As of 2022, both the Junior and Senior State Championship tournaments in Coffs Harbour will welcome division one teams only, with a separate division two development tournament to be held in Sydney.
Following months of revision, Australian Oztag (AO) have come to the conclusion that the NSW State Championships should return to a prestigious event between the best of the best.
As division two serves a purpose to develop associations and its players, AO General Manager, Bill Harrigan announces the inaugural NSW Club Challenge for all division two teams.
“Division two is a great concept, but its growth has overshadowed the division one entries. We need to restore the State Cup to being an elite competition featuring the best of the best,” Mr. Harrigan said.
“To ensure we don’t just disregard the division two teams, as it is a beneficial development platform, we have created the NSW Club Challenge which will feature the div two teams that would have previously competed in Coffs Harbour,” he said.
The 2022 NSW Junior State Championships which is set to be held from Thursday 10 to Sunday 13 February, 2022, will now welcome division one teams only to Coffs Harbour.
The new tournament format allows all ages, from Under 9s through to Under 17s, to compete on the same weekend in Coffs Harbour – meaning there will no longer be an Under 9s-11s tournament held at Bass Hill, Sydney.
With four days of competition, the Under 9s – 12s will play on Thursday and Friday, followed by the Under 13s – 17s who will compete on Saturday and Sunday.
Just over a month later, the NSW Senior State Championships will take place in Coffs Harbour, from Friday 18 to Sunday 20 March, 2022, strictly division one teams also.
All Division Two teams will be welcomed to the NSW Club Challenge, kicking off on Thursday 24 to Sunday 27 February, 2022 at The Kingsway Playing Fields, St Marys in Sydney.
Held over four days, the tournament will see Junior teams (9’s-17’s) play on Thursday and Friday, and Seniors on Saturday and Sunday.
The 2021 NSW Senior State Championships has come to a successful conclusion after three days of high-quality Oztag on the Coffs Coast.
The annual tournament kicked off on Friday 14 May and welcomed a tremendous 219 teams to Coffs Harbour – well-prepared and determined to take out the Championship.
Segregated between two venues, C.ex Stadium and Geoff King Oval, over 3,500 players took to the field to lay their months of training on the line, unveiling a new level of brilliance.
The quality of Oztag heightens every year; evident in how close the qualifying games were. Spectators sat on the edge of their seat as many games had a one-point difference or came down to an exhilarating extra time drop off in Finals.
The standard is credit to the exhibition of speed and skill, and the game’s development as young players continue to filter through the system – their transition from Juniors, to Under 20s and then Opens over the years ensures the game’s flair continues to prosper.
Below are the 2021 NSW Senior State Cup Grand Final results. Congratulations to all teams on an exceptional display of talent, particularly the crowned Champions.
Women’s 20’s
Div 1 – Central Coast defeated Souths 5-2
Div 2 – Baulkham Hills defeated Port Macquarie 2-1
Women’s Opens
Div 1 – Penrith defeated Cronulla 3-2
Div 2 – Sydney City defeated Fairfield 2-1
Women’s 30’s
Ryde defeated ACT 2-0
Women’s 40’s
ACT defeated Cronulla 2-2
Mixed 20’s
Div 1 – Central Coast defeated Souths 8-3
Div 2 – Razorbacks defeated Penrith 7-2
Mixed Opens
Div 1 – Souths defeated St George 3-2
Div 2 – Sydney City defeated Norwest 4-2
Mixed Seniors
Penrith defeated Souths 4-3
Men’s 20s
Div 1 – Souths defeated Parramatta 4-3
Div 2 – Tamworth defeated Ryde 5-3
Men’s Opens
Div 1 – Homebush defeated Central Coast 2-1
Div 2 – Tamworth defeated Inner West 4-2
Men’s 30s
Div 1 – Penrith defeated Central Coast 5-2
Div 2 – Central Coast defeated Tamworth 3-2
Men’s 40s
Central Coast defeated Inner West 6-1
Men’s 45s
Wollongong defeated Central Coast 3-0
Men’s 50s
Cronulla defeated Central Coast 4-3
Men’s 55s
Cronulla defeated Kiama 3-1
Men’s 60s
Cronulla defeated Souths 1-0
For all tournament fixtures, results and final standings, visit the Sportfix app or click here.
Central Coast Oztag were once again crowned 2021 Senior State Cup Club Champions after finishing the tournament on a total of 73 points. Cronulla came in second on 54 and Souths closely trailed in third on 53.
Over the course of the weekend, players from each division were nominated for Senior City v Country teams to play on Saturday 9 October, 2021 in a three-game series.
The final teams will be announced in the coming weeks, once the selection process is complete.
Australian Oztag were very pleased with the running of the NSW Senior State Cup tournament and the persistence from all to comply with the protocols in place.
Senior City v Country will return in 2021, accompanied by a new format that will see the tournament played strictly between two regions – City and Country.
Selected from the 2021 NSW Senior State Cup in Coffs Harbour, set to kick off Friday 14 May, it is an opportunity for players to combine with their region’s best and play off in a high-calibre tournament.
A City and Country team will be selected in each division to play a three-game series on Saturday 9 October, 2021 on the NSW South Coast at Sid Parish Park, Figtree.
City teams will be a represented by associations in the Sydney basin from Hornsby in the North, to Penrith in the West, Campbelltown in the South and over to the East Coastline.
Any associations outside this border will represent Country.
Selection Process
The coach from the highest placed team will be offered the coaching role. The coach will then have the option to appoint an assistant coach & manager, either from their own team or another team within the region.
There can only be a maximum of three staff per team.
