Northern talents earn statewide honours after championships

Five Northern players made Queensland schoolboys squads when the state championships came to an end on Tuesday afternoon.

Captain of the 16-18 team Kaiden Lahrs was the sole senior selected, while talented halves pairing Lincoln Baker and Riley Carbone, who were also captain and vice-captain of the 14-15 team, made the Queensland Maroons’ 14-15 side.

Electric fullback Gausa Dau and Ignatius Park College centre Kye Connell were selected for the Queensland Whites’ 14-15 team.

Lahrs will join a distinguished list of players to pull on the Queensland Schoolboys jumper when the side contests the national titles in Redcliffe in July.

The four younger Northern players will now prepare for the national titles in Port Macquarie in September.

Northern’s 16-18 years schoolboy rugby league campaign came to an end with an emphatic 38-0 beat down of Peninsula on Tuesday morning. Hooker Braith Dowson was a standout, while Lahrs’ try-scoring double put him into equal fifth in the championship with three fourpointers.

Northern started the weekend with a 42-10 win over Darling Downs but failed to fire on day two and was bundled out of contention by eventual runner-up Capricornia.

A loss to Met West on Sunday gave the Northern boys an easier assignment against the winless Peninsula side to close out the tournament.

In the younger division, Northern beat Capricornia 22-12 on Tuesday to finish the championship with a win.

Sharing parallels with its elder counterpart, a Saturday defeat to eventual champion South Coast and then a close loss to Met West meant the side missed a top-three placing with a respectable 2-2 record.

Versatile back Bradley Pilchowski was named Northern’s player of the match on Tuesday.