Sport
1 September, 2025
Heartbreak for Roosters
IT was a heartbreaking round of preliminary finals footy for the Atherton Roosters at the weekend, with the A Grade being knocked out and the other two senior sides just barely losing their games.
The Roosters A Grade let slip a 10-4 lead over the Southern Suburbs at halftime to lose the game 36-10.
The Roosters Reserve’s and Under 19s only just missed out on a Grand Final appearance, both losing their games by a mere two points.
The Reserve Grade went down 24-22 to Cairns Kangaroos and the Under 19s lost 18-16 also to Kangaroos after a last-minute try from the Cairns team ended the Grand Final hopes of the young Roosters.
A GRADE
THE Roosters A Grade squad lined up against a strong Southern Suburbs outfit in Cairns on Sunday, with the winner of the match earning a spot in the Grand Final.
The Roosters got off to a hot start with winger Regan Herd crossing the line after just two minutes of play to take a quick 4-0 lead.
Suburbs soon fired back though, with their electric five-eighth James Frazer crossing the line just minutes later. The scores were then levelled at four points apiece.
The remainder of the first half was an intense arm wrestle, with the only other points coming with just four minutes to go as Atherton’s Herd claimed his second try of the match through a full-field intercept runaway try.
A successful conversion from Herd took his team out to a 10-4 lead heading into halftime.
The second half was nothing short of a masterclass from the Suburbs outfit after they came out and scored six unanswered tries and shattered the Roosters’ hopes of a Grand Final appearance.
Their run started after a try 10 minutes into the second half, which levelled the scores at 10-all. Suburbs winger Ricco Falaniko then scored a quick double (60th and 63rd minute).
They then scored three more tries every five minutes to seal the game. The first came from second rower Harry Lawry (68th minute), Frazer then claimed his second try (73rd minute), and hooker Jayden Connors delivered the final blow with just three minutes left in the game.
A successful conversion from Frazer ended the game at 36-10.
RESERVE GRADE
THE Roosters Reserve Grade side put up a good fight against the skilled Cairns Kangaroos but ultimately fell short of an appearance in the big game by just two points.
The Roos got the jump on the Atherton side, scoring three consecutive tries in the opening 20 minutes of the game to claim a 14-0 lead.
However, the Roosters side fired back with three unanswered tries of their own to finish off the first half.
Scoring first was winger Tom Cuda in the 24th minute, he was soon followed by lock Austin Kombo just minutes later. Second rower Lance Cope then crossed the line in the 38th minute and a successful conversion from halfback Ty Grogan gave the Roosters the lead at 16-14 heading into the break.
Early in the second half, the Roos gave away a penalty which led to the Roosters opting to take a penalty goal. A successful kick from Grogan etched them out to an 18-14 lead.
After a 10-minute arm wrestle, the Roos crossed the line to tie the scores up at 18-18. The Cairns side crossed the line again eight minutes later and a successful conversion gave them the lead once again at 24-18.
However, the Roosters weren’t down the for the count just yet, with Cuda going over in the 70th minute to claim a double and give his side a chance to level the scores.
Unfortunately, a missed conversion kept the score at 24-22, and that was ultimately enough for the Cairns side to seal the win.
UNDER 19s
A DECISION to go for a penalty goal instead of pushing for a try, and a failure to convert two tries has cost the Roosters Under 19s a spot in the 2025 Grand Final.
The Roosters took on Kangaroos on Sunday in an evenly matched game, and while the Roosters led for most of the second half, they let their opposition in to score a try in the last minute of the match, which they converted to win the game 18-16.
The Roos scored their first try at the seven-minute mark of the game, but it was an arm wrestle for the next 20 minutes as pressure caused both sides to make errors, but neither could find the line until the Roosters’ Murphy Solinas finally crossed for their first converted try.
With the scores level at halftime, it was anybody’s game, but the Roos came out hard and fast and scored their second try just one-minute into the second half.
Roosters were peppering the line but just couldn’t get the points until a knock-on by Roos allowed them to benefit from the penalty to score their second try. But fullback Nathanial Ross was unable to convert.
Another try by Roosters five-eighth Kennedy Miamel five minutes later gave them the lead (14-12), but Ross missed another conversion which cost the team at the end of the day.
A dangerous tackle gave the Roosters another penalty just 10 metres out from their line but instead of going for the try, the Roosters took the penalty goal, taking the score to 16-12.
But it was not going to be enough, with Kangaroos getting a penalty just two minutes before the final siren, allowing them to break through for a converted try and the victory at 18-16.
