Pride forward top Colt
Talented youngster named player of year
NORTHERN Pride rising star Tom McGrath has capped off a stunning breakout season by claiming the Hastings Deering Colts Player of the Year award.
The workhorse forward was recognised as the best and fairest player in the statewide under-20s competition at Friday night’s QRL Awards Dinner in Brisbane.
McGrath started the 2019 season with the Pride U20s, playing the first 10 games in the back row before being shifted to lock for the side’s Round 12 clash against Easts Tigers. The 20year-old (right) was a driving force behind the club’s sevengame winning streak to start the season, troubling the opposition with his strong carries and physicality in defence.
He went on to play five games in the No.13 jersey and, like South Sydney’s Cameron Murray and Manly’s Jake Trbojevic at the top level, showcased all the things you want in a modern lock-forward – toughness, a big engine and an ability to hold up the middle for 80 minutes.
On the back of his powerhouse performances, McGrath was elevated to the Queensland Cup squad as a development player mid-season.
He was selected to make his Queensland Cup debut for the Northern Pride in their Round 18 Country Week clash against the Ipswich Jets at Ken Brown Oval on Thursday Island. McGrath was impressive in his first outing, making 38 tackles in an 80-minute performance on the right edge.
He backed it up the following week against Souths Logan, with 36 tackles, 98 running metres and six tackle breaks. However, he wouldn’t play again in 2019 after sustaining a hamstring injury the following week at training.
The QRL award caps off a sensational rookie season for McGrath, who was earlier this month named the Northern Pride U20 Player of the Year at the club’s end-of-season presentation night. The club have re-signed him for next season.
Former Brothers Cairns premiership-winning coach Eric Smith took home the Intrust Super Cup Coach of the Year award.
In his debut season as a Queensland Cup head coach, Smith led the Sunshine Coast Falcons to 21 wins from 23 games in the regular season, before a 24-6 loss to Burleigh Bears in the preliminary final.