Sport
22 June, 2026
Seven straight wins
THE Mareeba Gladiators are on a run for the ages after securing their seventh consecutive win at the weekend, while the Atherton Roosters returned to winning form at home.
The in-form Gladiators travelled to Smithfield on Saturday to take on the Ivanhoe Knights, and while the home side didn’t make it easy for the visitors, they managed to come away with a 26-24 win.
Meanwhile in Atherton, the Roosters returned to winning form to find a 36-24 win over the Tully Tigers, with captain-coach Justin Frain scoring himself a double during the match.
GLADIATORS vs KNIGHTS
MAREEBA winger Bronson Ryan now leads the league in try scoring after putting together yet another hattrick in Mareeba’s seventh win on-the-trot at the weekend.
Ryan, who’s scored 12 tries in the past five games (including two hattricks and a four-haul), has notched up a total of 17 tries so far this season and sits four tries clear of Kangaroos’ Simon Stephen in second place on 13 tries.
However, besides a try from five-eighth Ty Grogan in the 13th minute, the first half was all the Knights’ – who led 24-4 just minutes before the first 40 was through.
But a miraculous ball from fullback Trezman Banjo to his winger (Ryan) right on halftime saw the Gladiators bring it back to 24-10 at the break.
Following a “bit of a halftime spray”, according to coach Trent Barnard, the Mareeba side came out and put together a strong second half comeback.
Ryan then went on to score another two in the 50th and 60th minutes, which brought the score to 24-20, but the final blow came from forward Alphonse Bulkua who went over in the 70th minute to level the scores. A successful conversion by Grogan put Mareeba in the lead, for the first time all game, at 26-24.
According to Barnard, his squad survived a five-minute onslaught as a desperate Knights outfit continued to pepper their line, but were ultimately unsuccessful.
“Credit to the boys, Ivanhoes were camped down there for a good three or four sets in the last five minutes and we didn’t crack, which was good, the boys just kept turning up,” he said.
“It’s a great feeling, winning seven-in-a-row, especially against my old club down there. It was always going to be a tough day, they’ve been winning some good footy games and they’ve found some good form recently.
“We had a lot of supporters down there and we could hear them all day, so at least they could see that we showed them some heart in the second half.”
The Gladiators Reserves celebrated a 34-16 win, while the Under 19s took a 54-16 loss.
ROOSTERS vs TIGERS
THE Atherton Roosters celebrated a good win against the Tully Tigers at the weekend following a two-game dry spell.
Atherton centre Austin Kombo earned himself a first half double, with hooker Oskar Coutts also finding a four pointer to give the Chooks an 18-12 lead at the break.
Roosters fullback Regan Herd, who kicked 6/6 conversions on the day and is leading the league in points scoring (108 pts), was the first to cross the line in the second stint (49th minute).
He was followed by captain-coach Justin Frain before Tully found another two of their own to bring the score to 30-24. But a late charge by Frain in the 77th minute saw him cross over again to claim two for the day and seal the win at 36-24.
The Roosters Reserves also celebrated a win, taking down Tully 26-18, as did the Under 19s, who won 28-10.
Rivals to contest derby
THIS weekend is shaping up to be a cracker as third and fourth on the FNQ Rugby League ladder get set to battle it out in what will likely be a fierce local derby.
Although being tied with the Roosters, the Gladiators currently hold third on the ladder – due to a points differential just a mere 10 points better than their local rivals.
The Gladiators will host the Roosters this Saturday at Davies Park, with the Under 19s getting things underway from 2pm, followed by the Mareeba Masters vs Townsville Pirates at 3.30pm, Reserve Grade at 4.30pm, and A Grade at 6pm.
