Narrabri Blue Boars crush Gunnedah in the CNRU women’s 10s grand final rematch on ladies’ day

Narrabri Blue Boars kicked off their Central North Rugby Union women’s 10s premiership defence in style on Saturday when they demolished the Gunnedah Red Devils 43-5 at Dangar Park.

The round two clash was the Blue Boars’ first game of the season after they won by forfeit in round one, was part of the club’s annual ladies’ day and was also a grand final rematch, but a new-look side with a new coach at the helm did not let the occasion get the better of them as they started the season on the front foot.

Narrabri outscored the away team seven tries to one and four goals to one on their way to a 38-point victory that coach Andrew Gale hopes will be the catalyst for a successful campaign as the team looks to make history by qualifying for a fourth consecutive grand final and by winning a third consecutive premiership.

“I’m stoked. They were awesome,” Gale said of his side.

“It was a cracking game. We went into it with no expectations because Gunnedah have always been strong and we thought they would be the benchmark this year.

“We’d been working hard doing our thing, working on skills and fitness, and I just wanted the girls to go out there, stick to our gameplan and hold the ball as much as possible, and they did that.

“It was an awesome game and the girls were stoked. As coaches, Pete (Peta Cox) and I were stoked as well.”

Cass Morley and Kaitlyn Armitage starred in Saturday’s match as they both scored hat-tricks to combine for six tries, while Lidia McCauley chipped in with the team’s other try.

Toni Gale marked her first CNRU match since the 2023 grand final with four conversions and an impressive performance in the forward pack after missing the 2024 campaign with a knee injury, and her inclusion is a huge boost for a side that lost all but four players from last year’s grand final-winning team.

Peta Cox is one of the players who has returned in 2025. She is Andrew Gale’s assistant coach this year and she captained the team against the Red Devils on Saturday. She told The Courier that it was a gutsy win from her side and she was proud of all of her teammates.

“I think we played really well. We only had 11 players and they had 18, so it was a huge effort,” Cox said.

“Our third quarter especially, we defended within our 22 for the whole 10 minutes and Gunnedah didn’t score a try. That was what defined that game, I think.

“We held them up over the line a few times. I think we kicked three line dropouts in that 10 minutes.

“This year definitely has a different feel for us. The girls that have joined have brought skills from other sports and previous experiences, which we haven’t really had before. We’ve got no one starting fresh this year.

“We’re pretty light on numbers still. We’ve only got 14 registered girls, so as soon as there’s one or two away, our bench is very slim. We would definitely like more players if anyone is keen.”

Saturday’s win saw Narrabri Blue Boars defend the new CNRU women’s Kookaburra Challenge Cup, which was introduced this season. They started with the cup as they won last season’s grand final, and they will battle to keep it each game.

The Blue Boars have the next two weekends off with a club bye this Saturday and then the NSW Country Championships weekend bye.

They will be back in action in round four on Saturday, May 24, when they travel to take on Barraba. That match will be Barraba’s first after they had a bye in round one and then won by forfeit against Moree in round two.

There have already been four forfeits in the women’s 10s competition this season, with two of the six scheduled matches across the first two weeks going ahead. Gunnedah has played in both of those after kicking off the season with a 42-10 victory away from home in Moree in round one.

Saturday’s round two forfeits saw Tamworth win against Quirindi and Barraba prevail over Moree.