25 September 2023
By James Mullan
My Dad is a lifelong Bears fan. He would always say to me his club would always be “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.”
And so it goes. With a chance to break a 30 year premiership drought, Norths unfortunately fell in the NSW Cup Grand Final yesterday at the hands of the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
Notwithstanding the loss, the North Sydney Bears had an incredible season on and off the field. Record crowds, strong financial support, constant mentions as the next NRL licence and of course both top men’s and women’s sides winning their competitions’ Minor Premierships.
The health of the club was on full display with the stands of Parramatta Stadium covered in red and black. In fact, 8,000 fans packed into the stadium for the decider.
In a preliminary final, Souths had beaten the Norths 24-30, with the regular season matchup going the Bears’ way. The stage was thus set for a tight contest.
Just 5 minutes in Alfred Smalley got the Bears on the scoreboard catching a tough pass as he tippy toed on the sideline before acrobatically diving over in the corner. Souths responded with some attacking pressure which eventually led to a try in the 14th minute.
Norths star five eighth Jess Marschke was next up to score, busting through the defensive line and out pacing chasers to cross under the posts. 25 minutes in, Bears up 10-6. The Bunnies then edged ahead again with a 32nd minute converted try.
A penalty kick from the Bears’ Kieran Heyman tied the game up 12-12 right on halftime.
Former Bears star Tom Carr would be next on the score sheet, crossing 10 minutes into the second half to put the Bunnies up 16-12. There were plenty of former Bears suiting up for Souths due to the two clubs past feeder arrangement, including Yileen ‘Buddy’ Gordon and Dean Hawkins. Gordon actually donned the red and black the last time the club was in the Grand Final, way back in 2007.
The next stanza continued the back and forth battle, with neither side yielding an inch.
This was broken in the 68th minute as the Bears found a gap and the try line edged in front 18-16 after a successful conversion. The trophy was just 10 minutes away if Norths could just hold on.
But with just 5 minutes left on the clock Souths crossed again to edge in front 22-18 after the conversion. As the clock ticked away, the Bears put on one final charge for the line. A right flank manoeuvre led to an overlap but the final pass from Toa Mata’afa just couldn’t find the winger, bobbling out of bounds.
Despite an excellent season and great Grand Final performance, Norths just fell short, giving Souths their first NSW Cup title since 1983 and their 21st premiership.
After the game the club released a brief statement on social media saying “With our heads held high, heartbreakingly our 2023 season comes to an end. Congratulations South Sydney Rabbitohs”
Zach Dockar-Clay was arguably Norths’ best on ground with 40 tackles and countless hit ups. Jesse Marschke was also in great form, steering the team around the paddock well. Hopefully both can return for next season. Until then, the club will look to shake the immediate sadness of the loss and refocus for the 2023 season in which the NSW Cup side will become the feeder for the Melbourne Storm.
Not only this, club administrators continue to push for the Bears reinstatement into the NRL. This stellar season bodes well for the clubs chances of returning to the top flight of Rugby League, proving to be a strong performer in the key areas of a reserve grade side.
This also brings the winter season to an end, where it’s been bittersweet for the North Shore’s top sides. The North Shore Bombers, Norths Rugby Union and North Sydney Bears men’s sides all won minor premierships but all ultimately lost in the Grand Finals. The rugby league women also won their minor premiership but crashed out in the semi finals.
A bright spot was the Norths Basketball Women’s side who won the NBL1 East Championship and were runners up in the NBL1 National Grand Final.
All things considered it was a highly successful winter season for the teams in red and black, proving that Sydney’s North Shore is one of the best sporting communities in the state.