True Blue Blake Ferguson will be chasing premiership glory when he lines up for the Newcastle Rebels in the Grand Final of the NSWRL Men’s Country Championships against Monaro Colts on Sunday 24 March at Cessnock Sportsground.
Ferguson won’t be the only player or official with NRL experience with the Rebels also featuring journeyman Will Smith at halfback and Garth Brennan as coach, while the Colts will have former Canberra Raiders No.7 Sam Williams calling the shots for their team.
Ferguson, who played nine games for the NSW Blues and made a telling break down the sideline before passing back inside for James Tedesco to score the match-winning try in Game Three of the 2019 series, had a lengthy NRL career.
He played for Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Canberra Raiders, Parramatta Eels, and Sydney Roosters, where he won a premiership in 2018.
Smith represented four NRL clubs (Penrith Panthers, Parramatta Eels, Gold Coast Titans and Wests Tigers), Brennan coached the Titans from 2018-19, while Williams had NRL stints at the Canberra Raiders (2011-13, 2015-16, 2018-21) and St George Illawarra Dragons (2014).
The Men’s Country Championships will be the final match for the NSWRL Regional Representatives Grand Final day with the premiers to be decided earlier for the SLE Andrew Johns Cup (Under 16s) and SLE Laurie Daley Cup (Under 18s).
All three games will be shown on NSWRL TV, which is now available on a dedicated app on the Apple App store and Google Play store.
The decider for the SLE Andrew Johns Cup will feature the Central Coast Roosters against Macarthur Wests Tigers.
The Roosters were unbeaten during the season and will are aiming to become the first team in the competition’s history to win consecutive premierships, while the Tigers will be determined to snare their first title.
The Roosters team includes winger Semi Leweniqila, who is the competition’s leading try scorer (9), while the Tigers have centre Elijah Sefo, who has bagged five tries this season.
The SLE Laurie Daley Cup Grand Final will feature the Monaro Colts up against the Northern Tigers, with both clubs looking to claim their first premiership.
The Colts came close last year before losing a 26-24 thriller to Illawarra South Coast Dragons while the Tigers showed great resolve to rally from a 16-0 half-time deficit in their Semi-final against Macarthur Wests Tigers to win 28-16.
NSWRL REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES GRAND FINAL DAY SCHEDULE
10.30am: Central Coast Roosters v Macarthur Wests Tigers
12.15pm: Monaro Colts v Northern Tigers
2pm: Monaro Colts v Newcastle Rebels
