Junior Reps Wrap: Eels Crowned Premiers in Two Grades

The Parramatta Eels secured their maiden title in the Lisa Fiaola Cup when they accounted for the Central Coast Roosters in the grand final at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday.

Renowned for their defensive prowess, the Roosters team only conceded a total of 22 points during their eight regular season games. This record made the Eels 26 point grand final tally even more impressive.

When the two teams last met in week one of the finals, the Roosters powered out to an 18 nil lead inside the first twenty minutes. The Eels flipped that start on its head when they scored the first 18 points of the grand final.

The opening try of the decider came after just three minutes when the Eels launched a raid inside the Roosters quarter. With the backs lined deep and to the left, Temieke Withers feigned to pass to her supports then cut through the defence to score behind the posts.

Bailey Ma-Chong added the extras and the Eels had an early six point lead.

Ten minutes later, the Eels were in a similar attacking position after terrific runs by Cody Tuimaseve, Mere Sivo, and Isabella Bell. Once more the ball went left to Temieke Withers, but this time she ripped a cut out pass to Georgia Wansey who fought through the last ditch tackle to score out wide.

The superb angled conversion by Bailey Ma-Chong took the Eels out to a twelve point lead. Momentum was theirs and confidence was growing.

Soon after, a Roosters indiscretion close to the posts offered the opportunity for an easy two points, and Bailey Ma-Chong duly guided the ball between the sticks to extend the Eels lead beyond two converted tries.

Just before half time the Eels went very close from a last tackle kick to the wing. A Roosters error then gave the Eels one last set before the break. After again testing the middle, the Eels hit their right edge. 

This time the damage was done when Kaizen Morgan-Pritchard found a sensational offload for Sharon Latapu who immediately fired a “Harbour Bridge” cut out to Freedom Crichton Ropati. The Eels try scoring winger provided the finish with an in-and-away to dot the ball down in the corner.

The Roosters needed to strike first after the break and that’s exactly what they did.

In an energetic start they drove play to the red zone before crashing over just to the right of the posts.

The tri-colours continued to apply the pressure and soon scored their second try of the half in the left corner. With almost twenty minutes left to play, the margin was down to eight points and it was game on.

All of the momentum was now with the Roosters as the Eels struggled to get out of their own half. 

The Roosters were once more threatening the Eels line, when a terrific catch under pressure from fullback Irae Savea stemmed the tide. It was followed by strong carries by Sienna Bonello, Georgia Wansey and finally by Freedom Crichton Ropati who was awarded a penalty when the ball was illegally stripped from her.

It was the best attacking opportunity the Eels had received in the second half and they didn’t waste it.

After working play towards the posts, Bailey Ma-Chong turned Isabella Bell back on an angled run behind the ruck, and the Eels prop refused to be tackled as she surged through defenders to ground the ball beside the right upright.

Bailey Ma-Chong added the extras, and just a few minutes later she posted another two points when the Roosters were penalised in front of their posts.

With less than ten minutes on the clock, the Eels looked to have the title secured, but the Roosters were determined to stay in the contest. They launched wave after wave of attack at the Eels line but the Eels held strong.

Fittingly, the siren sounded as the Eels defence held up a Roosters player over the line. In consecutive weeks they had overcome the top two placed teams in the competition. It was a thoroughly deserved premiership win. 

The joy of winning the title was made sweeter during the presentation ceremony when Irae Savea was awarded player of the match.

Congratulations to coach Ryan Walker, his staff and the entire playing squad for the grand final victory and an outstanding 2025 season.

Eels 26 (Tries: Temieke Withers, Georgia Wansey, Freedom Crichton Ropati, Isabella Bell; Goals: Bailey Ma-Chong 5) defeated Central Coast Roosters 10.

Tarsha Gale Cup

It was another trophy for the Eels when the Tarsha Gale team surged from sixteen points down to claim victory over the Roosters Indigenous Academy in a tense grand final at Leichhardt Oval.

Like their Lisa Fiaola Cup colleagues, this was a history making win for the Eels Tarsha Gale Cup team as it marked both the first grand final appearance as well as the first premiership for the Club in this grade.

Early running was with the Roosters, scoring three tries in short order against a possession starved Eels team that was struggling to stay in the contest. Barely able to get out of their own half, and down 16 nil, the Eels chances were looking grim when their captain Ryvrr-Lee Alo left the field following a head knock.

However, this adversity seemed to galvanise the team as from this point their intensity and physicality lifted.

A strong Eels defensive set was rewarded with a shonky last tackle kick from the Roosters that the Eels claimed inside the opposition half. The Eels then received a penalty and Tess McWilliams made the Roosters pay with a powerful charge through the defence to score next to the posts.

Just three minutes later, the game was in repeat mode as the Eels defence forced another Roosters error followed by a penalty. Enter Tess McWilliams once again.

This time the Eels prop had 25 metres to traverse, a few more tackles to break, and by the time she reached the last five metres of her run she was carrying Roosters players on her back as she crashed over the line for her second try.

With the margin down to four points, momentum was with the Eels when half time was called.

The Roosters enjoyed the territorial advantage in the early exchanges of the second half, but as the minutes ticked away, the Eels began to win the physical contest. The breakthrough came after fifteen minutes when the Roosters were penalised in their own half for a high shot. 

Runs from Alleya Scrivens, Matoisha Kalepo and Tess McWilliams took play towards the posts before Rory Muller darted out of dummy half and flicked the ball inside to Taylah Falaniko who drove low and hard at the line for the try. The conversion from Alleya Scrivens took the Eels to the lead for the first time in the game.

