and earning a ten-point lead.
A late try from Bears’ five-eighth Josh Rogers would provide the Bears with a foothold entering the break, down just four points.
This foothold was quickly erased by a red-hot Dolphins attack, with winger LJ Nonu intercepting a pass and running half the length of the field to score in the 43rd minute, and the talismanic Trai Fuller scoring two tries within five minutes to put the Dolphins’ lead out to an unassailable 26 points.
Burleigh winger Mitch Watson would go on to score in the 55th minute, with Josh Rogers picking up his second try of the day in the 67th minute, briefly igniting hopes of a comeback.
However, the Dolphins’ third intercept try of the day, this time courtesy of Jake Averillo, served as the final nail in the coffin for the Bears’ season, as the home side dispatched the reigning premiers 40-22 to book their spot in next Saturday’s Grand Final against the Sunshine Coast Falcons.
Make sure to secure your tickets to next weekend’s QRL Grand Final Day via the link here.
