0°C | Thursday November 13, 2025 
12 May 2025
By James Mullan
It was a perfect weekend for our teams in red and black, with every major code scoring a win! News of the Bears returning to the NRL dominated headlines all last week, and the good times doubled down for North Shore sports fans.
North Sydney Bears
What a week to be a Bear, with news of the club’s return to the NRL made official, ending 26 years of waiting for fans. With a huge buzz around the club, the NSW Cup side travelled to Tamworth for a Magic Round clash with the Newcastle Knights.
Early in the game, it looked like the Knights would rain on the Bears’ parade, running in the first three tries of the game for an 18-0 start. This was until Jayden Yates dived over from dummy half in the 34th minute to put the Bears on the scoreboard. The Knights scored again only minutes after the commencement of the second half to make it a 24-6 lead.
The tide then turned in a big way for Norths. Siulago Pio scored a try in the right corner 45 minutes into the contest, before comeback kid Riley Mayn crossed the line just 10 minutes later. The miraculous try started 60 metres away from the line, with Jayden Yates breaking the line and surging down the left flank before finding Coby Thomas, who then set up Mayn. 64 minutes in, Compton Fuatimau scored in the exact same spot to narrow the score to 24-20.
20 metres out from their own goal line, and with only 4 minutes left in the game, the Bears pulled off a miracle. Coby Thomas single-handedly beat several defenders, broke through the line, and set up fullback Jake Toby. Toby put on the turbo jets, outrunning the Knights to score and tie things up 24-24. Harradyn Wilson converted to complete the great escape of Tamworth. Bears win 24-26.
Norths will return home next week for the first time since their big NRL news to face the Dragons on Sunday. A huge crowd is expected at North Sydney Oval.
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Norths Rugby
After two wins in a row, it finally felt like the Shoremen were back playing to their typical high standard. Coming into this match-up, Randwick were also in fine form, having won their last three games, setting up a hotly anticipated clash at North Sydney Oval.
Norths were first on the board after a slick left-side manoeuvre set up an easy pick-and-drive try for Nathan Russall just 8 minutes into the contest. Just two minutes later, a kind bounce on a kick set up Reece Mau’u to put Norths up 12-0, 12 minutes in. The points kept coming with a penalty goal 18 minutes in, making it a 15-0 score at halftime.
Individual brilliance from Josh Barr got Norths rolling in the second half after he stripped the ball and ran about 60 metres to score. Randwick responded with a try in the 55th minute, then again in the 61st for a 22-14 margin. Norths stopped them there, scoring again thanks to a strong pick-and-go try from Tom Everard. Despite one more try from Randwick, Norths put the icing on the cake after the full-time siren thanks to a Josh Barr try for a 34-19 victory and to retain the Sir Roden Cutler Shield.
Now in 6th place in the Shute Shield, Norths will head to Newcastle next week to face the Wildfire.
Norths Basketball
Back in the Bear Cave this week, Norths hosted the Penrith Panthers.
The women’s squad were looking to stay undefeated and were bolstered by the return of American superstar Jolene Anderson, who was the Grand Final MVP in 2023 when Norths won the Championship. Anderson wasted no time reacclimatising herself with the side, posting 13 points. The first half was close, but Norths clearly had the upper hand, landing well above 40% of their shots. In the third quarter, the Panthers did wrestle back into the game, even outscoring the Bears. Ultimately, the home side was just too good, with several players scoring in double figures, including Emma Donnelly (15), Carla Pitman (14), Caitlin Martin (14), and Maddie O’Hehir (21), who led all scorers. A 94-77 win handed the side their 8th win for the season, remaining undefeated.
The men faced a much closer game. For the first three quarters, both sides were neck-and-neck, but come the 4th quarter, Norths woke up, mainly thanks to a great shooting performance from new import signing Austin Patterson, who ended the game with 22 points. Outscoring Penrith 31-19 in the final quarter, Norths were able to eke out a win 97-86. As usual, Hunter Goodrick led the way with 24 points and 12 rebounds. They now have a 4-4 record and are stuck in a mid-ladder log jam, but with impressive form over the past few weeks, the side is definitely trending upwards.
Next week, Norths are back at home, hosting Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence sides.
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