With the match hitting the final ten minutes, tension lifted. An error could determine the result.

Ultimately it was the Roosters who faltered, with lost possession giving the Eels the scrum feed in prime territory.

Khyliah Gray drifted right from the scrum and sent Armani-Lea Auvae back to the posts. Fontayne Tufuga and Lilieta Pouli combined on the next play before Aaliyah Soufan looked to be heading left but instead took on the defence herself.

Despite heavy contact the Eels half powered over the line for the try, and when Alleya Scrivens added the extras the Eels had an eight point lead with only three minutes left on the clock.

A desperate Roosters side threw everything at the Eels as they searched for a much needed try but the Eels were resolute in defence.

After the Eels finally secured the ball, most spectators expected them to wind down the clock with a few hit ups. However, Fontayne Tufuga had other ideas as she stepped and weaved and then sprinted eighty-five metres to the line to put the exclamation mark on the storybook finish.

The Eels premiership title capped the team’s impressive charge through the finals. This team found their identity in the back end of the season and it was there for all to see as they fought their way from the bottom half of the eight and sudden death matches to become the Tarsha Gale Cup champions.

To put the icing on the cake, Ryvrr-Lee Alo was awarded the player of the series, and Tess McWilliams won the player of the match.

In a historic day for the club, this victory meant that the Eels had completed the Lisa Fiaola/Tarsha Gale Cup double. Congratulations to the entire squad, and to the coach Char Henry and her staff. 

Eels 28 (Tries:  Tess McWilliams 2, Taylah Falaniko, Aaliyah Soufan, Fontayne Tufuga; Goals: Alleya Scrivens 4) defeated Roosters Indigenous Academy 16.

SG Ball Cup

In a heartbreaking finish, the Eels fell to the Sydney Roosters in extra time in a gripping grand final of the SG Ball Cup at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday.

The Eels had finished the regular season as deserved minor premiers, going through the nine rounds undefeated.

However, the Roosters had been the Eels nemesis, drawing with the Eels in round two, then defeating them in the first week of the finals.

Once more they found something in reserve to defeat Parra in the grand final, scoring two late tries to send the match into extra time, then kicking a field goal and adding a converted try to secure victory.

For much of this match the Eels were in control. They were first on the board after just five minutes when Chris Petrus ran a great line to punch through the Roosters goal line defence and planted the ball to the left of the posts.

In the set after points the Eels received a penalty for a high shot. On the last tackle, the kick from Lincoln Fletcher took a deflection and the Eels half regathered and sprinted away for a try between the posts. 

Mid way through the half, the Roosters struck back with a converted try of their own. However, the Eels lifted their intensity and scored in their next possession.

This time it was Christopher Petrus who chased the last tackle kick and leapt over the fullback to claim the ball and the try.

It was now tit for tat as the Roosters then scored off a kick of their own when a last tackle grubber took a deflection off the Eels defenders and the Roosters chaser was there to collect the spoils.

Half time was close but the Roosters were on a roll. Parra did well to navigate the defensive challenges over the final minutes before the break, and they took a 16-12 lead to the sheds.

When play resumed, the Roosters took up residence in the Eels half. They were rewarded for their territorial advantage when they scored from a bomb after ten minutes. The conversion took them to a two point lead.

Stung into action, it wasn’t long before the Eels replied. From a scrum feed in the Roosters quarter, the Eels had bodies in motion on both sides of the field, but it was a beautifully worked sweeping play from Cameron Bamblett on the left that found Aidan Kebourian for the diving finish in the corner.

The Eels were back in the lead, but the margin of two points was never going to be enough to secure the win in what had already been an epic grand final.

With eight minutes remaining, it appeared that the match finally  belonged to the Eels. The Roosters fullback had dropped an Eels last tackle kick and the scrum feed would give the Eels a full set inside the red zone. 

After driving play towards the posts, some second phase play and quick hands from the Eels saw the ball go right to Dom Farrugia who fought through the cover defence to plant the ball in the corner. Lincoln Fletcher then iced the sideline conversion to give the Eels an eight point lead.

With time ticking away, the sliding doors moment came when Dom Farrugia got his hands to a Roosters pass to shut down a certain try. If he made the near impossible catch it could have been a long range try. Instead it was a Roosters scrum feed and a try on the back of it. 

With almost no time on the clock, the Roosters declined the conversion and opted to get one last possession from the kick off.

A series of penalties to the Roosters followed, including the sin binning of Lincoln Fletcher for slowing the play up. The Roosters quickly took advantage of the extra man and scored near the right corner as the siren sounded.

The match was now in extra time and the Eels would have to play it out with only twelve players. Unfortunately, it was too big an ask in a grand final and the Roosters navigated this period perfectly, firstly adding a field goal and then a converted try to put the game beyond reach.

It was a tough ending for the Eels but it was nonetheless a season they should be proud of. The grand final was high quality and the Roosters resilience ultimately won the day. Eels five-eighth Lorenzo Talataina was a stand out performer for the Eels throughout the year and deservedly received the award for player of the series.

Congratulations to the entire squad, coach Mitch Lewis and his staff for giving Eels supporters plenty to cheer about during 2025.

Roosters 33 defeated Eels 26 (Tries: Christopher Petrus 2, Lincoln Fletcher, Aidan Kebourian, Dom Farrugia; Goals: Lincoln Fletcher 3).