The Gold Coast Airport Tweed Seagulls ended their 2023 BMD Premiership season in defeat by going down to the Norths Devils 30-10 at Bishop Park, Brisbane.
Ellie Williamson impressed off the bench enough to start at lock in this one and made her presence felt early. She sold a dummy and skipped through the line to put Tweed hot on the attack. However, it was Norths who opened the scoring following a right shift out of yardage on the return set. As Shenae Ciesolka got her arms free in the tackle, Hayley Maddick raced up in support and under the posts in the 3rd minute.
The Devils right edge again proved fruitful in the 10th minute. An earlier shift put them in a position to attack. A forced dropout applied more pressure and the Seagulls line eventually cracked for Caitlyn Costello to score and push the lead out to 10-0.
Both sides provided the other with chances to cash in on errors and penalties before Tweed turned a Norths dropped ball into points. With Jessika Elliston crashing the ball through the middle to scatter the defence and create a short-side opportunity, Paige Parker pounced. Taking the line on and engaging the A and B defenders, Parker tipped a short ball to Zara Canfield who found Chantelle Holloway-Samuels out wide.
Tweeds kicking game twice went close to adding to the scoreboard. Parker’s 5th tackle bomb into the in-goal ended with Williamson just losing control as she went to ground the ball. Out of yardage soon after, Jetaya Faifua put in a deft chip for Bridget Hoy to fly onto. Only a desperate Maddick tackle stopped Tweed from going level. Frustratingly for the visitors shortly after going close to levelling the scoreboard before halftime, they conceded twice before the siren. Ali Brigginshaw had her hands all over the first to put Ciesiolka for her second from a mid-field scrum ten metres from the line. In the kickoff set, another shift down the right edge ended with Norths surging up the field and Ciesiolka all of a sudden had three to her name.
A barnstorming Fiona Jahnke carry out of the sheds put Tweed under defensive pressure but the line withstood the early raid. A similar Belinda Gwasamun carry did the same as Tweed were once again forced to turn, chase and defend their line.
They’re without a win on the BMD Premiership ladder but like every week, there were little wins throughout the 70 minutes for the Seagulls. Their ability to hold out a third attacking set after halftime is one of those wins. They scrambled well to end a Gwasamun linebreak as a fourth set beckoned, too.
Having defended for the best part of 11 minutes after the break, the Seagulls couldn’t keep Jada Ferguson from scooting over from dummy half.
Tweed needed something to go their way down 26-4. As admirable as the defensive effort was, they needed points to entertain the idea of a comeback.
For a moment, it looked as though we could be in for a fast finish.
A strip penalty allowed Parker to kick the Seagulls up the field. A Faith Tutauha linebreak moved them up and into the opposition’s 20-metre line. From there, Faifua scored a beauty.
Bang, bang, bang off the right foot, the Seagulls halfback gave her side a sniff with 15 minutes to play.
The confidence and opportunity to spend some time with the ball did Tweed a world of good. They looked like a different team getting up the field in yardage. However, a seven-tackle set proved too much for the defence when Norths returned serve. Having hovered around the ball through the middle all afternoon, Maddick latched onto the end of a right shift, sold a dummy and regained Norths’ 20-point lead.
The final 30-10 scoreline doesn’t do Tweed justice in the end. When in possession, Parker, Faifua and the Seagulls attack threatened. The defence performed better than the 30 points conceded suggest, too. But a horror three minutes before halftime made things incredibly difficult in the second half and the Devils lead proved too big to reel in.
Key Takeaways
The results didn’t come for the Seagulls this season but they pieced together enough positive moments to build on moving forward. Jetaya Faifua and Paige Parker proved to be a dangerous combination in the halves. Faifua’s ballplaying is as dangerous as her feet while Parker possesses one of the best kicking games in the competition.
Ellie Williamson is another to get excited about. The lock position is becoming part of the spine more and more every year and Tweed look their best with Williamson ballplaying in the middle. She’s quick and digs into the line. Despite being smaller than most other middle forward out there, she stands well in contact and dominates tacklers above the ball.
With some consistency at hooker and Jamie Chapman providing what she does from fullback, the Seagulls are set up well for 2024 if they can keep the band together.
In the middle, Jessika Elliston is one of the strongest ball carriers in the competition. Zara Canfield can play in the middle and on the edge. Jemma Bemrose is a player with potential and one to watch in the future, too.
While the win/loss columns don’t paint a pretty picture of the season, there are plenty of positives to take away from the seven games.
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