Latest news with #StateofOriginIII
The Age
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Queensland deny Blues series whitewash with victory in Newcastle
MAROONS 18, BLUES 14 Queensland skipper Ali Brigginshaw has vowed to play on and her NSW counterpart Isabelle Kelly shed tears at the post-match press conference after the Maroons' 18-14 victory in State of Origin III on Thursday. After NSW claimed the series with back-to-back wins in Brisbane and Sydney, they had a chance in Newcastle to become the first women's team in history to record a 3-0 whitewash. But Queensland saved their best until last to avoid a clean sweep, and Brigginshaw vowed afterwards to return next season to try and reclaim the title. 'I do want to play keep playing on,' 35-year-old Brigginshaw said, admitting she had been 'hurt' by the conjecture. 'I think people just look at your age and think that that's enough. There were still comments out there tonight about when I'm going to retire. 'I still love my footy and if I get picked I get picked, but I'm not saying that people have to pick me, just because I've been here before. I want to prove that I can play in this jersey and hopefully I did that tonight. I'll do whatever it takes for this jersey.' Kelly, meanwhile, became emotional and shed tears when asked by the media about a try that was disallowed by the bunker because she failed to ground the ball while sliding over the line. 'I'm obviously someone that gets quite disappointed when I let my team down,' Kelly said. 'It makes me a bit emotional right now.' At that point, NSW coach John Strange spoke up to allow Kelly to regain her composure. 'That's why she is who she is,' Strange said. 'That's why she's captain of her state. I've worked with Izzy for a long time and she's a great leader. 'She's an inspiration to all the girls she plays with and all the younger girls who look up to her, and she's an inspiration to me as well.' Adding to the emotion of the match was NSW bench forward Sarah Togutuki, who played following the death of her sister on the weekend, and suffered a head knock that forced her from the field. 'She's had a really tough couple of weeks, Sarah, for personal reasons, so it was just really great to get her out there, and represent her sister and her family,' Strange said. 'We're all really proud of her for doing what she did today ... I don't know if anyone else could have done that. I don't know if I could have, after losing a sister on Saturday.' Kelly said Togutuki's courage was an inspiration for her teammates. 'I feel really honoured and lucky to pull on a jersey alongside her,' Kelly said. Strange said satisfaction after winning the series overrode any disappointment about losing game three. 'We've had a goal to win the series, we've done that, and the girls have worked really hard to achieve that, so it's been awesome,' he said. After leading by eight points midway through the second half, the Blues were unable to withstand a late Queensland fightback that sent a parochial crowd of 21,912 home disappointed. It was a try from utility Jocelyn Kelleher from dummy-half that handed the Blues a confident lead, before Maroons backrower Romy Teitzel hit back with a try to make it a two-point ball game. That was before Lenarduzzi bulldozed her way over from close range to give her team the lead. NSW had one last chance to salvage a win, or at least take the game to golden point, when they received a penalty for a professional foul from Leanarduzzi on full-time. The Queensland prop was subsequently sent to the bin, leaving NSW with an extra player on the field and a last-ditch effort to take the win. But the Maroons had done enough in the end, and managed to salvage a win for veteran skipper Ali Brigginshaw who may have played her last match in Queensland colours.
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'What a joke': Fans lash out after Reece Walsh and Broncos handed $100,000 from NRL
NRL fans are once again questioning why the winner of the pre-season challenge (the Brisbane Broncos) were handed $100,000 compared to the $200,000 that the minor premiers get at the end of the regular season. The Broncos just pipped the Dragons for the $100,000 prize after recording a 50-12 win over the Titans and a 30-14 win over the Bulldogs. The Dragons beat the Roosters 26-8 before thrashing Souths in the Charity Shield 46-26. The Broncos and Dragons both finished on 29 points in the pre-season challenge - which rewards tries and offloads - but Michael Maguire's side won due to points difference. Brisbane walked away with $100,000 for claiming the pre-season title for the second year running, but many are questioning why the prize money is so high. In contrast, the winners of the minor premiership only get $200,000 after 27 rounds, but the Broncos get half of that after just two trial games. The $100,000 prize is believed to be a carrot for teams to play their biggest stars in the trial games, but it didn't really eventuate. While some big guns like Reece Walsh, James Tedesco and Kalyn Ponga did feature, others like Tom Trbojevic, Daly Cherry-Evans and Jarome Luai were kept on ice. The situation was made worse by some absurd ticket prices for the double header at Leichhardt Oval last Friday night. Officials charged exorbitant prices because there were two matches (Manly v Penrith and Wests Tigers v Parramatta), but the Panthers fielded a reserve grade side because their NRL squad had already headed to Las Vegas. The Tigers had touted it as the first time fans would see Luai in his new colours, but he didn't play due to a niggling injury. Speaking on SEN radio on Monday morning, leading commentator Andrew Voss labelled the ticket prices "ridiculous". The Tigers set the adult general admission price at $42.60, while an actual seat (not on the grass hill) set fans back $62.60 for an adult or $170.80 for a family of four. All prices are before an additional $6 handling fee per transaction from ticket provider Ticketek. By comparison, the cheapest seat for State of Origin III at Accor Stadium this year is set at $49 for an adult and $139 for a family. Asked last week about seats being on the same price level as State of Origin tickets, Tigers CEO Shane Richardson responded to AAP with: "No comment." The crowd reflected the ticket prices, with a sparse crowd watching the double header. Crowds were noticeably low for the three weeks of trial games, and many are calling for the $100,000 prize money to be changed to reflect the standing of the matches a bit more accurately. RELATED: Melbourne Storm rocked as teammate joins Papenhuyzen in injury blow Kevin Walters cops backlash after brutal decision to axe Corey Parker Even when teams fielded first-choice line-ups, they only lasted 60 minutes at best before the games turned into reserve grade standard. One person wrote on social media: "This is the most ridiculous idea ever introduced by the NRL. It's a waste of $100,000. Give 100 struggling clubs, $1000 each to stock their canteens." Another wrote: "Think it's a bit stupid you get 100k for winning the pre season comp but only 200k for the minor premiers? Surely that needs to be more?" $100k for a preseason Mickey Mouse competition, $200k for the NRL Minor Premiership makes sense — Scott Williams (@JFHbiceps) February 22, 2025 Do it properly 25 players 4 quarters Round Robbin$250K to the winners Similar to Tooth Cup & Craven Mild Cup over 3-4 weeks teams eliminated play trials last team standing takes the money — Alby T (@steele_sports) February 23, 2025 Gotta give clubs an incentive to lose their biggest stars before the season starts. Also, Minor Premiership should be $500k. @NRL can afford it. — The Rookie Gold Prospector (@Hindle43985508) February 23, 2025 What a waste of time — Scottie J - Man of Teal (@The_Man_Of_Teal) February 23, 2025 What a joke they made a "challenge" out of it. Bring on next weekend! — DJN (@DJNMelbvic) February 23, 2025 This is a ridiculous format and trials are trials and not content for Kayo and Foxtel. Stupid! — Hello/Goodbye (@helpmaniac) February 23, 2025
