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Clean sweep for the Bears!
Fulltime scores
A Grade Burleigh 62 def Ormeau 12
Res Grade Burleigh 26 def H’vale 18
U20 Burleigh 24 def H’vale 22
ISC Burleigh 24 def Nth Pride 14
HDC Burleigh 42 def Nth Pride 14
A hat trick to Anthony Don has helped the Essential Coffee Burleigh Bears defeat the Northern Pride 24-14 at Pizzey Park.
The Don was on fire in his second appearance for the Bears this season, leaping high for his first try, coming from the opposite side of the field to support for his second and running the length off an intercept for his third.
With five tries in his two appearances, Bears coach Jimmy Lenihan was unsurprisingly happy to welcome Don back to the club where he made his name before going on to become the Titans’ greatest try-scorer.
“He has played a lot of NRL and is a well-established NRL player, but the fact that he came through Burleigh and got his opportunity through Burleigh means he feels really comfortable at the club and plays with the respect that the local guys love,” Lenihan said.
“Hopefully he can play a few more games for us and get a few more tries.”
Don’s treble was the highlight of a scrappy game played in front of a bumper crowd gathered for Burleigh’s annual reunion day.
He opened the scoring in the 8th minute when he brought down a Jamal Fogarty bomb on the right wing.
A Troy Leo break down the left wing led to Don’s second in the 19th minute, as he loomed in support to score on the other side of the field.
Blake Leary, playing his second Intrust Super Cup game of the season, got on the board in the 27th minute after running onto a short ball from Conner Toia.
It was an exciting return for Toia, playing at five-eighth, as it was his first ISC game for the Bears since 2015.
After stints with Souths Logan and Runaway Bay, Toia has returned to the Burleigh system in 2019 and after a stellar season in A Grade earned his recall.
“He has been going really good playing the same kind of style in our local A Grade side and I thought he went really well for us today,” Lenihan said. “It’s really good that we’ve got those interchangeable parts in our club now, that we can be in a position to call Conner up and he has really good experience, plays well and does a really good job for us.”
Leading 12-0 at the break, the Bears were gifted six points straight after halftime when a yawning gap opened up under the posts for Jeff Lynch to stroll over.
The conversion from Jamal Fogarty took the Bears halfback past 800 career points in the Intrust Super Cup.
Anthony Don’s length of the field intercept in the 46th stretched the lead out to 24-0 and left little doubt about the result for the last half hour.
The Pride, staring down the barrel of their sixth straight loss, managed to pick themselves off the canvas and add some respectability to the score line.
Enari Tuala for them on the board in the 55th minute when he scooped up a dropped ball, before Quinlyn Cannon snuck over from dummy half in the 72nd.
A Matthew Musumeci try in the 77th on the back of some lovely lead up work by Tuala – who was the Pride’s standout on the day – brought the final margin back to ten points.
The Burleigh Bears return to Pizzey Park next Sunday when they host the Sunshine Coast Falcons, while the Pride face the Easts Tigers.
Earlier in the day Burleigh’s Colts continued their winning streak with a 42-14 victory.
Click below for the livetream of Burleigh v Nth Pride at 4.00pm today.
The Burleigh Bears Under 20s have an opportunity to wrap up second place when they face the Helensvale Hornets this Sunday morning at Pizzey Park.
Last week’s 52-10 win over Southport was enough to move them up into second place, on equal points with Mudgeeraba Redbacks with two games left to play.
Burleigh have a showdown with Mudgeeraba in Round 20, but a Burleigh win against Helensvale could be enough to secure second place if the Redbacks fall to ladder-leading Currumbin this weekend.
The Gold Coast Under 20s competition has been close all season, with still only two points separating second from fifth.
Burleigh have an edge over the other sides fighting for position thanks to a for-and-against of +101.
A win over Helensvale this week would wrap up an all-important top three finish, while they could have a home major semi-final locked in as well if other results fall in their favour.
Helensvale currently sit fifth and must win both of their games to be a chance of pushing up into the top three.
The teams that finish in fourth and fifth will face off in the first week of the finals in sudden death, while the top three all get a potential second chance.
