Billy Burns has captained the Newtown Jets to the premiership in the NSW Knock On Cup - and earned himself a place in the NSW Rugby League's 2024 Team of the Year for the competition after a stellar season.
The former Red Bend Catholic College student boasted the most tries (eight) and try assists (five) of any edge forward in the competition. NSW Rugby League's wrap of a great grand final follows.
By Margie McDonald, NSW Rugby League
Newtown Jets won their ninth title in The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup but were made to fight for every centimetre of CommBank Stadium in today’s Grand Final, by fellow foundation club (1908) the North Sydney Bears.
As a measure of the tightness between these two, scores were locked up four times with four tries apiece as the game headed into its final 15 minutes.
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But the circuit breaker came from Jets and Cronulla-Sharks front rower Braden Hamlin-Uele, who capitalised from a bust upfield by his No.7 Niwhai Puru – the Player of the Match – to score at the southern end and send the 10,385 crowd into raptures.
“We knew we were going to be in for a tough game – the Bears just kept turning up – and we had that understanding going into the game and we prepared for it,” said Jets coach George Ndaira.
“We wouldn’t be anything without our supporters and our fans, and obviously our partnership with the Sharks – it showed today how much that’s working. You always hope, you always wish at the start of every year you might get the big one. It means so much for Newtown as a club – we heard the chants and that was just so good.”
The Jets last won the NSW Cup in 2019 but it’s been a longer wait for the Bears – their eighth and last was in 1993.
“We tried really hard but there was a couple of areas where we weren’t good enough, we didn’t complete well and they did,” said Bears coach Kieran Dempsey. “I thought we were coming home well using our speed through the middle. But it wasn’t to be.”
With Melbourne Storm and the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks finishing their NRL Preliminary final duties this weekend, that brought fullback Sualauvi Faalogo back to the Bears and Hamlin-Uele to the Jets in as last-minute changes.
Newtown snatched a 16-10 halftime lead through a 39th minute try to centre Mawene Hiroti.
The opening 15 minutes was your archetypal Rugby League grind giving an indicator this would be a close match. The scoreboard was locked at 6-6 and 10-10 during the first half – twice again in the second (16-16, 22-22).
But after the Jets were denied twice by the video referee – winger Sam Stonestreet was held up and fullback Liam Ison ruled a double movement – momentum seemed to swing towards the Henson Park team.
In the final minute of the half, Hiroti busted through two tacklers and dragged a third with him for a fine individual effort. Puru’s conversion and the Jets had the six-point lead at the break.
The Jets other two tries came from winger Tom Rodwell and right centre Chris Vea’ila.
Bears hooker Bronson Garlick collected a Matt Stimson offload for North Sydney’s first points in the 20th minute, and then Faalogo showed why he’s scored eight tries in 14 games for Storm this year. Using that Melbourne connection he ran off his back-rower Joe Chan and despite taking a heavy tackle right on the line, he was able to force his way over.
Three minutes into the second half and scores were locked up for a third time (16-16) after Bears winger Allan Fitzgibbon zipped down the left touchline to score his 21st try of 2024. Hayman converted from the sideline with Jets supporters ringing in his ears, but he held his cool.
The tit-for-tat nature continued with Billy Magoulias passing short to put Jordin Leiu over near the uprights for the Jets. But the six-point lead (22-16) didn’t last long as six minutes later the Bears replied through try halfback Harradyn Wilson stepping and straightening (22-22).
Hamlin-Uele’s try sealed the win despite the Bears frantic play on the Jets’ line in the final two minutes.
“This is 10 months worth of work that has gone into this,” Jets captain Billy Burns said. “I just couldn’t be more proud – we said it so many times before. We said we could do it, we earmarked the day and we finally did it.
“I felt we were on our try-line the whole second half. But we just kept saying to each other ‘One more, one more’ and we got there.”
