• NORTHERN PRIDE v BURLEIGH BEARS
Saturday 1 August, Barlow Park.
Northern Pride 16 (Hezron Murgha, Linc Port, Brett Anderson tries; Justin Castellaro 2 goals) def Burleigh Bears 4 (Talor Walters 2 pen. goals) at Barlow Park.
Joe O’Callaghan’s Northern Pride team have surged into the Intrust Super Cup top six with a determined 16-4 home win over the Burleigh Bears at Barlow Park. The Pride’s 11th win of the year means they have leapfrogged fellow North Queensland Cowboys feeder team the Mackay Cutters into sixth place on the ladder. It was a gritty, low-scoring affair at Barlow Park with the Pride keen to hit the ground running coming out of a bye weekend. The Bears (ninth with nine wins and 11 losses) were coming off a last-start victory over Souths Logan Magpies, but the Pride’s three-tries-to-none victory ensured the Cairns rugby league community was in good spirits on Saturday evening. Among the tryscorers was contracted Cowboy Hezron Murgha, who put in a stellar performance in his 100th Pride game.
• TWEED HEADS SEAGULLS v MACKAY CUTTERS
Sunday 2 August, Piggabeen Sports Complex.
Tweed Heads Seagulls 24 (Nathanael Barnes 2, Blake Anderson, Jamal Fogarty, Jai Ingram tries; Jamal Fogarty 2 goals) def Mackay Cutters 20 (Justin Tavae, Zack Walker, Liam Taylor, Josh Chudleigh tries; Liam Taylor 2 goals) at Piggabeen Sports.
The Mackay Cutters have slipped out of the top six with a disappointing Sunday afternoon Intrust Super Cup loss to the 10th-place Tweed Heads Seagulls at Piggabeen Sports Complex. The Seagulls (seven wins, 11 losses, one draw) outlasted the Cutters 24-20 to post back-to-back wins following last weekend’s 30-16 win over Wynnum Manly. Cowboys squad member Josh Chudleigh again found the line, but the hooker’s efforts weren’t enough as the Cutters dropped their ninth game of the season to sit on 24 competition points, one win behind the sixth-placed Northern Pride, whom they host at Stadium Mackay weekend in a Intrust Super Cup blockbuster.
• The Townsville Blackhawks (first, 15 wins, three losses, one draw) had the bye in Round 21 and will host the Tweed Heads Seagulls next weekend at Jack Manski Oval.
• OTHER GAMES - SUNDAY, 2 AUGUST, 2015
Norths Devils 38 (Michael Lucas, Joel Bailey, Rogan Dean, Dan Murphy, Brett Greinke, Dylan Smith tries; Liam Tyson 7 goals) def CQ Capras 6 (Jake Ainsworth try; Matt Minto goal) at Browne Park.
Sunshine Coast Falcons 26 (Kurt Mann 2, Young Tonumaipea, Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Johnny Vuetibau tries; David Oakes 3 goals) def Souths Logan Magpies 18 (Daniel Tamou, Aotealofa Tuimavave, Sam Gardel tries; Scott Doyle 3 goals) at Davies Park.
PNG Hunters 24 (Noel Zeming, Adex Wera, Israel Eliab, Wartovo Puara tries; Noel Zeming 4 goals) def Easts Tigers 22 (Shane Neumann, Richard Kennar, Tommy Butterfield, Jake Foster tries; Shaun Nona 3 goals) at Kalabond Oval, Kokopo.
