With the mighty North Newcastle Bluebags Presentation only a few hours away,we would like to wish all our players in both the mens and women’s teams vying for the awards the best of luck. Congratulations to those who will etch their names in the North Newcastle Bluebags folklore.
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North Newcastle Bluebags Reunion – Sunday 8th October
PLEASE SHARE TO PASS THE WORD AROUND.
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Dont forget, we are backing up in BlueBag fashion with our Reunion, the next day after our Presentation.
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See photo below with details.
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EVERYBODY IS WELCOME.
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DONT FORGET : All memberships are also fue this day.
Presentation Night – Saturday 7th October
Moran Flying High Despite Grand Final Loss
North Newcastle may have fallen short against a clinical Redfern All Blacks side in the grand final, but Harvey Norman NSW Women’s Player of the Year Caitlin Moran still has plenty to crow about after her stellar 2017 campaign.
Moran capped off a brilliant individual season after she was crowned the best player in the world at the Brad Fittler Medal Awards night two weeks ago but was unable to steer her side to victory after going down to Redfern 26-16 on Sunday afternoon.
Although in with a fighting chance before kick-off, North Newcastle were unable to maintain their strong start after conceding four first-half tries which Moran puts down to inexperience against a well-drilled side.
“I think we started a bit out of the blocks and we were in the game in the first ten minutes, but I think nerves [crept in] – we have a new few girls and it’s our first year together,” she told NSWRL.com.au
“Redfern are a very developed team now, they have been together for a while so all credit to Redfern and how they played and the coaching staff.
“What we can take away with that is a bit of experience and bit more structure to be more calm.”
After being part of the victorious NSW side that trounced Queensland Womens 22-6 earlier this year, Moran was brimming with confidence and primed for a strong finish to the season with North Newcastle.
Despite losing their opening two fixtures and conceding nearly 100 points in the process, Moran sparked her side with a purple patch of form that saw them just lose two more games for the rest of the season.
She finished third on competition point-scoring tally while also showing her class in a host of representative teams, but says her combination with fellow Jillaroo stars Isabelle Kelly and Rebecca Young played a significant role in their journey to the Grand Final.
“I’ve had a massive season with football personally; it started with Auckland Nines and the Indigenous All Stars win and the Test Match win and then with NSW for the second time down in Queensland,” she said.
“Having Izzy [Isabelle Kelly] and Bec [Rebecca Young] in each of those tournaments with me, I think it builds the Newcastle team.
“Me personally I have the World Cup year, so I’m just trying to play the best footy I can and try not to get broken out there.”
Moran’s long list of 2017 representative honours started in February where she was part a star-studded Jillaroos outfit who won their first Auckland Nines Series with a clean sweep of victories, before leading the Indigenous All Stars to their first ever win just one week later.
She went onto to help NSW claim their second series win in a row halfway through 2017 but now has her sights set on the Rugby League World Cup and is looking forward to the challenge ahead.
“It’s going to be massive over the next few weeks – footy season is definitely not over,” she said.
“I’ve got to try and enjoy the week I have off, then straight back into training and into lock down.
“It actually steps up a notch now with all the club stuff over and now all the days I’m usually at club training it’s back to personal training.
“But like I said I got the likes of Bec Young and Isabelle living around me so we’re carrying each other and pushing each other towards the World Cup.”
http://www.nswrl.com.au/news/2017/09/26/moran_flying_high_de.html
Redfern All Blacks win NSWRL women’s decider 26-16 against North Newcastle.
THREE tries in the last seven minutes allowed North Newcastle to save face but not the game as Redfern All Blacks won the NSW women’s rugby league grand 26-16 at Leichhardt Oval.
Redfern scored four tries in the first half, and North were fortunate that wayward goalkicking from hooker Chloe Leupepe meant they were facing only a 16-0 deficit at the break.
As the game entered the last 10 minutes, the scoreline read 26-0 to the Sydney team, but North rallied with tries by Kylie Hilder (73rd minute), Holli Wheeler (77th) and Isabelle Kelly (79th) to salvage some pride.
In their first season under the North Newcastle banner – after previous incarnations as Maitland and the Hunter Stars – the Bluebags finished fourth and survived three sudden-death play-offs to reach the decider.
Centres Taleena Simon and Karri Doyle both scored first-half doubles for Redfern.
All Blacks 26 (T Simon 2, K Doyle 2, N Davis-Welsh, C Leupepe tries; Leaupepe goal) North Newcastle 16 (K Hilder, H Wheeler, I Kelly tries; C Moran 2 goals).
AAP reports: Australia’s women’s rugby league team thumped Papua New Guinea 42-4 in their historic clash in Port Moresby on Saturday.
