In what was the first ever Castlereagh League match played beyond the vast Castlereagh League area, Coolah Kangaroos and Coonabarabran Unicorns met for their final competition round game as the curtain raiser to the NRL clash between Penrith Panthers and Canberra Raiders at Mudgee’s Glen Willow Stadium last Saturday (August 1).
Coolah bounded out of the blocks and had established a 12-0 lead midway through the first half. Five-eighth Brad Pickering contributed to both tries by way of a towering bomb that bounced favourably for the Roos, who quickly moved the ball wide to centre Dylon Edwards to cross the line.
Shortly after, Pickering scored a fine individual try when he put in a chip and chase 15 metres out to score. He converted both tries to have the Unicorns on the back foot.
Coonabarabran five-eighth Brad Fuller got the Unicorns on the board when he threw a deft pass to his centre Eddie Kuras to score in the 25th minute. They were in again five minutes later when, on the back of a great run by back-rower Anthony Harris from his own half, Orlando Kershaw crashed over to leave the Unicorns trailing 12-10.
With five minutes to go until the break, Coonabarabran hit the front for the first time in the match when fullback Josh Nixon latched on to a high bouncing ball after a grubber kick was put through. They successfully converted to take a 16-12 lead.
Coolah responded after Casey Burgess stole the ball in a one-on-one tackle from the kick-off to stroll over. The Roos went in again just before half-time when winger Sam Wesley went over out wide to take a 24-16 lead into the break.
The Unicorns closed the gap early in the second half when a nice backline movement put Sonny-Bill Walker over in the corner. A successful conversion saw the deficit reduce to 24-22.
The Kangaroos then piled on the points to record a comfortable 46-26 win to shore up third position on the ladder and set up a return bout with the Unicorns this Saturday in the Qualifying Semi-final at Coonabarabran.
Cobar Roosters cemented the Minor Premiership and hosting rights for the Major Semi-final when they downed Narromine Jets 28-16 at Narromine.
Dunedoo Swans briefly held third position on the ladder when they registered a big 56-12 win over Gilgandra Panthers on Friday night, only to be relegated back to fourth on the ladder following Coolah’s win over Coonabarabran on Saturday.
The remaining game saw Coonamble Bears and Gulgong Bull Terriers complete their 2026 commitments when they met at Coonamble, with the home side winning a tight contest 34-32.
Coonabarabran will host the Qualifying Semi-finals on Saturday, which will feature the two Mudgee combatants going at it again.
Turning to Sunday’s Elimination Final at Dunedoo between the Swans and the Jets, the visitors will be buoyed by the fact they have registered two sizeable wins over their hosts this season, winning 40-24 at Dunedoo in Round Two and then 53-20 in the return match in round 10.
The Swans will be hopeful that a big home crowd will help them reverse those two results to keep them alive in season 2026!
On both days the first game will be the league tag with a 12.30pm kick off first grade to follow straight on.
The final pecking order of the league tag top five was sorted when Narromine scored a 28 to 16 win over Cobar at Narromine on Saturday, that win drawing them level with the Roosters on the competition ladder, but with a superior for and against the Jets will progress to the qualifying final and will play Coolah on Saturday whilst the Roosters will be up against Gulgong in the elimination final on Sunday in Dunedoo.
Click here for all Round 14 results from the Christie and Hood Castlereagh League.
