EVEN with a limited preparation, the Greater Northern Tigers under-23 squad is confident of making a mark in the 2018 CRL Country Championships, which kicks off this weekend.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Peter Stevens-coached outfit, boasting 12 Group 21 players (Muswellbrook’s Bailey Taylor, Dylan Thorne, Jordan Mulherin, Brady Benkovic, Bailey Wooden; Singleton’s Will Nieuwenhuise, James Bradley; Aberdeen’s Hamish Wolfgang, Samuel Fitzsimmons, Cameron French; and Scone’s Timothy Bridge and Jarrod Wicks), tackles Northern Rivers at Crozier Oval, Lismore, on Saturday, as do the women’s league tag team featuring Muswellbrook’s Shae Pemberton and Scone’s Sofie Casson.
“It’s not ideal, but I think we’ll be alright,” said manager Kurt Dial, from the Muswellbrook Rams.
“We’ve had two training sessions so far.
“And, we’ll stop at Glen Innes on Friday for another one.
“We’re trying to give the boys the best opportunity to win.”
The four-week tournament features men’s under-23 and open-age women’s league tag players representing their respective regions with matches taking place in Campbelltown, Lismore, Macksville and Maitland; with additional venues to be decided by participating teams.
This year’s Country Championships showcase 10 representative sides in each division, including CRL Newcastle, Monaro Colts, North Coast, Northern Rivers, Riverina Bulls, Western Rams, Central Coast Roosters, Greater Northern Tigers, Greater Southern Region Wests Tigers and the Illawarra South Coast Dragons.
Country Rugby League CEO Terry Quinn believes the outstanding result of last season’s tournament has set the stage for an exciting Country Championships in 2018.
“The inaugural men’s under-23 format was a great success in 2017 and we’re expecting to see some quality sides taking the field this year,” he said.
“There are some really exciting young players who have been named to participate in this year’s championships, including youngsters who have progressed from our under-16 and under-18 junior representative competitions over the past few years, which is really pleasing to see.
“We’ve also seen some great football played in the women’s league tag championships over the past two years and I’ve got no doubt the standard will lift once again in 2018.”
The 2018 CRL Country Championships will be live-streamed via CRL’s Facebook page and website courtesy of Bar TV Sports.
Greater Northern women’s league tag (coach Mick Schmiedel): Aimee Diebold, Jess Baker, Amy Barraclough, Jesse Brown, Kimberley Resch, Bronte Harris, Hope Martin (Group 4); Jordan Mackenzie, Alyce Walsh, Camilla Clydsdale, Vicki Youman, Codie Ryan, Deborah McGrady (Group 19); Shae Pemberton, Sofie Casson (Group 21)
Greater Northern under-23s (coach Peter Stevens): Bailey Taylor, Will Nieuwenhuise, Hamish Wolfgang, Timothy Bridge, James Bradley, Dylan Thorne, Jarrod Wicks, Jordan Mulherin, Brady Benkovic, Bailey Wooden, Samuel Fitzsimmons, Cameron French (Group 21); Zach Leonard, Mitch Doring, Mitch Sheridan (Group 4); James Ballinger, Scott Macintyre, Brett Wright (Group 19)
Round one fixtures (Saturday, May 5)
Northern Pool
Northern Rivers v Greater Northern Tigers (Crozier Oval, Lismore)
Kick-off: League tag – 11am; U23 – 12.05pm
North Coast v Central Coast (Allan Gillet Oval, Macksville)
Kick-off: League tag – 11am; U23 – 12.05pm
Southern Pool
Illawarra South Coast Dragons v Western Rams (Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown)
Kick-off: League tag – 11am; U23 – 3pm
Riverina Bulls v GSR Wests Tigers (Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown)
Kick-off: League tag – 12.05pm; U23 – 1.10pm