NSW Country’s Kaitlyn Andrews and Indigenous Gems Jessica Howard.
The Harvey Norman National Championships wrapped up recently with two blockbuster grand finals and four Yass Magpies KFS players competing in the NSW Country under-19s, and Indigenous Gems and NSW Country opens squads.
Players converged on Burleigh, Gold Coast for the championship from Thursday, June 9 to Sunday, June 12.
The four-day tournament acts as a development for female players from across Australia to compete at both the under-19s and opens age level.
NRLW scouts and coaches were also in attendance to identify potential recruitment targets.
Kaitlyn Andrews starred in the NSW Country Women squad, which took out the open’s final by beating Western Australia.
Proving too good for WA they took the open’s title 24-0.
Tries to key players Jessica Gentle, Shannon Rose and Jorja Holden in the opening half set up a 16-0 lead before another two tries in the second term sealed the win.
NSW Country went into the clash undefeated after winning five of their matches, including a 14-0 win over Western Australia.
Jessica Howard represented the Indigenous Gems who finished third on the ladder after beating Victoria 12-0.
Kayla Fleming and Alanna Dummet represented NSW Country in the under-19s squad where the Queensland Rubys took out the under-19 decider with a 10-4 victory over NSW City.
But NSW Country secured a hard-fought 8-4 victory over the Queensland Sapphires to finish third in the under 19s division on day four of the competition.
The NSWRL and QRL also use the Championships to select an under 19s state team for the women’s State of Origin on June 24 during the representative weekend while all 16 NRL clubs have a break.
It will see the final one-off match for the annual women’s state of origin match ahead of an expansion to a two-game stand-alone series, with both games aired live on free-to-air television.
Brianna O’Rourke
