It was great to see the skills all our RISE participants have learned this year be put into practice at our QRL rebel State Development Series carnival on Saturday.
The teams of 13 to 14-year-old boys and 13 to 16-year-old girls proudly wore their colours - our Brisbane and Ipswich-based teams those of their Hostplus Cup equivalents, alongside a combined Gold Coast team and some visitors from the Darling Downs - and it was a huge success, backed by a wonderful atmosphere from spectators.
When needed, there were players helping teams out if they were short and a lot of camaraderie again when teams were playing each other, even from different regions.
It should be recognised the huge effort from our QRL staff throughout the delivery of our five RISE sessions for all our of players, culminating in the carnival that came together on Saturday.
There has been so much administration work to organise coaches, players, support staff, venues, all those sorts of things to deliver a great experience, because they know the value of the RISE content for developing players.
Yet again it was also another example of how well-equipped Logan Metro Sports Complex is to hold these major events, which will help serve a growing population and increasing rugby league participation in the area.
Souths Logan Magpies have also made great use of the grounds on several occasions, while it also hosted the BMD Premiership grand final earlier this year.
So we know it's in pristine condition for our flagship event in the community space, the XXXX League Championship final on July 29.
I hope to see plenty of supporters cheering on our boys Brisbane Red up against a formidable Cairns outfit, who will be scheming to take the title back to the QRL North region.
I'm looking forward to seeing how coach Darren Ferricks and his team will build on their outstanding performance in the semi-final in Toowoomba last month to put on a show for their home fans.
Finally, it was great to see how community clubs participated in QRL's BMD Indigenous Round over the weekend and I can't wait to see even more celebrations of culture in various ways and more striking and meaningful jersey designs on the field as we round out NAIDOC Week.
Shout out
There were too many people to thank for the smooth running of the QRL South East rebel State Development Series event at Logan Metro Sports Complex on Saturday, but a special shout out to the Browns Plains volunteers Natasha Taylor, Chris Cheshire, Quintin Austin, Lisa Brolan, Dan Barry and Danni Wensley (and Kathy from Warwick) who jumped in to help out.
Key dates
July 29: XXXX League Championship final, Brisbane Red v Cairns
Celebrating our team
Katie McAllister
Role: League and club coordinator, Gold Coast
Hometown: Darwin
Favourite Maroons player: Johnathan Thurston
Favourite Maroons moment: Game II 2006, Queensland needed two points to win, loose ball, Darren Lockyer picked it up and scored under the sticks.
Why you love working for QRL: I love the connection to community that QRL provides. I enjoy working collaboratively with a team of like-minded individuals who are all working for the same common goal of creating an inclusive game.
