The Central Crows defeated the Northern Marlins in the final of the under-16 Junior State Championships to lift the newly-named Cyril Connell Shield.
The Crows went undefeated during the four days to win the competition for the first time since it began in 2017.
In the final, they held on to their two-point lead as the Marlins, who they had beaten the day before in pool play, made a late run.
Central’s five-eighth Keanu Wright-Dunrobin was awarded the Peter Gray Award for Player of the Tournament, while Northern halfback Ragarive Wavik finished the weekend as the top point scorer.
A Queensland City v Country fixture will now take place in September, featuring the best players from the championships, with a Queensland under-16 merit side being named after the game.
Central Crows 22 (Tyler Conroy, Shaun Packer, Brayden Paix, Cyron Tull tries; Brayden Paix 3 goals) def. Northern Marlins 20 (Xavier Chatfield-Mooka 2, Luke Jack, D’Jazirhae Pua’avase tries; Ragarive Wavik 2 goals).
Peter Gray Award for Player of the Tournament: Keanu Wright-Dunrobin (Central Crows)
18TH MAN 