Canberra Raiders Cup: Grand Final Day Wrap

The 2023 Blumers Lawyers Canberra Raiders Cup season has drawn to a close after a thrilling day of competition deciders at Seiffert Oval on Sunday.  

Canberra Raiders Cup Ladies League Tag

The Woden Valley Rams were crowned CRC Ladies League Tag premiers, defeating the Gungahlin Bulls 18-4. 

The Rams got off to a three try lead through fast ruck speed, blistering individual pace and silky ball movement. 

The Bulls had no answer, until they scored their first try in the final minute of the match, leaving it too late to mount a comeback. 

Elana Sliwinski was awarded the player of the match for her individual performance, steering her side to back-to-back premierships for Woden. 

The Rams were dominant all year, only losing one game and earning the minor premiership at the end of the regular season. 

Gungahlin were heavy contenders, finishing the regular season in second, and were responsible for the Rams' one and only loss. 

Canberra Raiders Cup Under 19s 

The Woden Valley Rams started the Grand Final Day two from two, after their impressive 42-18 victory over West Belconnen in the Under 19's.

The Rams showed their intentions early, scoring a try within a minute from kick-off, through a charging Ethan Alaia dummy-half run to set up Mathias Petone Tomuli-Ah-Kuoi to barge over the line. 

Woden didn't let their foot off the throttle in the first half, going into the break at 24-0. 

The second half was a try for try affair, with Woden having an answer to everything West Belconnen threw at them. 

Mathais Tomuli Ah-Kuoi was awarded the man of the match, scoring a try and having his hand in a further three to wrap up an incredible individual performance.

The Rams were particularly impressive in the finals series, barging through minor premiers, Goulburn, in the major semifinal 50-10, and comfortably beating the Warriors to secure the premiership. 

West Belconnen flew under the radar this season, until they found some red hot form in the back end. 

Their win over Goulburn in the preliminary final, as well as their previous meeting with the Rams where they drew 26-26, gave them confidence coming into the decider, but unfortunately it wasn't their day. 

Katrina Fanning Shield Tier 1

The West Belconnen Warriors made a comeback to defeat the Yass Magpies 24-22 to be crowned Katrina Fanning Shield premiers in their inaugural season.

Despite conceding the first points early in the piece, Yass found their feet and scored three unanswered tries, including a Lucy Prosser double, bringing the scores to 14-4. 

West Belconnen flipped the switch in the second half and started to roll through the Magpies, scoring four back to back tries and giving themselves a 24-16 lead.

Yass scored right under the sticks with less than five minutes remaining, making for an exciting finish to the match, but the Warriors were able to hold on in the dying minutes. 

Crystal Papalii led from the front and was damaging all afternoon for her side as she collected the player of the match honours.

West Belconnen came into this game as underdogs as they finished in third at the end of the regular season, six points behind the Yass Magpies. 

Yass were strong all year and were aiming for back-to-back premierships but the KFS newcomers had the edge on Sunday. 

The full match report can be found here.

Canberra Raiders Cup Reserve Grade 

The Gungahlin Bulls have completed the perfect season, defeating the Tuggeranong Bushrangers 36-20 to lift the CRC Reserve Grade premiership and finish 2023 undefeated. 

The Bulls sought redemption from last year's grand final loss, putting on a dominant display on Sunday. 

Everything clicked for Gungahlin in the first half, going into the break at 24-4 after scoring some brilliant tries, including an Ethan Miller chip & chase to set up Earldric Pehara in the corner. 

The Bushrangers came out with purpose in the second half, scoring a few tries of their own, but the Bulls were able to throw it all back at them and maintain a strong lead throughout. 

Gungahlin fullback Ethan Miller was awarded man of the match for his scintillating performance in setting up a few tries and getting over the line for one himself. 

Gungahlin were able to cap off a flawless year, suffering no losses and writing their wrongs from last year. 

Tuggeranong were the dark horse coming into the finals series and played with heart all the way through. 

The full match report can be found here.

Canberra Raiders Cup First Grade 

The Queanbeyan Kangaroos have capped off a brilliant season, closing out a 34-6 victory over the Tuggeranong Bushrangers to lift the 2023 Blumers Lawyers Canberra Raiders Cup.

The momentum was in Queanbeyan's favor for the full 80 minutes.

Tuggeranong were able to stay in the fight in the first half, keeping the score to a respectable 14-6. 

Only five minutes into the second half, the Bushrangers' lost their inspirational leader Darby Medlyn to a knee injury, which were to make things incredibly tough to force a comeback.

But the Roos found their rhythm and were too strong in the second half, scoring four unanswered tries to comfortably secure the premiership. 

Queanbeyan fullback Kaine Pagura was named best on ground, just 12 months after he collected the same medal for his performance in last year's reserve grade premiership, claiming three tries in the big victory.

Queanbeyan put the cherry on top of a great year, earning the minor premiership then going on to win it all, led by McIntyre Medalist and Roos captain-coach, Sam Williams.  

Tuggeranong were the only team to find a way to beat the Roos this season, which they did twice, including an impressive win in the major semifinal. 

But the Roos played with vengeance on Sunday, not allowing the Bushrangers to beat them for a third time. 

The full match report can be found here.