Sports Today: Shute Shield Grand Final, ANZP Netball and Premier League

If you’re a Warringah Rats fan, what a day to be proud of as this year’s champions-elect of the NSW Shute Shield Season Sports. 

Gotta say that being there to support the Rats every week when they made the easiest decision to invade the pitch by running up to celebrate with the players is just so special so that they play their own roles too.

It goes to show they’re committed to the club’s crest regardless of whether they make the Finals or not every season.

But at the end of the day, Warringah wants to be at their absolute best every week and look where they are now – premiership winners for the second time in eight years since 2017 v Norths by 30-25.

Top 3 Players from the 2025 Shute Shield Grand Final

Rats Frontline 8 and former Blues Academy product Chalyton Frans looked more than ready to nail down ten-pin bowling strikes with two tries off the back of the Rats well-structured defensive and expansive attacking shape.

He can do it all in such unreal moments for a side who can give him all the game time Chalyton wants in order to continue playing what he loves like the Warringah Rats.

Then there’s one of Warringah’s own via the NSW Waratahs academy of course who also played a few times for the Australia U20s in Jackson Ropata at the outside 13.

He’s got undeniable speed & quick time passing to point out his own numbers on the counter-attack; look at the width he’s using so one of the Rats players can help bring home tries.

Ones to watch going into next year if he can take it with both hands at the Tahs as Head Coach Dan McKellar will surely be pleased with Jackson’s grand final performance that can hopefully flip into Super Rugby standard at some point.

Looking at the other side of the pitch now, Eastern Suburbs are so gutted where they were in the thick of it a few times hoping to go back-to-back like the Minor Premiership.

Beasties could’ve done any better when it comes to their finishing touches on top of a few untimely handling errors going against them though unfortunately.

Speedy left wing 11 Darby Lancaster never disappoints every time he gives back to his local club whenever he can including an individual first-half masterclass TRY of his own while he picked up some gains through defense and tackle busts.

Sure he still has a lot to offer as he just needs the right opportunity so Darby can continue to give his all every week – it’s for the best for his development without having to leave Super Rugby & Rugby Australia most likely with Western Force.

Post-Game Notes

Final score was 24-37 to the Rats over Easts where yes, there were mistakes after mistakes coming from both sides, especially when both teams were side-by-side for the most part, as we never know what’s going to happen after full-time.

But what stands out the best for the Rats past Beasties is Warringah maintaining that cohesive structure they’ve had all game along with the good use of their subs where they were able to hoist that Premiership-winning plate – how good!!

More Rugby to come next month with the Rugby Championship (will resume next weekend following the week-long rest) and Women’s Rugby World Cup (currently in-progress) plus the new third-tier National competition called Super Rugby AUS (will run for a month plus the one Grand Final).

Then in 2026, a new season of Super Rugby and NSW & QLD Club Rugby under the next TV contract arrangements led by Stan and Nine once again.

The 2026 Super Rugby draw was already out last week where the Super Round will make its return this time at the new Christchurch Stadium on top of the Waratahs Friday night lights and more Saturday nights going to Force with Reds and Brumbies having the best of both days including the odd Sunday arvo game. 

Oh as said, there should be some all-important games still available on free-to-air Nine on top of Finals. But don’t expect to tune in on Saturday nights every week like it was over the past five years on the soon-to-be-lapsed current TV deal.

And if you’re so into Club Rugby, there’s a game of the round every Saturday arvo now at 3pm AEST on 9Gem in NSW (Shute Shield) & QLD (Hospital Cup), with nationwide access to stream online on 9Now.

Off-Field Notes

While everyone involved enjoyed the iconic “Fill the Hill” fortress at Leichhardt Oval, there’s something else to talk about in the world of sports.

Netball

With NZ’s top Netball athletes already Australia-bound for a while or two in Super Netball, we’ve seen a couple of bold moves coming from the ANZ Premiership irrespective of the expected drop of standard coming next year:

• Premiership-winning goal shoot Martina Salmon moves back home to Auckland from the Mainland Tactix with the Northern Stars as the second new recruit alongside recognised shooting star from the Central Pulse in Amelia Walmsley who also returned home to be with her dad Kerry.
• Maia Wilson will jump across the road to the Mystics as a replacement for 2025 player and Aussie Diamonds International Donnell Wallam.
• Premiership-winning captain at centre Erikana Pedersen decides to stay on with the Tactix, which is much-needed good news after they’ve witnessed most of their core group from this year’s grand final win pack away for better opportunities.
• Most of the Southern Steel players from 2025 also staying on like shooting duo Georgia Heffernan (Goal Attack) and Aliyah Dunn, fan favourite GK and TikTok dancer Carys Stythe and many more to future-proof Wendy Frew’s vision for Otago & Dunedin Netball. However, Abby Lawson at GD decided to step away to concentrate more on farming.

Shoutout to Martina by the way who no doubt will be excited to pair up with Amelia and who knows if the Stars will be at the front of the pack after all like it was back in 2023 where they were oh so close to Mystics in that Grand Final. Seems like Temepara Bailey will want to make the most out of her second year just like predecessor Kiri Wills is doing right now with the Queensland Firebirds whose recruits for next year all came from Silver Ferns calibre players although safe to say that Grace Nweke isn’t one of them.

For Magic, without Nweke’s Silver Ferns shooting partner Ameliaranne Ekenasio, they might as well stand half a chance considering Tactix and Pulse are now without their best players. Hard to tell but if Magic can find the players they fit best on paper, then this could be their year to play Finals in a long time when the previous Trans-Tasman Domestic League had its course back in 2016 via the ANZ Championship.

Premier League

It was great to see another free-to-air live game once more over the weekend (the 9.30pm Saturday night one) with Chelsea v Fulham this time from Stamford Bridge in London.

First of all, Fulham currently very irate at the officials including VAR Referee Rob Jones when Joshua King’s goal (not the Norwegian one but the 18-year-old in-house player) was disallowed – poor kid.

Some say that Rodrigo Muniz stomped at Trevor Chalobah’s foot but Trevor did cause a scene for himself in the same way Neymar at a World Cup game for Brazil did a long time ago. 

There’s nothing the Cottagers can do sadly other than watch in disbelief where Chelsea walked away as winners 2-0 with Joao Pedro scoring the first goal right on half-time (a very long 53 min) off a corner kick followed by a successful in-box penalty strike courtesy of Enzo Fernandez.

No Liam Delap (New No.9), No problems there for the reigning Club World Cup champions – despite a largely quiet ride by both sides on the pitch at least from open play.

Great to hear Martin Tyler on the call with former defender Matthew Upson for the World Feed and so does club legend John Terry who stopped by as the on-site studio analyst for Nine and Stan.

Seems every match going forward now will just be on Stan. 

Sure there will be more weekend replays every week on 9Go but you never know if Nine wants to chuck in another odd PL game or two so they can maximise its lead-ins from their other sports coverage like the NRL (Rugby League).

We’ll see after the International break but the week-long 2025 World Athletics Championships will take centre stage instead from Tokyo, Japan on Nine & 9Now.

I also hear that Nine might throw in a few FA Cup games like the early rounds on one of its free-to-air channels and 9Now like Network 10 did a few years ago only online without the big Final. But at the end of the day, PL and the FA Cup Final would be close to be as good as the NRL and AFL without adding the Finals bit.