Junior statewide competitions Round 7 preview

Townsville are coming off a massive win over Mackay and will be looking to finetune things before finals.

The Blackhawks lost last year's final to Souths Logan 38-26 and are undefeated this season.

The Blackhawks ran riot against the Cutters last week with nine tries and Xavier Hellyer scoring 18 points. Jamal Shibasaki had his standard impact with 195 run metres and Jack Wood made 20 tackles.

Townsville coach Zeb Kyle is preparing his side to win.

“We are looking to win this game, same as every game,” Kyle said ahead of their Round 7 clash with Northern Pride.

“We have some changes this week and I am looking forward to seeing how guys go.”

Wynnum Manly are also sitting pretty with one game to go and will take on the Dolphins in Round 7 after enjoying the bye last week.

“Dolphins are probably the form team, they have been great and they’re a big team,” coach Jesse Maclean said.

“We keep telling our players to stay where your feet are, so be present. We aren’t talking about next week.

“It’s a big deal for our guys to play at Kayo Stadium.”

Outside of Townsville and Wynnum Manly, the remaining four teams are still fighting for their finals spot.

Norths lost to the Tweed Seagulls last week when they very much needed a win - it was three tries to two in a close 14-10 loss. The Devils need to score far more points this week. Norths had 52 per cent of the ball against Tweed and Harrison Hill made 34 tackles while Robertson Tusi Tofu made 196 run metres.

Norths coach Rob Tanielu has the calculator out this weekend for their meeting with Souths Logan.

“I think we have two games that stand out that have left us in this position,” Tanielu said.

“We need to reflect on why it’s happened, and move forward, but still hope a few results go our way. You never know.

“We will just be playing footy this week and finishing the season on a good note.”

Redcliffe, meanwhile, are yet to secure a finals spot but are in the driver's seat ahead of next week. They finetuned their finals preparation in Round 6 with a 40-4 win over Burleigh and this week will get an early taste of what could lie ahead in the finals as they prepare to take on the undefeated Wynnum Manly Seagulls.

Coach Scott Tronc is controlling what he can control.

“We just need to worry about us, there is no point worrying about Wynnum or two weeks’ time,” Tronc said.

“They’re a good team, they have some tricks and run hard and they're undefeated for a reason.

“We can just control us and this week.”

Ipswich can also make the finals with a win but did themselves no favours after falling short against the Western Clydesdales last week, bringing the Clydesdales into finals contention.

The Jets will look for redemption this week as they turn their focus to Wide Bay.

“We were on the other side last year and needed some results to go our way, so it’s nice this season to be were we want to be,” coach Shane Harris said.

“We will focus on Wide Bay and work on a few things and worry about next week when it comes.

“The good thing is we didn’t play well last week and only lost by six.”

After last week's upset win, the Western Clydesdales now have a massive challenge in front of them this week against the Sunshine Coast.

If they are to knock Ipswich out of finals contention, they not only need a massive win, but are relying on Wide Bay to take Ipswich down in a big way.

For the round's full draw and team lists, click here.

Harvey Norman Under 19s

The second-placed Mackay Cutters are charging headfirst into the last round of the Harvey Norman Under 19s knowing that the fifth-placed Central Queensland Capras will want to end the season on a good note too.

The Cutters have won four games and are one win behind the competition-leading Ipswich Jets.

In a strange statistical anomaly, the Cutters have beaten the Capras 22-8 the last two times they have played each other.

The Cutters have only allowed 52 points this season and scored 126.

The suffered their first loss last round, going down to the Blackhawks 20-16, with the Cutters just not starting well and then left to play catch up.

Lily Peacock made 23 tackles while Madison Westecott made a huge 179 run metres for her team and five line breaks to go with her two tries.

The Cutters' completion rate of 59 per cent and only 82 runs with 25 missed tackles took their toll in the end and the Blackhawks were able to hang on.

Cutters coach Mathew Sanders wants to see a return to Mackay's defensive mindset.

“We just went away from that mindset last week,” Sanders said.

“I think we can always score points but three tries in the first 20 minutes isn’t what we have worked on all year.

“I want to see a return to what we have been about.

“Capras are a good team and they will want to finish the year well too so this is a really good challenge for us to be able to learn from last week and improve.”

For the final round's full draw and team lists, click here.

Cyril Connell Challenge

The last round for the Cyril Connell Challenge takes place this week and the Central Queensland Capras will be up and about in Mackay, looking to finish their season with a win over the Cutters.

The Capras have a good record against the Cutters and have beaten them 28-0 and 32-8 in their last two clashes.

The Capras also came away from their last round against the Pride with a 46-6 win. It was as comprehensive as it sounds, with the Capras scoring nine tries to one.

With 61 per cent of the ball and 11 line breaks, the Central Queensland boys had a great day out. Forty-three tackle breaks and only 10 missed tackles were a thing of beauty.

Harrison Hill nearly climbed a hill running 117 metres while Cooper Young made 16 tackles off the bench.

The Capras are second on the table and have been a defensive wall with just 48 points scored against them this year.

That’s what Capras coach Duane Carpenter is hanging his hat on - that defence.

“Our first 30 minutes won us that game, we were excellent in attack and defence,” Carpenter said of Round 6.

“We were connected well in defence and 10 missed tackles for a whole game is outstanding.

“Harrison Hill would be close to the shortest second rower in the game but he just doesn’t stop for us and has been great.

“We challenged Brock Otto to be more consistent and he came up with a great front rowers’ game.

“Our halves too, two very different kids but having a good year; Tyler Melrose and Will McLaughlin have been great for us.

“Makes me wish we had finals to play... I don’t want to end yet.”

For the final round's full draw and team lists, click here.

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