Rugby League Gold Coast fixtures – Sunday August 18 at Pizzey Park
A Grade v Ormeau – 2pm
Reserve grade v Helensvale – 12.30pm
Under 20s v Helensvale – 11am
The Burleigh Bears Hastings Deering Colts side will be chasing their sixth consecutive win when they take on Northern Pride this Saturday afternoon.
Still leading a tight race for the minor premiership, the Bears face a dangerous Pride who are desperate for a win to keep their finals chances alive.
The Pride won their first seven games to be the early pace-setters, but with four consecutive losses they currently sit in seventh and could tumble out of the top eight altogether if they can’t defeat the Bears on Saturday.
They will be desperate to upset the competition leaders, making this a tricky game for the Bears as they look to claim the minor premiership and prepare for the finals.
The Bears were at their blistering best last weekend, scoring 11-tries as they defeated Mustangs 58-10.
Ten different Bears got their names on the scoreboard, with fullback and captain Jayden Campbell going over for a double.
Colts coach Jamie Mahon has named an unchanged 17 to face the Pride this week.
The game kicks off at 2.15pm and will be the curtain raiser to the Intrust Super Cup clash at 4pm and will be part of the Burleigh Bears reunion celebrations.
Hastings Deering Colts Round 21 – Burleigh Bears v Northern Pride
Saturday August 17 at Pizzey Park, 2.15pm
Burleigh Bears
1 Jayden Campbell (c) 2 Alofiana Khan-Pereira 3 Braden Amundsen 4 Allan Lockwood 5 Trey Peni 6 Shallin Fuller 7 Cameron Brown 8 Tristan Powell 9 Lochlan Turnbull 10 Larryon Tevita 11 Thomas Berkers 12 Lane Ticehurst 13 Lochlyn Sheldon 14 Zachary McCormack 15 Andrew Scougall 16 Samuel Shannon 17 Daniel Shannon
Coach: Jamie Mahon
The greats of the past will descend upon Pizzey Park as the Essential Coffee Burleigh Bears take on the Northern Pride this Saturday afternoon.
The 2019 Burleigh Bears Reunion will be taking place in the clubhouse throughout the day with this year’s celebrations to centre on the 1979 A Grade premiership team and the 1999 Queensland Cup and A Grade champions.
Some of Burleigh’s best ever players took part in those premiership victories, and the reunion function will run from 12.30pm-3.30pm in the clubhouse before the Intrust Super Cup fixture at 4pm.
On the field, the Bears will be looking to continue their build towards the semi-finals after securing a crucial win in PNG last weekend.
It was the first ever Burleigh win in PNG and came at a pivotal time with just three games remaining before semi-finals.
Troy Leo celebrated his 50-game milestone in style with two more tries taking his season tally to 21 from 20 games, while teenager Will Evans made his Intrust Super Cup debut on the opposite wing.
Evans acquitted himself well in tough conditions, running for 85 metres including a crucial escape from the in goal when the Bears were under pressure late in the game.
The young gun did enough to earn selection for another week as coach Jimmy Lenihan named an unchanged side for this week’s clash with the Pride.
Also included is Blake Leary, playing his second Intrust Super Cup game of the season after returning from overseas.
Queensland Residents captain in 2018 and 2019, Leary will be a welcome addition to Bears pack with the finals just around the corner.
The Bears can’t catch the Sunshine Coast at the top of the ladder, but they are still in the hunt for a top-two finish and need just one win from their remaining three games to guarantee their place in the top four.
Burleigh will start favourites on the weekend but cannot afford a slip up against the 12th placed Pride if they are going to keep the pressure on Wynnum Manly and push for a home semi-final.
The Pride have struggled in 2019, losing their last five games and going down 64-14 to Norths Devils last weekend.
Burleigh Bears Reunion 2017 – Saturday August 17 at the Burleigh Bears Leagues Club
Cost; $50pp
Essential Coffee Burleigh Bears v Northern Pride – Intrust Super Cup Round 21, 4pm
1 Dylan Phythian 2 Troy Leo 3 Sami Sauiluma 4 Josh Berkers 5 Will Evans 6 Josh Rogers 7 Jamal Fogarty 8 Luke Page (c) 9 Pat Poltioni 10 Jack Buchanan 11 Hayden Schwass 12 Blake Leary 13 Sam Coster 14 Jeff Lynch 15 Api Noema 17 Oliver Percy 19 Matt Robinson
Coach: Jimmy Lenihan
