CHAMPIONSHIP heavyweights London Broncos and Oldham RLFC will lock horns this Sunday in the capital with the talent and strength of the Queensland Cup on full show.
In round two of the new season the Roughyeds travel south to take on the Broncos in Wimbledon. It will be an interesting tie between two of the strongest and most well-resourced clubs in the division, and streamed live on YouTube.
It will also help showcase just how the Q Cup has become an instrumental recruitment pool and development area in recent years for clubs in the UK. Both London and Oldham each boast a stream of talent that cut its teeth in the sunshine state.
The Broncos are coached by Jason Demetriou, a former coach of the Northern Pride. In 2014 and 2015 the Pride won minor premierships, as well as the 2014 grand final and the inaugural NRL State Championship game, with Demetriou at the helm.
London also have seven players who have featured in the Q Cup in recent seasons. Papua New Guineans Morea Morea, Roberth Mathias, Alex Max, Finley Glare, Epel Kapinias and Gairo Voro all spent time with the PNG Hunters, while forward Jeremiah Simbiken was on the books for both Redcliffe and the Norths Devils.
It is a similar story with their opponents, Oldham.
The Roughyeds have two Englishmen who have had spells in Queensland – Riley Dean spending time with the Mackay Cutters and Tom Nisbett having a stint with the Townsville Blackhawks.
Then there is Oldham’s Aussie contingent – Matt Geyer and Ewan Moore both joined the club at the end of last year from the Burleigh Bears, who took out last year’s Queensland Cup, while forward Jaron Purcell spent the past three campaigns with Redcliffe.
Oldham’s first-team coach Alan Kilshaw knows the Queensland Cup well, having spent several seasons down under as an assistant coach with the Mackay Cutters.
With the recent changes in eligibility for the British game, in terms of overseas signings, as well as the move to 10 quota players in Super League, players from Queensland have never been in more demand in the northern hemisphere.
There is also no quota on foreign players in the UK second tier, meaning clubs like London and Oldham can take their pick from the sunshine state.
“It’s two-fold, with the relaxing of the eligibility criteria and the increase of the teams in Super League and in the NRL, the player pool is shortening,” Kilshaw told rugbyleaguehub.com Long Reads.
“You won’t get as many players coming over to England from the NRL. And the next best competition is the Queensland Cup, especially the top end of that competition.
“We’ve recruited two from Burleigh, who won the competition and also Jaron Purcell from Redcliffe. Three really exciting products for us.
“If you have a look at some of the recruitment in Super League this season – (Asher) O’Donnell (has) gone to Huddersfield Giants, he’s a really good back-rower, he played at Easts Tigers last year. He was in the Melbourne Storm system, he’s a very good pick-up for the Giants. Josh Smith has gone to Warrington – again, a standout player in the Q Cup last season.
“Tom Nisbett went out to Townsville and has come back a much better player and so did Riley Dean. For the English players who go over, they come back better players, just because of the competition and lack of reserve grade over here, that seems to be the way to go for some of them.
“Those two have come back better for the experience, life experiences living on their own and having to fend for themselves. That’s the flip for the Australian guys coming over here – different culture, different environment, different facilities, different type of footy as well.
“That’s the key reasons why it is a good breeding ground for talent.”
As any Australian will confirm, Queensland is rugby league-mad. The Brisbane Broncos attract the biggest attendances in the NRL, but the Cowboys, Titans and Dolphins also have strong fanbases.
And with the pure geographic size of the state, the Q Cup represents areas where the NRL does not like Toowoomba, Cairns, Moreton Bay, Mackay, Ipswich and Rockhampton. It has a rich history and tradition, along with deep roots in the community.
It’s also not just Championship sides but Super League clubs who are increasingly looking at the Queensland Cup for recruitment. Leeds have signed Jeremiah Matautia from Mackay, while St Helens picked up Tristan Sailor from Souths Logan and Leigh acquired Jacob Alick-Wiencke from the Seagulls.
York have a number of ex-Q Cup charges, from Jesse Dee to Jack Martin, Ryan Jackson and Scott Galeano. Even their coach Mark Applegarth had three seasons as a player with the Central Queensland Comets, from 2010 to 2012.
With 15 clubs in the Queensland Cup, with one in PNG and one in NSW, it has long had strong link with both the NRL and with Super League. Former Leeds coach Rohan Smith is in charge of the Devils, while ex-Hull KR halfback Terry Campese coaches Townsville.
“It’s a really strong competition, you get a lot of NRL players who aren’t in that first NRL 17 playing in it last season,” Kilshaw explained.
“Ezra Mam played a couple of games in the Queensland Cup, other players play it coming back from fitness… Nelson Asofoa-Solomona played a few games.
“It is a good competition, they train three or four times a week and it’s very professional. A lot of the boys in the Q Cup want to come over and put themselves in the shop window for the Championship and then Super League as well.”
Kilshaw was part of Mackay’s staff during the 2013, 2014 and 2015 campaigns. In 2013 a Cutters side including Bureta Faraimo, Michael Morgan and Jason Taumaolo defeated an Easts Tigers team that featured Junior Sa’u, Mahe Fonua, Cody Walker and Mitch Garbutt in the grand final.
“My experience in the Queensland Cup was very positive,” he remembers.
“We won the competition, I was fortunate to coach some players like Jason Taumalolo, Michael Morgan, who were all with our feeder club the North Queensland Cowboys.
“The Cutters are a little bit different, they’re not one of the top Brisbane clubs like Redcliffe and Easts who have big leagues clubs behind them and big backing.
“Mackay is a bit more remote, so the majority of the away games we would be flying to Brisbane most weeks.”
Eyes will be on the capital this Sunday. But the role Queensland is playing in helping develop and refine talent, both players and coaches, cannot be ignored.