Goals, grit and a splash of pink: NPFL round six delivers big
It was another action-packed weekend of footy in the North Pilbara Football League, as round six saw fierce battles, passionate crowds and a community united for a cause.
Port Hedland's Colin Matheson Reserve came alive on June 7 as the Hedland Rovers put on a show in front of a vibrant home crowd for Pink Day, drawing more than 300 spectators and raising over $12,500 for the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
The women's match kicked off the weekend, with the Karratha Kats dominating against the Hedland Rovers, 6.1 (37) to 2.1 (13).
The Rovers swamped the Kats in the reserves, 16.7 (103) to 5.2 (32), and 13.12 (90) to 9.10 (64) in the League.
'It was a thrilling day on and off the field, with both the reserves and league team claiming victory; reserves with a commanding 71-point win and league winning by 26 points,' Port Hedland Rovers president Kristel Keyser said.
'The women's team also put on a strong performance in their closest game of the season against Kats, going down by just 24 points after a hard-fought contest.'
Over at Bulgarra Reserve, the Karratha Falcons brought a festival feel to footy with their first 'Falcons Football Frenzy' — an all-day showcase of games across junior and senior divisions.
In the women's game, the Dampier Sharks shrugged off an early challenge from the Falcons to dominate 4.8 (32) to 1.7 (13).
'The Falcons came out hard and fast, catching us slightly on the back foot early on,' Dampier Sharks women's coach Matt Burgess said.
'But after conceding the first goal, we found that extra bounce and momentum we needed to lift.
'It was a massive team effort that brought about a few exciting firsts — most notably Maddison Kelly, who kicked her first goal for the Sharks on debut, a huge moment.'
The league and reserves matches went down to the wire, with the Falcons coming out on top against the Sharks 8.7 (55) to 7.10 (52) in the reserves, and the Sharks pulling through in the league to claim the win 11.4 (70) to 9.13 (67).
'It was a great contest throughout the game, with each team taking the lead at different times throughout,' Karratha Falcons League coach Dean McDonald said.
'Sharks took their opportunities in front of goals and we didn't, which hurt us with the final result.
'Unfortunately we lacked the urgency to man-up defensively in the final quarter. Full credit to the Sharks who played the game out well with possession football.'
At Wickham Town Oval, the Wickham Wolves notched a triple win against the South Hedland Swans, 6.11 (47) to 3.0 (18) in the women's, 17.10 (112) to 9.6 (60) in the reserves and 28.16 (184) to 4.4 (28) in the league.
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Now in his fourth year as Cronulla coach, Fitzgibbon believes similar experience in dealing with form slumps has helped set him up to lead the Sharks out of their hole. "I won't flinch, I believe in what I believe in," Fitzgibbon said on Wednesday. "The game leaves clues and you are constantly learning, constantly trying to stay consistent in what you believe in so the team can stay consistent. "Over the course of the last three seasons there's always been a period where we've had this and managed to take the outcome out of it." The back line in particular has been a merry-go-round for Fitzgibbon this season and now centre KL Iro (pec) is set for another lengthy sideline stint just as winger Ronaldo Mulitalo returns from suspension. Fitzgibbon has not once been able to call upon his five first-choice backs in 2025 but says utility Mawene Hiroti is the man to fill the gap once again. "Mawene, when he played he's had a number of weeks with (Mulitalo) when KL was out earlier in the year so they've got a decent combination there," Fitzgibbon said. "Having some familiarity when you lose a player to be able to bring in someone that's got a good relationship with that guy keeps your cohesion together." The Sharks are one of the few NRL clubs not to lose any players to State of Origin duty but it hasn't stopped their worst two performances coming in the Origin period. Fitzgibbon says capitalising on the Origin period isn't a focus for his team, he just wants them to return to the form that beat top four teams Canberra and Melbourne earlier in the year. "Prior to the last two weeks, we've been in every game we've played," Fitzgibbon said. "There's not been a single performance prior to that where we weren't competitive and playing the way I wanted to play. "Consistency is the thing, not the period, we want to be a consistent team and the last two weeks haven't been." Preparing for a fierce local derby off the back of two heavy losses isn't ideal for any NRL coach. But Cronulla coach Craig Fitzgibbon is confident his fifth-placed team can return to the consistent footy they showed earlier in the season when they play St George Illawarra on Thursday. Defensive lapses have cruelled the Sharks in heavy losses to the Roosters and Warriors in the last two rounds and the coach wants to see improvement when the Dragons come to Shark Park. Now in his fourth year as Cronulla coach, Fitzgibbon believes similar experience in dealing with form slumps has helped set him up to lead the Sharks out of their hole. "I won't flinch, I believe in what I believe in," Fitzgibbon said on Wednesday. "The game leaves clues and you are constantly learning, constantly trying to stay consistent in what you believe in so the team can stay consistent. 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Fitzgibbon says capitalising on the Origin period isn't a focus for his team, he just wants them to return to the form that beat top four teams Canberra and Melbourne earlier in the year. "Prior to the last two weeks, we've been in every game we've played," Fitzgibbon said. "There's not been a single performance prior to that where we weren't competitive and playing the way I wanted to play. "Consistency is the thing, not the period, we want to be a consistent team and the last two weeks haven't been."
