By Abbey Cannan
Matching their season mantra of becoming a source of pride for Noosa, the Ray White Noosa Dolphins have claimed the 2024 Sunshine Coast Rugby Union A Grade Premiership with a nail biting 30-28 victory.
The win against reigning Premiers University at Sippy Downs on Saturday 17 August was met with an on-field celebration that continued back to the Noosa club where the team was welcomed home by supporters.
Coach Jim McKay said, “I am so proud of what these men have done.“
“They have fought hard this year, as have all other clubs, but they had a change in mindset and really worked hard for each other and the Noosa region.
“They have truly been a source of pride for Noosa.“
Their new coach made all the difference for the club this year, after finishing fifth on the ladder in 2023, in what Dolphins Rugby Union Club president Jerry Lewis said was probably their worst performance in their 39 year history.
“It was a tough year in 2023. A lot of players weren’t happy. We made a change of the coach mid-year which saw an immediate improvement but it just wasn’t enough to save last year,“ Jerry said.
“I think that reality check made us have a real good look at what went wrong and how to undertake the work to fix it.“
With coaching experience at the top with Queensland Reds and Wallabies, Jim McKay came to the Noosa Dolphins to not just coach football, but to develop the culture and connect to the community.
“In the beginning of the year he had our players actually undertake an exercise where they talked about their values and how they wanted to see the club viewed from the outside,“ Jerry said.
“They actually came with a mantra of being a source of pride for Noosa and they wanted to make sure that the broader community of Noosa could be proud that the Noosa Dolphins are based here.“
In match that could have been the genesis of the phrase ‘a game of two halves’, the Dolphins first 40 minutes on Saturday was a display of controlled and disciplined rugby that delivered a 27 to seven half time lead, thrilling the crowd with fast paced running rugby off the back of dominance of the Dolphins forwards that ambushed the opposition.
With the opposing coaches needing to deliver very different halftime messages, Noosa’s Jim focused on the need to lift and repel an expected response from University.
At the opposite end of the field, University’s Brad Tronc demanded his team throw everything they had at the Dolphins so if they came out in any way complacent, Uni would be ready to take advantage.
The second half began as Brad had hoped, with some early errors by the Dolphins including two restarts out on the full, and a University team with the skill to play expansive rugby.
The home team started to throw the ball wide to take advantage of the speed they had on the wings, forcing the Dolphins to scramble in defence.
The University pack also lifted and executed their rolling maul to perfection, again putting pressure on the Dolphins.
Whilst the onslaught resulted in three tries, the committed Dolphins outfit showed a determination reminiscent of teams of the past, that saved numerous other try scoring opportunities and maintained their composure to take the victory.
Jerry said players that stood out in the grand final for him were Jock Hansson, Joey Caputo, Levi Shaw, Billy Tait, and Will Miller.
“Jock’s a Noosa junior and he’s been at the club for a long time,“ Jerry said.
“He went overseas for a while and then he had an ACL injury so he’s been out of our club for a couple of years but he recovered from injury to play this year. He’s been extremely strong and was on the weekend.
“Joey Caputo, who’s our five-eight, was just a really calm manager of the back line.
“Levi Shaw and Billy Tait were again strong and have been stand-out performers all year.
“What was really good to see was almost a debutant in Will Miller. He’s only a young lad, a part of our juniors and he came on as their halfback and had an amazing game as well.“
There was a massive turn-around in the enjoyment for players this year, with coach Jim’s communication skills being noticed by plenty.
“Considering how the team felt last year… I read an article in the Sunshine Coast Daily where they quoted our captain Levi Shaw after the game saying ’Last year I didn’t enjoy playing rugby’, and that’s completely turned around,“ Jerry said.
“That was one of Jim’s big things – the players have to be enjoying themselves. An example of that, mid-season it was pouring down rain at 8.15pm and it was cold and wet. And the only two people complaining was myself and the other guy helping out to run waters.
“They were all still having digs at each other and working hard. It’s been an amazing turnaround in terms of the attitude and culture which is great.“
It was a disappointing result for the Dolphins Reserve grade in their 27-20 loss to a determined Caloundra side.
On the back of an amazing season that saw the Dolphins take out the minor premiership, too many unforced errors were quickly taken advantage of by Caloundra keeping Noosa on the back foot for much of the match.
With their season now complete, Jerry said they’re wishing the Noosa Pirates Rugby League Club all the best in the hopes to bring home another trophy for the region.
The Noosa Pirates will host Beerwah at home this Saturday for the chance to play Coolum again in the grand final qualifier.
“A lot of times on weekends we’ve been checking out the Noosa Pirates games when we’ve been home,“ Jerry said.
“They’re having a successful year as well. I used to work with their coach and we’ve got a good relationship with the Pirates and we’re wishing them all the best.“
