The QRL Media Year in Review series continues to focus on the Tweed Heads Seagulls who endured an up-and-down season; going on a strong run before injuries halted their momentum.
With the 2018 Intrust Super Cup season having drawn to a close QRL Media have decided to a take a look back through the year for all 14 clubs to see what went right, what went wrong and what the club are likely to focus on going forward into the 2019 season.
The series kicked off last week with remaining clubs to feature on QRL.com.au in coming weeks.
More in the Intrust Super Cup Year in Review series
Mackay Cutters
CQ Capras
Wynnum Manly Seagulls
...
The Season By-The-Numbers:
Final Position on Ladder: 11th
Regular Season Win %:
- Won: 9
- Draw: 1
- Lost: 13
Home and Away Record:
- Home: 7-5
- Away: 2-8
Scoring:
- Scored: 435
- Conceded: 634
- F/A: -199
Players in Focus
Standout Player: Lindon McGrady
- Tries: 3
- Line Breaks Assists: 9
- Try Assists: 12
- Average Kick M: 192m
- Forced Dropouts: 11
Notable Player Mentions: Brayden McGrady and Lamar Liolevave
Highlight: Round 8 – Tweed Heads Seagulls defeated Mackay Cutters 52-24 at BB Print Stadium in Mackay.
Elgey, Latu among Tweed try-scorers
Notable Player Achievements:
AJ Brimson (NRL debut – Gold Coast Titans plus selection in Queensland Unde 20)
Moeaki Fotuika (NRL Debut – Gold Coast Titans plus selected in Tonga Squad)
Konrad Hurrell(Selected in Tonga quad)
Lamar Liolavave (Tweed Heads Seagulls – Players Player)
Cheyne Whitelaw (Tweed Heads Seagulls – Best and Fairest Player)
Brayden McGrady (Signed with Penrith Panthers)
Key Factor: Player Unavailability / Injuries
The defining factor for Tweed Heads Seagulls 2018 season was the high number of injuries and also the unavailability of key players.
After 15 rounds of the competition; the Seagulls had benefitted from a strong run and were sitting inside the Top 6; however, they suffered injuries to a number of key players in the back end of the season.
These players included their captain Cheyne Whitelaw, chief playmaker Lindon McGrady, rising star Brayden McGrady and Queensland junior representative Hiale Roycroft.
On top of these injuries, Tweed Heads lost a number of players who had become pivotal members of their such as AJ Brimson, Moeaki Fotuaika and Koni Hurrell to NRL commitments with the Gold Coast Titans.
From Round 15 onwards, Tweed struggled after losing so many key players and won just one their last nine games; but did finish the season with a draw.
Looking ahead to 2019
In 2018, Tweed Heads Seagulls proved they can be competitive, winning six games in a row between Round 6 to Round 12, including victories against eventual top 6 sides Northern Pride, Ipswich Jets and Easts Tigers.
The club have also recently re-signed coach Ben Woolf and captain Cheyne Whitelaw and if they can keep their core group of players fit and healthy, they look set to go a long way in the competition in 2019.
