February 24, 2017
Cooler weather must be on the horizon … the clue? Local football players are beginning to gear up for another big season.
The Soccer Sevens carnival in Kingaroy this weekend will see round ball players in action as a warm-up to their main season.
The South Burnett soccer season is planned to be one week shorter this year, and fans will notice a revised structure to the finals series.
In AFL, the South Burnett Saints senior players are also in full training for the start of the season, and juniors have been enjoying a popular Auskick program in Nanango and Kingaroy.
The Darling Downs AFL competition is expected to revert to a two-tier contest this year after last year’s experiment as a combined structure, but the AFLDD has not yet made an announcement.
In Rugby League, players – both junior and senior – have been in training for weeks now, with at least one team training since before Christmas.
There is no word yet on the structure of the senior competition but Round 1 is due on April 22.
However, some players have already seen action.
Local U18s players played for the Central Crows against Redcliffe in a trial game in Kingaroy last Sunday, and the Cherbourg Hornets had a strong workout in Newcastle against Koori champions, the Redfern All Blacks.
There will be only one South Burnett U18s team playing in the Toowoomba competition in 2017; their first game is set for March 18.
The interest in Women’s Rugby League is still growing, with development days for prospective players being held recently at a number of local schools.
The aim is to field U14s, U16s and U18s in the Sunshine Coast competition but this year the girls are expected to be playing as the South Burnett Eagles.
Also new for 2017 is the Karen Murphy Cup which will be launched across Queensland by the NRL.
This will be a statewide school rugby league competition for girls offered in four age divisions:
- 11-12 years (Year 5 and 6 only)
- Year 7 and 8
- Year 9 and 10
- Year 11 and 12
A Girl’s Gala Day has been planned to be held in Kingaroy on April 28 as part of this competition.
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If you can’t wait until the official start of the rugby league competition, there will be some action for fans to enjoy in three trial matches being played at T.J. O’Neill Oval on Saturday from 2:30pm.
- Kingaroy A Grade v Caloundra A Grade
- Nanango A Grade v Caloundra Reserve Grade
- South Burnett Under 18s v Caloundra Under 18s
For coaches and trainers, there’ll be a Rugby League Education weekend at Taabinga State School this weekend. A Level 1 club coaching course will run on Saturday, and a Level 1 sports trainer course on Saturday and Sunday.
