The 2025 NSW & VIC State Championships were held in Wollongong from May 9-11. The Event saw teams assemble from greater Sydney, the Illawarra region and Melbourne and was a fantastic spectacle that showcased the growth we have had in these regions, in the last 12 months.

 

The Event was supported by Destination Wollongong, Ev2 Sportswear and Gallagher Insurance Brokers.

 

In the Mixed division, there were a number of standout teams including the South Sydney Bunnies (captain Indi Killick pictured below), Inner West Wolves, St George Devils and Sydney City Roosters. Through the round games, both the ‘Bunnies and ‘Wolves were the most dominant and when they faced in the round game on Saturday morning, there was a genuine buzz around the grounds with a crowd watching from the sidelines. The result of this game went in favour of the Bunnies and when these two teams eventually met on Sunday morning in the grand-final, it was a similar outcome with the Bunnies running away 8-0 victors.

 

Both of these sides contributed significantly to the final makeup of the NSW Mixed Origin team and they will go from fierce rivals to teammates as they prepare to take on QLD on July 17.

 

 

Men’s was tightly contested – especially across the top four teams which included Shellharbour, Richmond, Parramatta and Inner West Sydney. Cronulla was unlucky to miss out on a spot in the top four and should be commended for their improvement on previous campaigns. When the top four sides presented for finals on the Sunday, it is fair to say there was not really a favourite – all four had demonstrated the potential to win through the round games. In the end Shellharbour (beating Richmond) and Parramatta (beating Inner West Sydney) faced off in an epic grand-final which was incredibly tense and which drew a large (and vocal) sideline crowd. In the end, the Parramatta team edged out Shellharbour to take the Shield.

 

 

The Event had numerous standout players. The player judged as the best female player of the Tournament was Arianna Ruwoldt from South Sydney. Arianna scored a significant number of tries across the weekend and was one of the first players picked in the NSW Mixed Origin side.

 

The player judged the best male player of the Tournament was Eddie Murphy from Parramatta. Eddie played consistently across the whole weekend and has been a mainstay of this team for many years. He too, has been selected to play State of Origin making the NSW Men’s Origin side.

 

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Finally, a big thankyou to all of our region managers, staff and referees for making the Event a success. We look forward to seeing many of you at the upcoming State of Origin and World Cup Event in July.