Seagulls take flight in top grade

TWEED Seagulls will return to first grade rugby league this season, 20 years after their last premiership.

The Seagulls will join the 14-team Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League (NRRRL) first grade competition this season.

Club president Brian Cox said the team is made up of younger players from the Seagulls and South Tweed junior ranks.

It last played top grade rugby league when it won a premiership in the first year of the NRRRL competition in 2005.

Cox expects the team to be competitive after winning the reserve grade premiership undefeated last year.

He said they were close to having enough first grade standard players to field a side before deciding to wait one more year.

“NSW Rugby League basically wanted us to go that way because so many other clubs have struggled first year back,” Cox said.

“It can be hard to get a new team together and we want to rebuild the club while bringing the juniors through.

“A lot of the South Tweed juniors have nowhere to go, that was the idea of putting this club back together.

“They wanted to play with their mates again because a lot of them went to school together.”

Winger Ezekiel Hart was the top try-scorer in reserve grade last year, having crossed the line 25 times, while centre Micah Leaupepe Perkins was the equal highest point scorer in the competition with 226 points.

Former NRL player Craig Field will coach again after taking the reins last year with his son Josh in the team at the five-eighth.

Troy McCarthy will coach reserve grade while Rob Harper (under-18s) and Judy McCarthy (league tag) are on board.

The Seagulls will look to add a women’s tackle side after it won the 2024 grand final in the tag competition.

“We’ll aim for the top six and anything from there is a bonus once we hit finals,” Cox said.

“That’s pretty much what we said last year and we ended up winning both grades.”

The season starts with a home game for all four grades against Mullumbimby on the April 5–6 weekend at the Piggabeen Sports Complex.