Tweed pack a mighty punch
BURLEIGH coach Jimmy Lenihan has declared Tweed have the Intrust Super Cup’s best forward pack right now as a high-quality local derby looms.
The Seagulls are one of four undefeated teams after two rounds and are coming off an excellent 24-16 win over Townsville.
Burleigh meanwhile bounced back from a first-up loss to thrash Ipswich 42-8 at their last start.
“They are flying at the moment, Tweed. It will be a very, very tough, hard game,” Lenihan said of the 2pm kickoff tomorrow at Pizzey Park.
“They have probably got the best forward pack on the market at the moment.
“They are going well with (John) Palavi, Keegan Hipgrave, Leilani Latu and Kalani Going so they are certainly a big, mobile, aggressive pack.”
Lenihan may be underselling his own big men though, with a starting pack to match any rival in the form of Luke Page, Pat Politoni, Jack Buchanan, Hayden Schwass, Jacob Hind and Sam Coster.
The Bears mentor said his side were still refining their game; it’s a theme that has helped him reach his 10th year as an ISC coach, with a contract already in place for 2020 too.
“The game is constantly evolving and the coaches are always smarter and cleverer so if you’re not changing what you are doing all of the
time, you become predictable and people understand what you are doing,” Lenihan said.
Titans 18th man Mitch Rein is at this stage expected to line up for Tweed, who will be missing the promoted Ryley Jacks.
Utility Jack Cook has been named to play at halfback, with Luke Jurd on the bench as another playmaking option.
For Seagulls coach Ben Woolf, it’s an exciting prospect to have a team that appears capable of contending for the play-offs.
Across the past five years in charge at the Titans under-20s and then Tweed, Woolf has mainly led squads more in a development phase.
“It’s only Round 2 obviously but they are showing good signs early,” he said.
“A lot of those guys like Kalani Going, Kirk Murphy, Jack Cook and Shane Gillham, they have had 12 months’ experience and now they are going better so that’s the pleasing thing: As opposed to having recruited a new side, those guys have shown improvement.”