Last weekend was packed with surprises with teams fighting hard for tops spots in Premier Grade Rugby right across Australia.
NSW SHUTE SHIELD
Two big upsets are the talking point of Round 10 with Randwick bamboozling the University outfit and Gordon surrendering their first loss to rivals Northern Suburbs.
The Wicks jumped out to a quickfire four try lead and kept the Students at bay during the first half. A frustrated Uni side fought back with three late tries but succumbed to a 24-42 loss at University Oval.
The ‘battle of the north’ saw Gordon sport their heritage kit at Chatswood Oval. The game got off to a rough start for the Stags with Norths winger Reece Mau'u plucking the ball from the air during kick off to score in the corner. After that Norths remained in control against the ladder leaders and took home a 13-24 win.
In a game that saw four yellow cards, Eastern Suburbs kept their noses in the top six after putting the pressure on Manly and coming away with a 22-5 win.
A confident and controlled performance at TG Millner saw Eastwood run out as 47-14 winners over Penrith whilst Warringah kept their hopes for 2020 alive with a comprehensive 58-15 win over the Two Blues at Rat Park.
Southern Districts went back-and-forth with the Hunter Wildfires in the start however Souths showed off their scrum skills in the second half and scored some superb tries before sealing a 49-24 win.
This Saturday Northern Suburbs go head-to-head with Southern Districts in Round 11’s match of the round at their temporary home at Rat Park. Catch all the action LIVE & FREE on 7TWO + 7PLUS from 3:00pm AEST.
SOUTH AUSTRALIA COOPERS PREMIER GRADE
Superb weather delivered superb running Rugby across Adelaide over the weekend.
Brighton faced off Old Collegians in match of the round which was an absolute cracker with Brighton reaffirming their top spot after taking home a 29-20 win.
On other fields Onkaparinga broke away in the final stages to claim the points against Southern Suburbs 38-19; Burnside ran over Port Adelaide 106-0, Woodville cruised home over Barossa 43-5 and Elizabeth welcomed back their army boys to defeat Adelaide Uni 32-30.
In the women’s competition Onkaparinga kept their top spot after crushing Southern Suburbs 57-0 whilst Woodville proved too good for Barossa 54-4 and Burnside kept Port Adelaide scoreless 49-0.
This weekend will see Old Collegians take on Burnside to cement the second spot in the comp. The game kicks off at 4:00pm at Tregenza Oval in Linden Park and will be streamed LIVE via Rugby Xplorer and the SA Rugby Facebook page.
ACT JOHN I DENT CUP
The John I Dent Cup playoff picture is starting to take shape with three of the top four confirmed for finals following last weekends’ results.
Vikings latest victory, a 30-12 win over Gungahlin means the Eagles will have to win the final round this weekend to obtain a playoff berth.
Royals also displayed dominance with a 34-22 win over Wests meaning the Lions will have to beat Queanbeyan to challenge Gungahlin for fourth.
Match of the round see the Royals take on the Eagles from 3:00pm AEST which will be streamed LIVE on Bar TV and the Brumbies Rugby Facebook.
WA FORTESCUE PREMIER GRADE
Suspension is building for finals after Associates knocked Cottesloe off the top of table for the first time this season.
On a special day for Associates the first-grade side put down the biggest margin in 2020 beating the Coastal Cavaliers 127-3. The club’s victory was matched with celebrations for their annual Islander Day with Polynesian-inspired food, dancing and music.
In other matches, a bonus point win puts Soaks on top of the ladder after Cottesloe suffered a devastating 5-point loss to the Joondalup Brothers at Harvey Field. Joondalup’s success was spurred by former Western Force fullback Clay Uyen who led both the attacking and kicking duties. The win keeps Joondalup in contention for a finals berth, sitting just four points outside fourth spot.
In match of the round Wests Scarborough stole finals hope for Nedlands after winning 17-24. The victory pushes Wests into fourth position and gives them a solid chance of claiming the last finals spot.
UWA claimed a strong win over Kalamunda securing them in the finals whilst Wanneroo tallied 50 points on the scoreboard for the second consecutive week after beating Curtin Uni 3-50.
Palmyra had an easy 31-0 victory over ARKs and Southern Lions beat Perth Bayswater by 11 points.
In the final round of the regular season, Kalamunda take on Nedlands at Hartfield Reserve this Saturday at 3:30pm AWST for match of the round. The game will be streamed LIVE on the RugbyWA Youtube Page and website.
TASMANIA PREMIER RUGBY
Devonport have upheld their 2020 winning streak with another victory over University 41-10.
Rivals Harlequins and Taroona had spectators on the edge of their seats on Friday night. Both sides showed off some impressive defence and despite some close calls the game finished tied at 3-3.
Hobart Lions and Glenorchy Staggs were neck-and-neck until the Lions broke away in the second half to claim a 30-15 win.
In the Championship Division, Launceston continued their dominant performance with a thrashing over Eastern Suburbs 76-0.
Burnie Emus also took the win at home defeating Taroona 38-17.
The Women’s Sevens sides competed in their last regular round before finals where the Harlequeens once again lived up to their names as queens of the comp, winning three out of three games.
This weekend sees the Taroona Penguins host Devonport Bulls in a top-of-the-table clash at Rugby Park in Hobart from 3:00pm AEST.
QUEENSLAND HOSPITAL CHALLENGE CUP
Round 8 of the Allsports Physiotherapy Hospital Challenge Cup saw the competition celebrate mental health round with all clubs promoting Queensland Rugby Union’s ‘In Touch Mental Health Program’.
The match of the round between Easts and Sunnybank saw the two clubs contest the Rick Tyrrell Cup in memory of former Queensland Reds prop Tyrrell who represented both clubs and unfortunately lost his battle with mental illness in 2015.
Easts dominated the Round 8 fixture, outscoring Sunnybank five tries-to-two while half-back Eli Pilz slotted four conversions and a penalty in the 36-12 affair. The match was littered with Rugby stars with former Wallabies Captain Ben Mowen and Reds fullback Aidan Toua lining up for Easts and former Australian Sevens flyer Tom Lucas and Wallabies winger Digby Ioane competing for Sunnybank.
After Souths shocked the competition with a Round 1 win over Brothers, the Brethren exacted their revenge running in nine tries to claim a 63-5 win over the Magpies at Crosby Park.
