The Corrimal Cougars have secured a place in the Illawarra Rugby League finals for the first time in 16 years after a 40-12 win over De La Salle Caringbah in Woolooware on Saturday.
Led by doubles to Joe Duggan and Logen Dillon, the Cougars ran in a remarkable seven tries to two to secure a crucial victory that elevated them above Thirroul into fifth place and into their first postseason campaign since 2009.
Corrimal Cougars President Grant Plecas said that it was a nervous day as the side looked to secure a win themselves whilst also relying on traditional rivals Collegians to beat Thirroul.
“We were definitely going in there as best prepared as we could, we had a belief because we’d beaten them so well the last time we played them,” he said.
“A few things needed to go our way, Collies needed to beat Thirroul, we needed to make sure we were set and going to be able to get the win.”
Having not played finals for a decade and a half, and with a premiership drought stretching back 51 years to their 1974 triumph, Plecas said it was a great feeling to finally return to postseason football this year.
“It’s pretty special for the whole club, our club is one of the stalwarts of the competition, been around since day one [and] always had a first grade side in there, even through the tough times,” he said.
“We went about eight years without an Under 18s side, so it was really hard when we’re not as financially [stable] as some of the other clubs to be able to prop up that first grade team year in year out.
“But now we’ve got the fruits of some great juniors coming through, and we’re starting to build something special at the club.
“The feeling was just fantastic at the whole club the week leading into it.
“For 16 years, this is what they’ve been working towards, and to get this result, it’s huge for the club and huge for the community.”
The fifth-placed Cougars benefit from the recent change to the competition’s finals structure, with five teams qualifying for the playoffs this year compared to the traditional four.
Illawarra Rugby League operations manager Carlo Napolitano said that the changes were announced at the start of the year by the NSWRL, who oversee the Illawarra Cup First Grade as a Major Competition.
“The cup competition is handled by the NSWRL, which we agreed to at the beginning of the year,” he said.
“It’s just following the protocol of the major comps, so we decided that the plate and the shield would follow suit and we’d all be aligned then.”
However, despite some criticism of the fact only one team was eliminated through 15 weeks of regular season football, Napolitano said that the increased competition for finals spots which kept all teams alive until the final day has made the change a worthwhile one.
“It was a bit of a close competition, it did come [down] to the last weekend, that means the competition is working and the excitement is there, so I think everyone is looking forward to the finals series.”
“Only one team misses out in a six team comp, and this year it is Thirroul, but again the level of competition has been immense and all the games I’ve been to have been of a high standard.”
Looking at other games on Saturday, Minor Premiers Collegians helped the Cougars’ cause in securing a top five spot, eliminating Thirroul with a 24-12 win at Collegians Sports Complex.
Fullback Callum Gromek starred in the win, crossing for two tries, while Blair Grant added a try to his four goals in a strong performance.
Finally, the Western Suburbs Devils secured a critical two points in their clash with Dapto at the Dapto Showground.
The win in the second versus third showdown gives Wests hosting rights in the Qualifying Final to be played between the two sides this coming Saturday.
The first round of finals action kicks off this Saturday when Wests host Dapto and Corrimal battle De La Salle again.