The match was the first Test between the two nations, with the PNG Orchids forming for this year’s World Cup.
Split into four quarters because of the oppressive heat and humidity, the match was dominated by the Jillaroos, who proved far too professional for the gutsy Orchids in what was also the first women’s Test match in the country.
Co-captains Renae Kunst and Steph Hancock led from the front for Australia with three tries between them in the first half as the visitors took a commanding 30-0 lead into the break.
After a physical start, outside back Corban McGregor opened the scoring after seven minutes with a try that Chelsea Baker failed to convert.
Kody House went over in the corner in the 33rd minute after replacing debutant winger Jessica Sergis, who had come from the field due to heat stress.
Fellow debutant Talesha Quinn scored her first try for the Jillaroos just before the halftime break.
Tries to Meg Ward and Sergis soon after the break were both converted by Baker, who finished with a haul of ten points from her five successful kicks.
The packed crowd roared when rampaging prop Maima Wei scored the first ever try for the Orchids late in the game.
Jillaroos coach Brad Donald hailed Hancock’s performance after she had been left out of the side for the Anzac Test against New Zealand in May.
“For her to come back the way that she did … I’m extremely proud of her,” he said.
Donald praised the Orchids for their relentless defence.
Orchids coach Dennis Miall was happy his team were able to test themselves against the No. 1-ranked Jillaroos.
“We’re proud of what our girls did today,” he said.
Redfern All Blacks 26 defeated North Newcastle Maidens 16.
Good luck to our North Newcastle Maidens
From everyone here at the North Newcastle Bluebags, we would like to wish all the girls and Coaching Squad the best of luck tomorrow.Go well girls!
For anyone who cannot make the game it will be streamed live on the NSWRL Website
Up the Bluebags!
Rugby League: North Newcastle women set for NSW Premiership grand final against Redfern
They became the Hunter Stars last year and drew players from a larger area and this year found a new home with North Newcastle as the competition was rebranded as the NSW Premiership.
They started training in November last year and quickly established a professional culture and ethic in the squad.
They played an exhibition game against the Cronulla Sharks as the Newcastle Knights in April and, at the time, Young rated it is as one of the proudest moments of her career.
Sunday will be right alongside that.
“In regards to expectations for the year, we just wanted to be able to finish the season. With Hunter Stars and our last year of Pickers, we actually didn’t finish the year well because of injury and work commitments,” Young said.
This is a massive reward and it honestly just feels like we’ve accomplished what we set out to do.
“It’s been a season of ups and downs. At the start of the year a couple of us were out on representative honours and we got beat by 50 in the first two games, so we were a little bit worried about that.
representative honours and we got beat by 50 in the first two games, so we were a little bit worried about that.
“Then in the second round we tied six or seven wins together and we thought, ‘We might have a chance here’.”
They finished the season fourth and have survived three do-or-die finals to make the grand final.
“Mick and I have both worked really hard to build rugby league in Newcastle and to make sure girls and women have a choice to play rugby league is probably the reason why we first started,” Young said. “So this is a massive reward and it honestly just feels like we’ve accomplished what we set out to do.”
North Newcastle have not beaten Redfern this year but Young said they were missing key players in their last outing and rated Jillaroo Simone Smith, who has missed the finals series but returns this weekend, as the “surprise up our sleeves”.
The game is at 4.20pm.
http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4941880/young-realises-dream-in-grand-final-decider/
World Cup hopeful Isabelle Kelly will look to cap off her 21st birthday celebration
TWENTY ONE: North Newcastle centre Isabelle Kelly. Picture: Sylvia Liber
World Cup hopeful Isabelle Kelly will look to cap off her 21st birthday celebrations with a state rugby league premiership.
The North Newcastle Maidens centre marked the milestone age on Wednesday before turning her attention to Sunday’s NSW Women’s Premiership decider.
The Maidens, who only formed this season, will take on minor premiers the Redfern All Blacks at Leichhardt Oval with Kelly in form having scored seven tries in three back-to-back finals outings.
North Newcastle captain Bec Young said it would be a deserved reward for the Central Coast-based star, who joined the club from now defunct Berkeley Vale midway through this season to keep her representative aspirations alive.
“It was a tough call for her to make but she hasn’t looked back since,” Young said.
SPACE: Isabelle Kelly on debut for the Jillaroos earlier this year. Picture: Jamila Toderas
Kelly made her Jillaroos debut earlier this year, helped NSW retain the interstate challenge and played an exhibition nines game for the Newcastle Knights.
She is the daughter of former Manly player Ken.
Her brother spent 2017 with Queensland Cup side the Burleigh Bears.
http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4937103/birthday-trophy-wishes-for-kelly/
All the very Best To Brooke Carter
