Each week day NSWRL will showcase the best tries scored in each junior representative competition this year in these five categories: don’t argue tries, through-the-hands tries, kick tries, runaway tries and individual effort tries - this week featuring the Laurie Daley Cup. Check back into this page for our rolling daily coverage.
Monday: Best don't argue tries
Tuesday: Best through-the-hands-tries
Friday: Best individual effort tries
Monday: Best don't argue tries
Laurie Daley Cup | Best don't argue tries
The Monaro Colts visited the GSR Wests Tigers in Round 2, and second-rower Noah Saddler proved too strong from close to the line. Eight minutes into the game with the scores locked at nil-all, Saddler was caught in a three-man tackle that was coming to a halt, but the No.12 refused to surrender and powered his way over the line.
Central Coast Roosters forward Brody Briggs ran a perfect line onto a Lachlan Ritchie short ball against the Bulldogs in Round 1, beating his defender with a hit and spin on the way to scoring.
No one could stop Northern Rivers Titans prop Jack Cullen from putting himself on the scoresheet in the final minutes of a Round 3 win over the Roosters, who stuck out a big left-arm fend on the opposition five-eighth to score under the posts.
Parramatta Eels prop David Langi opened the scoring against the Roosters in Round 4, taking the ball from a switch of play and, with quick footwork into the defensive line, carried two tacklers to the in-goal to gain an early lead.
Western Rams captain Jack Hartwig came up with the match-sealing play in their Round 4 clash with the GSR Wests Tigers, pushing through plenty of traffic from 30 metres out and stepping past the fullback to score beside the upright.
Tuesday: Best through-the-hands tries
Laurie Daley Cup | Best through the hands tries
North Coast Bulldogs winger Malakhi Donovan finished off a great team effort against the Roosters in Round 1. Despite being nearly held up on the ground 15 metres from the line, the No.5 slipped out the defender’s grasp and scored in the right-hand corner.
It was only played down the left third of the field, but the Monaro Colts pulled off a superb long range try against Penrith in Round 3. In a play that had a step, two offloads and five pairs of hands, the four-pointer was finally completed with a backfield break from bench utility Ethan Marriott who dived over to score.
In the Rams’ Round 4 matchup with GSR Wests Tigers, fullback Braye Porter gave the home side the lead off the back of a line-break from centre Noah Ryan, turning four points into a certain six when he ran the ball from the corner to the goal posts to put the ball down.
Penrith second-row forward Justice Sene couldn’t be dragged to ground in the first half of his Round 4 draw against Monaro Colts, yet he was able to keep his right arm free for an offload back to five-eighth Liam Vella for the try.
In one of the best re-gathers of the Laurie Daley Cup season when the GSR Wests Tigers faced the Bulls in Round 3, Tigers centre Isaiah Tuiaki almost dropped a pass to the hip before back-healing the football over his head, catching it, then getting the ball away for second-rower Luke Cowley to score.
The Western Rams put their Round 5 result beyond doubt with a well-executed short-side play as they beat the Dragons 26-14. Captain Jack Hartwig had the ball at first receiver and sold a dummy for the break then passed to his winger, who tiptoed the sideline and threw the ball back to centre Cody Crisp, who then gave the ball back inside to a charging Jack Cole to score untouched.
Wednesday: Best kick tries
Laurie Daley Cup | Best kick tries
Thanks to a deft Toby Peters chip to the corner in Round 2 against GSR, Dragons winger James McClelland took a classic diving catch and still held possession to put the ball down in the in-goal area, all without going over the touchline.
When the Bulldogs met Parramatta in Round 2, winger Tyrell Dungay chased down a clearing midfield kick on the second bounce, then miraculously produced a left-handed flick pass from the sideline to send centre partner Malakhi Donavan in for the try.
Riverina Bulls second-rower Toby Denyer was only going one way when halfback Tristan Wheeler put the ball on the toe in Round 2 against Penrith, outrunning two Panthers chasers to score first points for the visitors.
Titans halfback Thomas Weaver’s kick over the top against Central Coast in Round 3 looked too heavy as it headed for the dead ball line, but the ball caught the defence off-guard when it bounced on its point and fell into the arms of centre Daniel Butturini to score.
Later on in the same matchup, Titans winger Rowan Mansfield leapt up to take a lofted kick, who quickly handed off the ball as he was tackled into touch for centre Riley Lack to cross for the try.
Greater Northern Tigers pivot Mitch Henderson sparked a second-half try against Newcastle in Round 1 with some outstanding individual play. From his own 40-metre line, Henderson broke the line with a dummy then followed up with a chip infield, and the ball eventually came to bench back-rower Daniel Kelly to score the four-pointer.
Thursday: Best runaway tries
Laurie Daley Cup | Best runaway tries
Titans second-rower Bayley Cox showed great awareness in Round 2 when he intercepted a Newcastle grubber on one bounce and had enough pace to go 90 metres for a try in the 45th minute.
As the Roosters were down by four points in the early stages of their Round 2 match with Greater Northern, five-eighth Witika Rees-Hatu took a hit-up out of a scrum, bursting through a two-man tackle and making a beeline for the posts to level the score.
Rams five-eighth Jack Cole could have charged down a Penrith kick in their Round 3 fixture, but the No. 6 had other ideas when caught the flying ball at shoulder height and got an offload away for centre Mason Pollack to race across the stripe.
In his Round 4 match against the Newcastle Knights, all it took was a loose pass for Bulldogs centre Eli Clark to snatch the ball against the run of play and sprint away to score. It was a telling blow on the stroke of halftime as the Bulldogs went on to win 34-28.
The Dragons looked dangerous early on in Round 2 against GSR, and the defence opened up in the 15th minute when Dragons centre Jayden Brody broke two tackles out wide and stepped out of a third before passing inside for captain Jhet Steyger to score.
Friday: Best individual effort tries
Laurie Daley Cup | Best individual effort tries
Greater Northern hooker Blake Ginman did well to anticipate an offload from Mark Simon when they took on the Knights in the opening round. Ginman then showed tremendous speed off the mark to break through a broken defensive line and run around the fullback for the try.
The Knights would hit back nearly 15 minutes later when prop Aden Jenkins found himself at dummy half, picking up the ball at the 20-metre mark and outmuscling a handful of defenders to score.
Bulls hooker Wilson Hamblin caught the Penrith defence napping in Round 2 when he jumped out from the play ball in his own half, forcing his way past three initial tacklers and beating the Panthers’ fullback one-on-one for a well-deserved try.
Colts No.17 Jack Grant came out firing in the second half of his Round 3 meeting with the Panthers, pouring through a gap in the 38th minute and stepping outside the last defender before reaching out to score.
Wearing the No.22 against the Tigers at McKinnon Oval in Round 5, Parramatta’s Desmond Raukete assumed the halfback position and reaped the rewards in last minute of play when broke into open space, deceiving opposition fullback with a dummy and putting the ball down for a try.
Also in Round 5, Rams winger Cody Lawson didn’t need any help when he defused a Dragons bomb in his own 10-metre zone in the first set of the contest. Lawson ran hard at the first group of defenders before finding daylight ahead of him and racing away for the opening try.