Players will be selected based on a scaling system of where their team placed at the conclusion of the tournament.
Coaches are required to submit a rating form, ranking the performance of their players at the tournament. Coaches should only rank players that they believe are capable of playing at the next level.
Coaches will be given the rating forms and will have the opportunity to submit their selected team to Australian Oztag (AO).
AO selectors will also nominate a team of which will be reviewed in conjunction with the submitted rating forms. These selectors will then agree on the final teams.
The Office of Sport Shoosh for Kids 2021 Winter campaign is underway with the awareness month kicking off on May 1, 2021.
The collaborative effort between NSW Oztag and the Office of Sport works to promote positive behaviour to all Junior Sport members, clubs and associations, to keep kids returning to sport.
Australian Oztag (AO) and NSW Oztag take a strong stance on poor sideline behaviour at both grassroot and representative levels, as outlined in Oztag’s Code of Conduct policies.
With the campaign message relevant at all sporting levels, AO encourage all Junior Oztag associations to sign-up for the 2021 Shoosh for Kids Winter campaign and promote positive behaviour at your local competitions.
To help foster a fun sporting environment for all, register your club HERE and access the Oztag-tailored resources to use across your social channels, website, or as posters at your venues.
NSW Oztag Development Officer, Luke Manahan strongly believes in the role Junior clubs play in ensuring participation rates prosper through positive experience and recommends that all Junior Oztag affiliates sign-up for the 2021 campaign.
“With our Junior sector growing at such a fast rate, we want to foster a safe and enjoyable environment to keep these kids coming back season after season,” Manahan said.
“Get your community involved by handing out flyers, using the hashtag #shooshforkids on your socials, or take photos of your club members – players, spectators, referees and staff – ‘shooshing for kids’ and share them,” he said.
The launch of the Shoosh for Kids awareness month in May allows all clubs the chance to choose how they will promote the campaign this winter.
Clubs may hold a Shoosh for Kids awareness weekend, weekly activities and/or promote the campaign message throughout the entire month of May via their socials.
There is only one week until awareness month commences, so take a stand and REGISTER NOW!
See the introduction video below for more information or visit Office of Sport to find out more about the 2021 Winter campaign.
The Under 11’s East Hills Boys have made history, winning the Club’s first ever Division One Grand Final at the NSW Junior State Cup at Bass Hill in February.
The small association has added their first gold medal to the cabinet after the Under 11 Boys defeated reigning champions, Cronulla 4-3 in a thrilling Grand Final drop-off.
East Hills Director, Karen Smith has shared how special it was for the Under 11’s Boys come away with the Grand Final win.
“It was absolutely amazing, particularly because they came 4th in their Pool and most people would have written them off,” Smith said.
“People are still talking about it – parents, other teams and even senior teams,” she said.
The East Hills boys came off the back of a confidence-building Quarter Final win against the competitive Central Coast (5-3), before defeating hot contenders, Parramatta in a tight Semi Final (3-2).
Come the Grand Final, the boys met the two-year reigning champions, Cronulla, who beat them quite convincingly in a round game on Day 1.
The game was a spectacle for all in attendance – the back-and-forth score had everyone holding their breath and checking their watches.
With one minute on the clock, the East Hills boys shifted the ball to get over the line, leveling the score at 3-3 and sending the game in extra time drop-off.
Cronulla tapped off first, proving East Hills’ defence strong as they scrambled fiercely to keep them out. Once the changeover was called, the boys worked themselves up the field, securing their championship title with a diving try in the corner.
“It was an amazing comeback. The boys never doubted their ability to do it and I think that was a telling factor,” Smith said.
“We are all extremely proud of the team and their coaches,” she said.
Smith put the boys’ success down to the tireless efforts of their coaching staff; David Curtis and David Towers, as well as manager Todd Heslehurst.
“David Curtis and Todd have been coaching at our club for a number of years now and thoroughly deserve the result,”
“They have coached this team since they first entered as Under 8’s in the East Hills Comp, so I’m particularly pleased for them to have achieved this result,” Smith said.
As a popular talking point, the win has been fantastic for the association, Smith confident that it will encourage more teams to play at representative level.
“This year we fielded 5 teams at Coffs Harbour and 5 teams at Bass Hill. We are hoping to continue to grow at rep level thanks to our wonderful parents who volunteer to manage or coach and this result from the Under 11 Boys will certainly help us achieve this goal,” she said.
Compared to some, East Hills is a small association working to continue their growth at grassroot levels in order to develop their representative teams.
“Our Junior Comp is held on Wednesday afternoons only – we don’t have the luxury of two or three different days and large numbers to choose from for rep team,” Smith said.
“When we started Juniors we had nine teams and it quickly grew. We now have around 70 teams playing during Summer from Under 6’s to Under 16’s,” she said.
East Hills have three teams participating in division two at the 2021 Senior State Cup in May – two Mixed teams and a Men’s 20’s team.
The 2021 Junior City v Country teams have been selected following an exceptional display of talent at both Junior State Cup tournaments in Coffs Harbour and Bass Hill.
The tournament will be played on Sunday 13 June at Central Coast Regional Sporting Complex, Tuggerah NSW.
It will see the State’s best play off in a combined four regions – Southern City Seahawks, Western City Scorpions, Northern Country Knights and Southern Country Pride.
Team lists can be found HERE. Congratulations to all players selected to represent their region at the prestigious City v Country.
All players selected must confirm or decline their position to the Coach via their email at the bottom of the Team list sheet.
Registration will open Wednesday 17 March, from 12pm. Players must register & pay online by Friday April 9.
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