Hitting the midway point in the Fortescue Premier Grade season, 2024 is proving to be anyone's game, with three teams sitting on six wins and one loss at the top of the ladder.
However, those further down the ladder are proving they can't be ruled out quite yet.
With Kalamunda's upset win of the Rendezvous Scarborough Challenge Cup last fortnight, the bottom half of the ladder is looking for their chance to rock the boat and climb a bit higher.
For Wanneroo and Joondalup Brothers, close wins last week see them searching for their next chance to claim a victory and get some more points on the board, as well as fight for the title of King of the North.
At HBF Arena last Saturday, Joondalup Brothers defeated Wests Scarborough 21-13, with two penalties and a conversion keeping the teams apart. An early try from Wests (5’) couldn’t stop Joondalup, with tries for Joondalup Brothers scored by Ford Hemi (33’) and Ioane Valentino (62’), with a conversion (63’) and three penalties (16’, 27’ 76’) from Keillen Cullen. From Wests, tries were scored by Isaac Wilson (68’), with a penalty from Kauri Tipene-Grace (18’).
“Beating Wests was big for us, and we feel like we have turned a corner,” Joondalup Head Coach, Adam Munro shared. “They have been one of the benchmark clubs for years.”
“We have been building since we played Kalamunda a couple of weeks back and finally put out a full 80 minutes we could be proud of.”
The last time Joondalup met Wanneroo was in Round 17 of 2023’s competition, where Joondalup saw a 9-point win over Wanneroo, 19-28. Heading into Round 8, Joondalup is aware of the challenge that comes with playing a fellow Northern suburbs club.
“We have to start well,” Munro said.
“King of the North games always bring an extra edge so embracing the challenge front on and trusting our systems and process will be the challenge.”
For Wanneroo, it was a tight win over Perth Bayswater, finishing the game 20-22. A try was scored by Caleb Karangaroa, with a conversion from Baptiste Roucan, who also scored five penalties to secure the win. Tries for Perth Bayswater were scored by Nikolai Foliki (5’) and Joseph Annan (70’), with two conversions (5’, 74’) and two penalties (12’, 37’) from Simon Hbrek.
Ready to tackle Wanneroo, Munro shares his side is settling into the 2024 season well.
“We are a well-balanced side, who spent 6 rounds figuring out who we are and what we are about. We have that now so it’s about finetuning our game.”
“We are a tough gritty rugby side, and we pride ourselves on self in that.”
With the King of the North title on the line, Joondalup is looking for a strong start to clinch the win.
“We need to start well and play more consistent rugby,” Munro said.
“We altered our gameday approach, which seemed to have a positive effect last week. We are looking to be a bit cleaner around our attack breakdown and tackle contest.”
Before the Fortescue Premier Grade kicks off at Kingsway Sports Complex at 3:30PM, the top-of-the-ladder Belt Up Colts sides for Joondalup Brothers and Wanneroo will be taking to the field.
With six wins and one loss so far in the 2024 season, the Joondalup Colts side are set to take on number-two side, Wanneroo, for the first time this season. After byes for the last two rounds, Wanneroo is coming off a strong 38-0 win against Associates, with tries scored by Carlos Kata, Dyland Newark, Heinrich Schonfeldt, Juan Ross and Manaia Tetana, with five conversions and one penalty from Brodie Mainwaring.
In Round 7, Joondalup scored a tight win over Palmyra, 17-14. Tries for Joondalup were scored by Francois Nell (17’), Seth Reweti (20’) and Hugo Jewell (68’), with a conversion from Luna Potgieter (20’).
The matchup between Joondalup and Wanneroo Belt Up Colts is set to be streamed live on Rugby Xplorer. This week’s Stan livestream will feature Fortescue Premier Grade sides, Nedlands v. Associates, playing at Sir Charles Court Reserve from 3:30PM.
Across the globe in Rome last month, Perth Rams took on some of the best at International Gay Rugby’s Bingham Cup.
With strong performances across the board, the Perth Rams came incredibly close to winning the Bingham Cup’s second tier competition, losing by just one point to the Baltimore Flamingoes for the Hoagland Shield.
In Day 1 of the competition, Rams saw a 0-12 loss against the Bristol Bisons, followed up by a 20-8 victory by San Diego Armada. Their final match of the day ended with a 7-7 tie with the Gotham Knights.
Saturday, May 25 saw the Perth Rams enter the Semi-Finals, entering a rematch with the Gotham Knights. In a brilliant performance, the Rams defeated the Knights, 15-7, securing their place in the Final match on Sunday.
In the Hoagland Tier Final, the Rams came up against the Baltimore Flamingoes. In an incredible showdown, the Perth Rams only lost by a singular point, with the final score 7-8, a fantastic result for the team.
Their second-place result in Tier 2 of the Cup marks the highest finish for the Perth Rams in the Bingham Cup, a reflection on the growth and talent of the team.
“To say that Bingham Cup 2024 was a celebration of inclusive rugby would be a complete understatement," Rams Manager and Backs Coach, Jeb Brown, shared.
"The Perth Rams experienced 4 days of fantastic rugby in beautiful Rome, moving into division 2 since our last Bingham outing in Ottawa and competing against teams from the US and Europe."
"The atmosphere was electric throughout the tournament and the spirit of inclusive rugby was near feverish in the Cups first ever all trans match, a true display of camaraderie, bravery, acceptance and queer sporting excellence on a global stage."
"The Perth Rams, coaching staff and supporters look forward to doing it all again in 2026."
Members of the Perth Rams also featured in an Australian barbarian's side, the Oceanic Wanderers. A group of players who didn’t know each other before the event, the Wanderers finished third in the Challenger Vase division after a series of brilliant performances.
Day 1 of the competition saw the Wanderers defeat the Newcastle Ravens 15-10, before suffering a 14-19 defeat against the Portland Lumberjacks. The Wanderers finished the day suffering another defeat, finishing 14-5 to the Berlin Bruisers.
Day 2 saw the team come up against Pheonix Storm, where, in a tight game, the Wanderers lost 0-7.
On the final day, the Wanderers entered the third-place playoff match, where they found their final victory against Barcelona’s Panteres Grogues, 22-14.
Congratulations to all members of the Perth Rams who competed across the two grades on their fantastic performances, and their incredible results.
Fortescue Men's Premier Grade Round 8 Fixtures
Southern Lions v. UWA @ Success Regional Sporting Facility
Nedlands v. Associates @ Sir Charles Court Reserve *Streamed live on Stan
Wests Scarborough v. Perth Bayswater @ Bennett Park
Palmyra v. Kalamunda @ Tompkin Park
Wanneroo v. Joondalup Brothers @ Kingsway Sports Complex
Cottesloe – BYE
Belt Up Colts Round 8 Fixtures
Wanneroo v. Joondalup Brothers @ Kingsway Sports Complex *Streamed live on Rugby Xplorer
Southern Lions v. Palmyra @ Success Regional Sporting Facility
Championship Grade Round 7 Fixtures
Perth Irish Wolfhounds v. ARKS @ Centenary Park
Bunbury Barbarians v. Rockingham @ Leschenault Leisure Centre
Kwinana Wolves v. Mandurah Pirates Blue @ Wellard Oval
Dunsborough & Busselton Dungbeetles v. Curtin Uni @ Banard Park
Perth Irish v. Mandurah Pirates White @ Centenary Park
