What Caught Our Attention Over the Weekend

– Wests Tigers fans thinking here we go again when Manly were 16-0 up midway through the first half before upsetting their more fancied rivals. The talent of the teenagers at Concord suggests the club will climb out of the basement sooner rather than later.

– Warriors players performing a haka for Shaun Johnson after the Bulldogs spoiled the party by winning in the halfback’s last home game.

– Parramatta doing their best early to avoid a wooden spoon by going 16-0 up before Brisbane stormed home to remain in finals contention.

– Elliott Whitehead taking fond memories of his last game at Canberra Stadium to Perpignan after his Raiders team were victorious against the reigning premiers.

– Melbourne securing the minor premiership and emerging as a huge threat to Penrith’s run of Grand Final wins.

– The Sharks ensuring five teams are in the fight for eighth spot after defeating their neighbours St George Illawarra.

– Hull Kingston Rovers looking good for the Super League prize scoring eight tries and getting their first win at St Helens since 2013 while setting a club record of seven successive wins. Warrington unearthing a future star in 18
year old fullback Cai Taylor-Wray who appeared in Matt Dufty’s absence. Meanwhile Salford put 60 points on Huddersfield.

USA Turmoil

Just when we thought the USARL might be back on track with domestic rugby league, we have the USA Grand Final being cancelled due to eligibility issues at the Provo Broncos just days before the match with Washington DC Cavalry was due to be held. The Utah Rugby League Association said in a statement on social media “These rules, which were not enforced until now, have impacted on our team’s ability to compete in this crucial game. We understand the disappointment and frustration this may cause, and we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this has created for our fans.”

The Utah Rugby League Association have been vocal on social media about playing games outside of the USARL jurisdiction, suggesting they will make overseas trips to find opposition.

Experienced rugby league administrator Bernie Gurr stepped down from the USARL Board last month after two months in the role citing “personal and family reasons” for his departure.

In the USA women’s national championship Tampa Mischief defeated the Lady Razorbacks of East Palo Alto 76-20 in the Final.

USARL Official Statement https://t.co/ukrCqHj8zh pic.twitter.com/yxuGE7JcAx

— USA Rugby League (@USARugbyLeague) August 20, 2024

Pacific Championships

There are still a number of details not confirmed for the Pacific Championships however the NRL has provided some information on the two tiered international competition to commence after the NRL Grand Final.

Brisbane, Christchurch and Auckland have been selected to host the preliminary games, with the final in Sydney at CommBank Stadium on 10 November.

Australia, New Zealand and Tonga will play in the men’s Pacific Cup with Samoa touring England. In the women’s tournament Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea compete for the Cup.

The Men’s Pacific Bowl will be fought out by the Cook Islands, Fiji and Papua New Guinea whilst in the women’s it’s Cook Islands, Fiji, Samoa and Tonga which will double as the Asia Pacific qualification tournament for the 2026 World Cup. No details as yet on dates and venues. The Pacific islands look to be the sleeping giants of women’s rugby league with an increasing number of Polynesian players in the NRLW.

More International Activity

Wales have announced an international match against fellow 2021 World Cup participants Jamaica on 25 October. Italy and Malta will meet in an international friendly on 28 September as part of a home and away series between the two nations in 2024 and 2025.

Dynion 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

The boys are back in Cymru this October to take on Jamaica.

Tickets will go on sale later this week for the Men's international at The Lextan Gnoll in Neath.

Sterling Designs🎨 | @neathrfc 🤝 pic.twitter.com/jyqJ7mK6lm

— Wales Rugby League (@WalesRugbyL) August 19, 2024

Fittler a Rah Rah?

Zach Fittler, son of Brad, has some thinking to do having been offered a two year contract with the Waratahs after impressing in the 15 man code while representing Scots College in the GPS rugby competition. At the same time Fittler has played for the Roosters in junior representative teams and it was thought he would follow his father to the club. Fun fact – Zach Fittler qualifies to play for Greece through his mother’s Greek heritage.

From Cromer to Carcassonne

Speaking to the Everything Rugby League Podcast last week former top referee Greg McCallum revealed what motivated him to take up the whistle was missing out on the coaching role with the Cromer Kingfishers under 7s team. McCallum, who adjudicated matches in a number of countries, tells us what he got paid back in the day and how he turned down a lucrative offer from Super League in Australia. Give it a listen https://open.spotify.com/episode/6WLRSvXIQ3YsrbUORM70X9?si=N0RxzbhgT36juvDP2WJEjQ