GRAND FINAL v PENRITH - JERSEY FLEGG - 1.00PM, Sun 25th - CommBank Stadium, Sydney

Our first Jersey Flegg grandfinal since 2006, when our team featuring Kade Snowden, Scott Dureau, Luke Walsh, Aku uate, Cory Paterson, Tim Natusch, Terrence SeuSeu etc started as favourites and went down to Penrith.
We have won two minor premierships in under 20s - once with guys like Sione Mata'utia, Luke Yates, Jake Mamo, Joe Tapine, Danny Levi, Josh King, Lauclan Fitzgibbon etc an most recently in 2018 with Star To'a, Tex Hoy, Brad Best, Pheonix Crossland, Matt Croker, Musgrove, Fermor, Talty, Momoisea etc, when we lost in the last seconds 30-28 to Penrith in the qualifying final.

Having said that, most of our players this week will have been in our Mathews side when we played 4 Grandfinals in 5 years and won 3 of them.

We have beaten Penrith twice in the regular season and once in the first final this year, but that means nothing, because Penrith is a team we find it impossible to beat in knock-out games. I don't think we've beaten them in a knockout game since they beat us is the 2006 Flegg GF.
 

TEAM LIST​

1. Fletcher Sharpe
2. Luke Pietzner
3. Krystian Mapapalangi
4. James Johnson
5. Ethan Ferguson
6. Kurt Donoghoe
7. Mitch Henderson
8. Max Bradbury
9. Riley Jones
10. Callan Burgess
11. Brock Greacen
12. Tom Cant
13. Jaron Purcell

Interchange:

14. Noah Nailagoliva
15. Paul Bryan
16. Lachlan Williams
17. Tevita Toloi

Extended Bench:

18. Lachlan O'Brien
19. Myles Martin
20. Jyris Glamuzina
21. Keanu Wainohu-Kemp
23. Harry Croker
 
Gone with some older heads - players like Burgess, Greacen, Toloi, Williams and Purcell last year have played plenty of reserve grade.
I'd have Harry Croker in there, but he's been out of favour all year for some reason.
 
Our first Jersey Flegg grandfinal since 2006, when our team featuring Kade Snowden, Scott Dureau, Luke Walsh, Aku uate, Cory Paterson, Tim Natusch, Terrence SeuSeu etc started as favourites and went down to Penrith.
We have won two minor premierships in under 20s - once with guys like Sione Mata'utia, Luke Yates, Jake Mamo, Joe Tapine, Danny Levi, Josh King, Lauclan Fitzgibbon etc an most recently in 2018 with Star To'a, Tex Hoy, Brad Best, Pheonix Crossland, Matt Croker, Musgrove, Fermor, Talty, Momoisea etc, when we lost in the last seconds 30-28 to Penrith in the qualifying final.

Having said that, most of our players this week will have been in our Mathews side when we played 4 Grandfinals in 5 years and won 3 of them.

We have beaten Penrith twice in the regular season and once in the first final this year, but that means nothing, because Penrith is a team we find it impossible to beat in knock-out games. I don't think we've beaten them in a knockout game since they beat us is the 2006 Flegg GF.
I remember that 2006 grand final being shown on tv in NZ as part of grand final day! Akuila Uate try here:


A bit of a shame this one will only be watchable online. I'll be tuning in though!
 
Haven't paid attention much to the jersey flegg side but that's good signs being in the GF. Successful Harold Matthews and SG Ball Cup sides are good, but they're still a couple years away from being around the NRL side. A successful Jersey Flegg side though, means a lot of the good ones will be coming into the squad next year.
 

TEAM LIST​

1. Fletcher Sharpe
2. Luke Pietzner
3. Krystian Mapapalangi
4. James Johnson
5. Ethan Ferguson
6. Kurt Donoghoe
7. Mitch Henderson
8. Max Bradbury
9. Riley Jones
10. Callan Burgess
11. Brock Greacen
12. Tom Cant
13. Jaron Purcell

Interchange:

14. Noah Nailagoliva
15. Paul Bryan
16. Lachlan Williams
17. Tevita Toloi

Extended Bench:

18. Lachlan O'Brien
19. Myles Martin
20. Jyris Glamuzina
21. Keanu Wainohu-Kemp
23. Harry Croker
What's wrong with Chris Vae'lia?
 
What's wrong with Chris Vae'lia?
As far as I can work out he has what used to be called "growing pains" when I was a kid, or "shin splints" in runners. Tiny fractures in your shin bones - the only cure is a long rest with no running.
 
Years ago I spent a few hours looking at how many players in under 20s winning sides go on to play firstgrade, and it was nearly half of them play at least 1 game of firstgrade.
Same goes for minor premiers.
Our 2006 side had about 10 guys go on the play firstgrade - everyone from Steve Gordon with Just one game to Luke Walsh who just retired from ESL 2 years ago and is still playing in the real NRL between injuries.
We already have 2 from this side.
 
There really going to miss David Armstrong this weekend it’s a shame injury has kept him out of this decider big game player and would’ve shone in the GF. I also would’ve had Jyrgis in there probably one of the best fowards in the team so powerful and elusive really troubles the defence every time he runs such a handful.
May the best team win.
 

