Going into the final round of the 2025 Christie and Hood Castlereagh League competition the composition and finishing order of the top five was unknown with results from three different venues having a bearing on who was in and who was out and in what order the teams in contention finished.

The Dunedoo Swans were in a three-way battle for position number five on the ladder and having the bye they had to hope that results would go their way.

One of those results did go their way, with the Cobar Roosters dropping out of the race when they were unable to sustain a great second half comeback in their match against the Narromine Jets played at Cobar.

The Jets had established a commanding 20-nil lead by halftime, but their prospects of securing victory looked somewhat shaky after the home side came roaring back into the game, scoring 14 unanswered points to trail but just six.

It is now history that the Jets were able to go over for a converted try to extend their lead to 12 points. While the Roosters replied with another try, the first-half deficit was too much for them to reel in, and they lost the game 26-18, ending their season.

Meanwhile, some 400 kilometres to the east, the Coonamble Bears were locked in a do-or-die battle with the Gulgong Bull Terriers at Gulgong, with a win to the Bears their only option if they wanted to stay alive in the 2025 premiership race

Indeed, they did stay alive, upsetting the home side by converting a 12-6 lead at halftime into an impressive 32-16 win on the road, with their superior points differential securing them fifth spot on the ladder ahead of Dunedoo.

They will have to travel that same road again next Sunday for another do-or-die clash with the Bull Terriers in the elimination semi-final.

The top of the table clash between the Coolah Kangaroos and the Coonabarabran Unicorns saw the ‘Roos retain their unbeaten status and the Boronia Cup when they outlasted a fast-finishing blue and gold outfit to come away with a 30 to 24 win after leading 30 to 12 at one stage.

The loss by the Unicorns, combined with Narromine’s win over Cobar, means that the Jets leapfrogged them on the table and now meet the Jets at Narromine next Saturday in the qualifying semi-final.

Fifth position on the ladder in both league tag and reserve grade was also decided by points differential, with the Cobar Roosters finishing ahead of the Warren Bulldogs in league tag and Coonabarabran doing likewise against Gulgong in reserve grade.

Christie and Hood Castlereagh League Round 14 scores:

League Tag

Coolah dominated Coonabarabran last Saturday, cruising to a 62-nil win [PICTURE: Peter Sherwood] 

​Narromine 20 (Shian Chatfield 2, Talitha Chatfield, Jacana Powell tries; Shian Chatfield 2 goals) defeated Cobar 0.

​Coolah 62 (Mackenzie Blackadder 3, Molly Burgess 2, Brooklyn Blackadder 2, Jasmine Thompson, Tori Mogg, Breannah Burgess, Channy Burgess, Jaimi White tries; Tori Mogg 5 goals, Brooklyn Blackadder 2 goals) defeated Coonabarabran 0.

​Baradine 8 (Suzannah Carey 2 tries) defeated Warren 6 (Lilly Dayes try, Maddie Marks 1 goal).

​Dunedoo 60 (Chelsea Gallagher 4, Chloe Brougham 2, Molly Brown, Shelly Cox, Eva Hogden, Jessie Newton, Maigan Meyers tries; Chelsea Gallagher 7 goals, Shelly Cox 1 goal) defeated Gilgandra 0.

​Gulgong 28 (Lolley Tumpey 3, Gabby Wiltshire 2 tries; Lolley Tumpey 4 goals) defeated Coonamble 8 (Taylee Milgate, Shakaye Walker tries).

Final Competition Ladder:

1. Coolah: 14 wins, 0 losses, +498, 42 points
2. Dunedoo: 12 wins, 2 losses, +516, 38 points
3. Narromine: 11 wins, 3 losses, +356, 36 points
4. Baradine: 10 wins, 4 losses, +174, 34 points
5. Cobar: 6 wins, 8 losses, -12, 26 points
6. Warren: 6 wins, 8 losses, -70, 26 points
7. Gulgong: 5 wins, 9 losses, -130, 24 points
8. Coonamble: 4 wins, 10 losses, -380, 22 points
9. Coonabarabran: 2 wins, 12 losses, -428, 18 points
10. Gilgandra: 0 wins, 14 losses, -524, 14 points

Reserve Grade

​Narromine 24 (Rory Miller-Coen 2, Jamari Clarke, Jardeil Landsbrough tries; Liam Wherritt 4 goals) defeated Cobar 6 (Tom Rogers try, Dallas Josephson 1 goal).

​Coonabarabran 44 (Sonny Bill Walker 2, Jarvis Watton 2, Cody Howe, Keizer Wood, Nash Walker, Marshal Tighe, Bailey Reedman tries; Cody Howe 2 goals, Sonny Bill Walker 1 goal, Watton 1 goal) defeated Coolah 8 (Sam Wesley, Mark Shippe tries).

