BLK Queensland Premier Rugby Preview – Semi-Finals
The BLK Queensland Premier Rugby semi-finals kick-off this Sunday, 19 July, at Ballymore. Easts and University of Queensland will battle for a grand final berth in the major semi-final, while Brothers and Souths will meet in the minor semi-final.
Tune in from 5:25pm for the double-header which will be LIVE streamed via Reds TV on the www.redsrugby.com.au homepage.
The matches will also be covered by the Griffith University Premier Rugby Rugby Radio show, you can tune into the coverage of the matches from 5:15pm on Sunday afternoon here: http://bit.ly/1jeOx5U
To view the BLK Queensland Premier Rugby Weekly Digital Program, click here: http://bit.ly/1MxBqxf
To watch the highlights from Round 18, view the Premier Rugby Wrap here: http://bit.ly/1HwoMNL
Major Semi-Final – Easts v University of Queensland
Location: Ballymore
Kick-off: 7:10pm
Easts
Minor Premiers Easts Tigers have been the benchmark for the Premier Rugby competition throughout the 2015 season, having only dropped three games all season. While narrowly going down to University in Round 4 by one-point, the Tigers have lost to both Brothers and Sunnybank in Round 16 and 17 respectively while missing a number of key personnel. This week they will welcome back St.George Queensland Reds Lachie Turner and Eddie Quirk as well as prolific try-scoring fullback Elliot Hagen. The frontrow has also received a boost with Pettowa Paraka set to return from injury from the bench for the match.
Player to Watch: Matthew Brandon
Position: Fly half
Height: 178cm
Weight: 84kg
29-year-old Matthew Brandon has been a member of the Easts Tigers Premier grade side since 2004. A crucial cog in the Tigers side, Brandon brings a wealth of experience to the side having been part of Easts’ 2008 and 2013 Premierships. Brandon also has impressive representative honours including a stint with the Western Force and most recently with Queensland County in the 2014 National Rugby Championship.
Easts: AJ Campbell, Andrew Ready, Kirwan Sanday, James Moore, Greg Riley, Tyrell Barker, Tom Milosevic, Ed Quirk, Jack Mullins (c), Matt Brandon, Lachie Turner, Matt Gordon, Toby White, Joel Faulkner, Elliot Hagen
Coach: Tim Sampson
University of Queensland
University entered 2015 as the reigning Premiers after narrowly defeating Sunnybank in the 2014 grand final. The students have continued to perform in 2015 despite fielding a relatively new and youthful team due to a number of Red Heavies stalwarts leaving the club in the offseason. University have only lost on four occasions in 2015. They dominated the first weeks of competition, before being defeated by Souths 25-17 in Round 6 and again in Round 9 by Sunnybank, 29–24. Their most surprising upset came in Round 12, when University went head-to-head with a struggling GPS outfit and were defeated 43–21. The last time Easts and UQ met was in Round 13 and the Tigers recorded a 50–29 win. University will be hoping to carry their impressive form from their win over Sunnybank in Round 18 into Sunday night’s major semi-final.
Player to Watch: James Dalgleish
Position: Fly half
Height: 177cm
Weight: 82kg
After a breakthrough season in 2014, which saw James Dalgleish earn selection in the Brisbane City NRC squad, 2015 has seen Dalgleish continue to develop. Representative duties have prevented Dalgleish from having a regular presence on field for University in 2015, with much of the 20-year-old’s year being consumed by Reds and Australian Under-20s duties. Returning to the starting line-up for the Red Heavies in their Round 18 match against Sunnybank, Dalgleish helped steer the Students to a convincing win to end their regular season. His performance will no doubt be influential in this Sunday’s major semi-final.
University: Reuben Leilua, Tonga Ma’afu, Sef Fa’agase, Phil Potgeiter, Angus Ryan, Will Brown, Conor Mitchell, Jack Cornelsen, Scott Gale, James Dalgleish, Gareth Kalell, Nathan Russell, Harry Parker, Tom Pincus, Jamie-Jerry Taulagi
Coach: Mick Heenan
Minor Semi-Final – Brothers v Souths
Location: Ballymore
Kick-off: 5:25pm
Brothers
Brothers have produced some solid performances throughout 2015 and are one of only three teams to secure a win against minor-premiers Easts. The Brothers outfit have the best attacking percentage in the competition and that will be a huge advantage for the team as they head into finals. The Brethren have unfortunately suffered the loss of key backline players Clynton Knox, Sam Hyne and Nathanuel Gendle during the final weeks of the competition, which has proved disruptive, with the side losing their final two games to University and Souths. The Brethren have appeared in the last two minor semi-finals in 2013 and 2014 but haven’t managed to progress through to the preliminary final. The Brothers faithful will be hoping that the team will be third-time lucky.
Player to Watch: Sam Greene
Position: Flyhalf
Height: 177cm
Weight: 86kg
Sam Greene has gone from strength-to-strength this season, performing extremely well for his club team and making his St.George Queensland Reds debut at Suncorp Stadium against the Melbourne Rebels. The flyhalf was selected in the 2014 Brisbane City team and with finals approaching Greene will be looking to display his talent at Ballymore, hoping for 2015 NRC selection. Greene’s skills on the park have been irreplaceable for Brothers this season, earning the top spot for highest points scored. He will be entering finals weekend on 193 individual points.
Brothers: Tom Moloney, Tom Sayer, Taniela Tupou, Ben Hyne, Terrin Walls, David Findlay-Henaway, Luke Beauchamp, Harry Symes, Angus Fowler, Sam Greene, Mitch Felsman, Pat James, Giles Beveridge, Will Shipperley, Pierce Fitzgerald
Coach: Anthony Mathison
Souths
This BLK Queensland Premier Rugby season has seen Souths go from eighth position on the ladder to fourth leading into finals. The underdogs have claimed many surprising wins this season, such as their win over the second placed University team in Round 6 (25-17) which was the start of the Magpies good form. After slipping in and out of the top four the past few rounds, last weekend’s win over Brothers (30-29) saw Souths push Sunnybank out of the top four and secured the team’s spot in the minor semi-final. Magpie fans will be sure to flock to Ballymore on Sunday to cheer the team on in what will be their first finals appearance since their 2009 grand final loss, which was at the hands of the Brethren.
Player to Watch: Chris Feauai-Sautia
Position: Outside Centre
Height: 181cm
Weight: 92kg
St.George Queensland Reds live-wire Chris Feauai-Sautia has been a recent inclusion into the Souths starting line following the end of the Super Rugby season. The 21 year-old has injected confidence into the Magpies outfit, helping them secure important end of season wins. Since his return, Feauai-Sautia has created many attacking opportunities for the Magpies and his wealth of experience will be influential to the team’s composure leading into finals.
Souths: Markus Vanzanti, Alex Casey, David Faeo, Stuart Williamson, Matt Bennetts, Anton Mineko, Simana Halafonua, James Turner, Scott Malolua, Teti Tela, Mika Tela, Paul Brown, Chris Feauai-Sautia, Stephan Van der Walt, Andrew Muirhead
Coach: Brett Picone
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