NSWRLTV coverage of Maitland Pickers starts at 11 am and Jersey Flegg at 1 pm Sunday.
The NRLW game is on free to air from 2.05 PM - so Flegg and NRLW overlap for 20 or 30 minutes.
 
1. Fletcher Sharpe - 3 more years of Flegg
2. Luke Pietzner - 2 more years of Flegg
3. Krystian Mapapalangi - 1 more year of Flegg
4. James Johnson - 1 more year I think - not sure
5. Ethan Ferguson - 3 more years of Flegg
6. Kurt Donoghoe - last game
7. Mitch Henderson - 2 more years of Flegg
8. Max Bradbury - 2 more years of Flegg
9. Riley Jones - 1 more year of Flegg
10. Callan Burgess - last game
11. Brock Greacen - 1 more year of Flegg
12. Tom Cant (C) - 1 more year of Flegg
13. Jaron Purcell - last game

Interchange:

14. Noah Nailagoliva - 2 more years
15. Paul Bryan - 2 more years
16. Lachlan Williams - 1 more year
17. Tevita Toloi - 1 more year

Replace Donoughue, Burgess and Purcell with Liam Sutton, Oryn Keeley and Myles Martin and we are good to go for round 1 next year.
 
Those 3 in last year/game for Flegg will surely be given serious consideration for Devel Contract for 2023 and the team will remain strong if we can hold onto them
 

Article about Mapapalangi choosing to play Flegg over firstgrade and what he brings to the Flegg side. Coach Gleeson praises his defence and says he brings confidence to the whole side.

Talking of defence, when this agegroup won the Mathews title in 2019 they set records for their defence and produced a massive defensive effort to win the grandfinal, despite only holding the ball for about 40% of the time. The forwards like Keeley and Bradbury were very good in defence, but half Mitch Henderson is a tenacious little guy who tackles everything that moves and hooker Noah Naigolivia is a former secondrow forward and lock who tackles as well as any forward - better than most in fact. He isn't tall, but he's a chunky guy who hits low and hard. I also noticed in the last game that James Johnson is not only hard to stop in attack, but a really strong defender.
 

Article about Mapapalangi choosing to play Flegg over firstgrade and what he brings to the Flegg side. Coach Gleeson praises his defence and says he brings confidence to the whole side.

Talking of defence, when this agegroup won the Mathews title in 2019 they set records for their defence and produced a massive defensive effort to win the grandfinal, despite only holding the ball for about 40% of the time. The forwards like Keeley and Bradbury were very good in defence, but half Mitch Henderson is a tenacious little guy who tackles everything that moves and hooker Noah Naigolivia is a former secondrow forward and lock who tackles as well as any forward - better than most in fact. He isn't tall, but he's a chunky guy who hits low and hard. I also noticed in the last game that James Johnson is not only hard to stop in attack, but a really strong defender.
The NRL site yesterday had a compilation of highlights from Penrith's 2015 NYC premiership side. Worth a watch, doesn't look a great deal different to today's first grade side. Being highlights, plenty of flamboyant tries. But as I was watching it, I was kind of thinking that this Flegg side of ours will bring the defensive steel we need as they start filtering in to grade. They have some players who can attack for sure, but defence is what they have based their successful season on, and I think that will be massive going forward.
 

This article quotes Parr as saying he has been assured by Zammit that we have the nucleus of our Flegg side signed up.
It says the unsigned players have a great chance to earn a contract in the GF.
It says Kurt Donoughue is unsigned and has had interest from other clubs, but his preference is to stay.
Parr says only the Mathews side fell short in our juniors, with Ball finishing second, tarsha Gale making the GF and Flegg also in the GF.
 

Article on the team.
Coach Gleeson says he has used 45 players and would usually use no more than 35 maximum.
Says most of the team are locals and are young enough to play again next year - only a handful will be too old.
Says that Penrith have shown the way to build a team through the juniors and we are setting up for the future, win or lose tomorrow.

The article also gives the team list with their age and junior club listed.

  1. Fletcher Sharpe (Age: 18. Junior club: Cessnock Goannas)
  2. Luke Pietzner (19, Sarina Crocodiles)
  3. Krystian Mapapalangi (19, Maroubra Lions)
  4. James Johnson (21, Lakes United)
  5. Ethan Ferguson (18, Taree Panthers)
  6. Kurt Donoghoe (21, Central Newcastle Butcher Boys)
  7. Mitch Henderson (19, Farrer Memorial Agricultural High School)
  8. Max Bradbury (19, Wests Rosellas)
  9. Riley Jones (20, The Entrance Tigers)
  10. Callan Burgess (21, Morpeth Bulls)
  11. Brock Greacen (20, Denman Devils)
  12. Tom Cant (20, East Maitland Griffins)
  13. Jaron Purcell (21, Wyong Roos)
Interchange:
  1. Noah Nailagoliva (19, East Maitland Griffins)
  2. Paul Bryan (19, Mackay Brothers)
  3. Lachlan Williams (20, Wests Rosellas)
  4. Tevita Toloi (20, Macquarie Scorpions)
 
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