​Coonamble 28 (Tristan Draper, Kobe Leonard, Malekai Haley, Hamish Astill, Jayden Barlow tries; Nathan Walker 2 goals, Kobe Leonard 1 goal, Quinton Kennedy 1 goal) defeated Gulgong 20 (Jack Coupe, Koby Thurston, Rob Brobeck, Brad Toole tries; Caiden Horton 2 goals).

​Baradine 30 (Jai Cain 2, Chris Wallace, Travis Houghton, Wade Sutherland, Ethan Thirkell tries; Jai Cain 3 goals) defeated Warren 4 (Kadyn Griffith try).

​Binnaway 26 (Nathan Ryan 2, Cody Whitty, Ashley Widders, Kevin Nolan tries; Tom Magann 2 goals, Chris Daley 1 goal) defeated Mendooran 0.

Final Competition Ladder:

1. Narromine: 6 wins, 0 losses, +106, 18 points
2. Baradine: 4 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss, +74, 15 points
3. Binnaway: 4 wins, 2 losses, +80, 14 points
4. Coonamble: 3 wins, 2 draw, 2 losses, +12, 14 points
5. Coonabarabran: 3 wins, 3 losses, +86, 12 points
6. Gulgong: 3 wins, 3 losses, +6, 12 points
7. Cobar: 2 wins, 4 losses, +12, 10 points
8. Mendooran: 1 win, 1 draw, 4 losses, -100, 9 points
9. Warren: 1 win, 5 losses, -122, 7 points
10. Coolah: 1 win, 5 losses, -154, 7 points

First Grade

Coonamble booked their finals spot on Saturday, beating the Gulgong Bull Terriers 32 to 16 [PICTURE: Col Boyd Photography] 

​Narromine Jets 26 (Epili Dranuadalo 2, Washington Otoya, Kaiden Hill, Corey Cox tries; Corey Cox 3 goals) defeated Cobar Roosters 18 (Kody Ford, Nathan McAndrew, Tim Hillam, David Watson tries; Tadgh McMullen 1 goal) at Cobar.

​Coolah Kangaroos 30 (Jayden Brown 2, Dan Lane, Hugh Wesley, Tyler Lennox tries; Dan Lane 5 goals) defeated Coonabarabran Unicorns 24 (Sonny Bill Walker, Quade Milgate, Peter Watton, Jordan Baker tries; Nick Willoughby 4 goals) at Coolah.

​Warren Bulldogs 56 (Elias Kennedy 3, Lachlan Clarke 2, Tom Potter, Kaleb Sutherland, Patty Potter, Harry Thaux, Kobe Riley, Tom Storer tries; Tom Potter 5 goals) defeated Baradine Magpies 14 (Logan Dewson, Tom Purdy, Riley Arndell tries; Allan Riley goal) at Warren.

​Coonamble Bears 32 (Dwayne McEwen 2, Andrew Peacocke, Jack Kelly, Daniel Sangster, Jye Dixon tries; Brenton Glover 4 goals) defeated Gulgong Bull Terriers 16 (Mason Hammond, Jackson Pascoe, Blake Gorrie tries; Brad James 2 goals) at Gulgong.

​Dunedoo Swans Bye

Final Competition Ladder

1. Coolah: 13 wins, 0 losses, 1 bye, +326, 42 points
2. Narromine: 9 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses, 1 bye, +132, 35 points
3. Coonabarabran: 9 wins, 4 losses, 1 bye, +169, 34 points
4. Gulgong: 7 wins, 5 losses, 2 byes, -10, 32 points
5. Coonamble: 4 wins, 2 draws, 6 losses, 2 byes, +41, 28 points
6. Dunedoo: 5 wins, 7 losses, 2 byes, -22, 28 points
7. Cobar: 4 wins, 8 losses, 1 bye, +11, 26 points
8. Warren: 3 wins, 1 draw, 9 losses, 1 bye, -165, 22 points
9. Baradine: 0 wins, 12 losses, 2 byes, -482, 17 points

Finals Round One:

Saturday 9 August: Qualifying Semis at Narromine

Reserve Grade: Baradine Magpies (2) vs Binnaway Bombshells (3)

League Tag: Dunedoo Swanettes (2) vs Narromine Jets (3)

First Grade: Narromine Jets (2) vs Coonabarabran Unicorns (3)

Sunday 10 August: Elimination Semis at Gulgong

Reserve Grade: Coonamble Bears (4) vs Coonabarabran Unicorns (5)

League Tag: Baradine Magpies (4) vs Cobar Roosterettes (5)

First Grade: Gulgong Bull Terriers (4) vs Coonamble Bears (5)

Reserve grade to kick off at 11:30am both days with other games to follow straight after.

Admission: $10.00 and $5.00 concession. Under 16 free. EFTPOS available.