BLK Queensland Premier Rugby Preview: Round 18
The final round of BLK Queensland Premier Rugby kicks off tomorrow with four great matches on offer for grassroots Rugby fans to cap off the 2016 regular season.
The match of the round will see GPS head to St. Lucia for a do-or-die encourter. In order to snatch fourth place from Sunnybank and slip into the finals, the Gallopers must claim a bonus point win over University of Queensland.
A task that will be arduous, considering the Students are on a 14-game win streak having not dropped a game since Round 1.
This match will be LIVE streamed via Facebook LIVE on the Queensland Reds page, as well as the Reds TV YouTube player on the www.redsrugby.com.au homepage.
In other matches, Easts will look to claim their third top-four scalp for the season when they host Brothers at David Wilson Oval.
Hugh Courtney Oval will play host to the second instalment of the ‘Battle of the Birds’ for 2016 as Norths Eagles take on Souths Magpies.
In the final game of the weekend, Bond University will look to finish their season on a high as they welcome Wests to Robina.
Preview the Round 18 matches and gain valuable insights into the Premier Rugby competition in this week’s edition of the Premier Rugby Weekly digital program: http://bit.ly/29RIo51
You can also view the latest episode of the Premier Rugby Wrap here: http://bit.ly/29UvYcj
View Premier Rugby fixtures and results here: http://bit.ly/1Wt41uE
View the Premier Rugby ladder here: http://bit.ly/1Q8QGAe
University of Queensland v GPS – Game of the Round
Location: St. Lucia
Kick-off: 3:20PM
It’s do or die for GPS away from home on Saturday when they travel to St. Lucia to try and break University of Queensland’s 14-match win-streak. Last weekend, GPS registered a bonus-point victory over Norths to keep their 2016 season alive. A similar result this weekend will see GPS pip Sunnybank for fourth place. They need a bonus-point victory, but University average 21 points against them in 2016. The Gallopers will have to play well. Last year Souths snuck into the finals in the last round, before going on to win the Premiership, GPS must believe they can do the same this year.
University of Queensland: Aaron Pleash, Tonga Ma’afu, Rueben Leilua, Angus Scott-Young, Phil Potgieter, Patrick Morrey, Maclean Jones, Jack Cornelsen, Moses Sorovi, James Dalgleish, Jock Campbell, Nathan Russell, Josh Birch, Clifton Setu, Tom Pincus
Coach: Mick Heenan
GPS: Trent Anderson, Ryan Freney, Fred Burke, Michael Richards, Dan Gorman, Cameron King, Waita Setu, Lagi Setu, Nigel Genia, Somi Pulu, Daniel Nethery, Stevie Hunt, James Herbert, Patrick Nicholson, Todd Winkley
Coach: Todd Dammers
Easts v Brothers
Location: David Wilson Field
Kick-off: 3:20PM
It’s too little too late for Easts as the final round approaches. The Tigers have been on fire in their last three games, knocking off Sunnybank, GPS and Souths, causing real headaches for finals calculations. This weekend they have a chance to inflict more pain on another top four placed side in Brothers. The Brethren will be wary of an Easts side that looks a lot more like the team that finished in first in 2015. Brothers are coming off an impressive 48-14 victory over Wests and have now won three-in-a-row themselves. Now is not the time to lose momentum and Brothers will be motivated to win, given a loss could see them relegated to third.
Easts: Richard Asiata, Sam Richards, Kirwan Sanday, Tyrell Barker, Izack Rodda, Liam Wright, Max Allen, Michael Gunn, Billy Thompson, Matt Brandon, Tony Bartley, Matt Gordon, Toby White, Owain Davies, Andrew Krelle
Coach: Anthony Connellan
Brothers: Stuart McReight, Tom Sayer, Francois Postal, Dave Finlay-Heneway, Ted Postal, Criff Tupou, Charles Freney, Luke Beauchamp, Angus Fowler, Stefano Hunt, Mitch Felsman, Nathanuel Gendle, Elih Baillie, George Partridge, Patrick James
Coach: Carl Marshall
Norths v Souths
Location: Hugh Courtney Oval
Kick-off: 3:20PM
Since returning from the bye in Round 15 Norths have fallen short against University, Sunnybank and GPS. All three matches were incredibly tight affairs and Norths will be disappointed not to have registered at least one win. This weekend they have an opportunity to snag an upset against a reeling Souths side. The Magpies looked to have secured victory in Round 17 before Easts re-claimed the last restart of the match and scored in the dying stages. Knowing the importance of finishing in second, Souths will be desperate for a win this weekend. If they lose they’re no chance of jumping Brothers on the ladder, but a win could see them feature in the major semi-final.
Norths: Garrath Ryan, Daniel Sutherland, Kieran Fitzgibbon, Connor Anderson, Faausu Afiafi, Jayden Rodwell, Enzo Mutoti, Apisai Naiyabo, Nick Chapman, Michael Burke, Veresa Mataitini, Logan Tibbetts, Connor Chittenden, Reid Foran, Tom Da Forno
Coach: Nick Fogarty
Souths: Alex Casey, Nick Edwards, Eric Teofilo, Matt Bennett, Bruce Williamson, Simana Halaifonua, Anton Minenko, Isireli Naisarani, Scott Malolua, Teti Tela, Mika Tela, Blake Kefu, Levi Aumua, Alex Ung, Keeghan Sefton
Coach: Brett Picone
Bond University v Wests
Location: Bond RFC
Kick-off: 3:35PM
The highest Bond University can finish in 2016 is fifth. They’ll be disappointed after showing signs of improvement throughout the year. Despite the dead-rubber nature of their match this weekend, the Gold Coast side should be hungry for victory. They had the bye in Round 17 and will be looking to finish off their season with a win, after a couple of disappointing results to Souths and Brothers prior to the week off. Their opponent this weekend, Wests, have won two matches in 2016 but should reflect on the corresponding fixture in Round 9 where the Bulldogs lost by just six points. They can re-write that tight loss and secure their third win of the year with a successful trip to Robina.
Bond University: Sam Clifton, Nick Turner, Oisin Heffernan, Rubin Fuimaono, Sam Fatal, Tai Ford, Callum McDonald, Josh Fuimaono, Vitori Buatava, Scott Daruda, Oscar Dennis, Joel Rapana, Brad Jones, Waylen Skipps, Mitch Third
Coach: Sean Hedger
Wests: Jonathan Danaher, Cody Blackhurst, Sione Na’a Helu, Jeremiah Lynch, Silas Cocks, Alex Fontalvo, Joel Brown, Loveni Enari, Liam Dillon, Alec Jones, Richie Aitsi, Dan Faumuina, Tyrone Lefau, Morgan Gasman, Byron Hutchinson
Coach: Pat Byron
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