Cougars and Tigers keep title winning streaks alive

USQ men reign supreme, Tigers women too strong

‘‘ THE DEFENCE PROVIDED BY THE GIRLS WAS ABSOLUTELY SUPERB. THE BACK FIVE WERE BASICALLY INVINCIBLE.

TOOWOOMBA TIGERS COACH NEVILLE JERICHO

AUSSIE RULES: A pair of familiar teams have take home the AFL Darling Downs’ top prizes, with the USQ men and Toowoomba women continuing their premiership streaks.

USQ has claimed their third successive flag in style with a hard-fought 11.9 (75) to 7.9 (51) defeat of Goondiwindi.

Determined to come out firing after finding themselves on the back-foot in their last meeting with the Hawks, USQ started fiercely, kicking the only two goals of the opening term to take a 12-point advantage.

That lead was cut to four at half-time, and after putting themselves ahead by 10 with a quarter to play, the Cougars were able to come away in the final minutes of the match to win their third straight flag.

“We got on the front foot from the word go. We didn’t capitalise as much as we should have but we weren’t chasing, which makes a big difference in a final,” coach Tony Bullen said.

“They kicked a few quick ones in the third quarter, but as soon as they got up we hit straight back.

‘They surprised me a bit with how much run they had in their legs, and it was the way a grand final should be.

“I asked them at three-quarter time to not leave anything on the ground. They had worked hard all year to put themselves in that position, and it wasn’t until the last six or seven minutes that we got the break on them.”

Josh White took home the Ellen McConochie Medal for best on ground.

“It’s a great reward for Josh,” he said.

“He’s worked bloody hard to come back to us this year and is really well liked in the club.

“He is one of our good young fellas in the midfield.”

It was heartbreak for the Hawks, suffering their third grand final defeat in the space of four years.

“We had a build-up of prep on Saturday. We had a team get-together an hour before the game and then walked to the ground.

“It was a fantastic day in its entirety. Everything clicked on the day, and I’d put it down as one of the highlights of my football involvement.”

Zee Dyer, playing in her first game since June 9, was named as the Jeff Neumann Medal winner, and Jericho praised her resolve.

“She was probably one of many contenders but came out on top,” he said.

“She is just a super solid defensive player and didn’t let anything through. Zee went to the extra length to top it off.

“She lost her nephew during the week and said she was playing for him.”

Photos: Nev Madsen THREE-PEAT: The USQ Cougars celebrate their 75-51 AFL Darling Downs men’s victory over the Goondiwindi Hawks at Rockville Oval on Saturday.

Toowoomba Tigers players embrace after the full-time siren sounds during their AFL Darling Downs women’s grand final. It marks the Tigers fourth flag in a row for the most successful team in women’s history.

A group of USQ Cougars players come together as the final siren goes in their grand final.

AFL Darling Downs women’s best and fairest Brigette Fee applies pressure to USQ Cougars player Nyengela Mwajuma during their grand final encounter at Rockville Oval.

Adam Scoble (left) and Mach Mach of the Cougars jostle it out to secure the hitout for their teams.