A big weekend is coming up for the Two Blues featuring a change to the usual schedule with Friday night games for the final match of the 2025 Brad Nichols Shield—honouring a beloved club legend. And with action across our Men’s and Women’s teams, rep honours, junior milestones, and upcoming events there’s plenty to catch up on.
Get up to speed on all the action from July in this latest edition of Blues News! 💙🏉
ROUND 13
Due to the Lions test match taking place on Saturday in Sydney, 3 of our Men’s senior teams will take to the field on Friday night.
Our Friday Night 4’s team kicks off the action at 6:20pm at Ernie Calland Oval, taking on Southern Beaches, while two of our Premier teams will play Uni at No. 2 Sportsground. P2’s will hit the field at 6:15pm followed by P1’s at 7:35pm. Get down there and cheer the boys on under lights!
Then the action continues on Saturday, kicking off at 11:50am with our Women’s team taking on Scone at No. 2 Sportsground, followed by the Mens P3 team will hit it out against Uni! 💙🏉
This weekend marks the final match of the 2025 Brad Nichols Shield. The Shield honours Brad—a much-loved Wanderer who gave everything to the club before tragically passing at just 33 while watching the Two Blues play Uni. With 169 games under his belt, Brad was known for his fearless play, passion, and smile. Let’s honour his legacy the best way we know how—on the field and in the stands. Get to No. 2 and help the boys do Brad proud. 💙🏉
Upcoming Events
Back To Wanderers Day
9 AUGUST
Calling all Two Blues—past and present! Mark your calendars for Saturday, 9 August and get back to No. 2 for our annual Back to Wanderers Day! It’s a special chance to reconnect, reminisce, and celebrate everything that makes this club so great, whilst enjoying a great day of footy with our Premier Mens Teams taking on Southern Beaches and our Women taking on Cooks Hill.
Make a weekend of it and join us for the WRC Luncheon at the George Darby Hotel on Friday, 8 August too. Tickets available online. See you there! 💙🏉
BOOK LUNCH TICKETS
Senior Rugby Update
Mens’ Teams Update
The boys played their first game of the month against Southern Beaches at the Sandpit, which saw all grades get a win. There were many debutants in each of the grades, seeing many Wanderers juniors have the chance to play at higher levels.
The men’s team returned to No. 2 against Hamilton Hawks in the next round. P2 and P3 saw success with convincing wins, but unfortunately P1s were overcome late in the second half in a tight contest.
And the next round saw us return No. 2 against cross-town rivals for Indigenous Round, P3s went down to a strong Merewether side. P2s had a convincing win, almost earning “donuts” for keeping the opposition to zero points. P1s had a hard-fought battle but left with a draw after 2 successful chargedowns of the opposing side’s field goal attempts.
Women’s Team Update
At the start of the month our Women headed up to Nelson Bay for a hard-fought match to win 12-10. This game saw the return of fly-half Brooke from her time in Chicago to provide exceptional flair in attack.
The next round saw our girls take-on Merewether in the first of two back-to-back rounds which saw a thumping win 24-7. After-match celebrations saw a “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” themed Blue Room party, with outfits ranging from high-rollers to hungover party goers. The event also had a Vegas-themed wedding which saw Harry and Jordan’s engagement.
The next weekend, Merewether took revenge over our women’s side in the Indigenous Round, with the team going down 15-10.
The team faces stiff competition in the lead up to the finals with games ahead against Maitland, Nelson Bay and Scone.
Junior Rugby Update
Season Update
As we enter the final five rounds of the season before finals, it’s exciting to see our teams tracking so well! Our U10s, U11s, and U16s are all sitting proudly in the top 3 on the ladder, putting themselves in strong contention for finals action. A special shout-out goes to our U14s, who just secured their first win in over two years! This is a great achievement and a reflection of their resilience, hard work, and growth throughout the season!
Wanderers Representatives Player Highlights
U16s Representative Achievements
U16 is a significant year in the representative pathway, and Morgan Carter and Thijs Beckett from our U16s were selected to play for NSW Combined High Schools (CHS) at the All Schools Carnival recently, where their team finished 3rd. Following this, both were selected for the U16 Waratahs Invitationals at Easts Rugby Club, Morgan representing All Schools II and Thijs for NSW Country. 
U18s National Champions
Additionally, Harry Beckett (Wanderers U18s) represented NSW Country at the All Schools Championships and was selected for the NSW Barbarians, competing at the Buildcorp National School & Junior Championships on the Sunshine Coast. The Barbarians went on to win the grand final against South Australia and were crowned U18 National Champions!
📸 [Photos from the National Championships]
City v Country Selection
To top it off, Harry and Thijs Beckett were both named in the final 23 for NSW Country to compete in the City v Country fixture on 27th July at No. 2 Sportsground. An incredible achievement for two brothers to represent at such a high level, and even more special to do it on home turf in front of the Wanderers community.
📸 [Photo of young Beckett brothers]
U12s DEVELOPMENT GALA & U12s STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Congratulations to our U12 boys who travelled to Sydney for the Wildfires U12s Development Gala in early July. Coached by our Junior Club President, Ben, the team included Campbell, Jacob and Luca and they went undefeated over the weekend. Luca was awarded Best Forward, well done to all our players!
📸 [Photo of U12s and Ben]
The rescheduled U12s State Championships were held in Forster-Tuncurry in mid-July, our boys once again did the Wanderers proud. Kyle, Louis, Henry, and Ollie represented the Wildfires with pride, with their team finishing 4th in the Country Championship.
📸 [Photo of U12s]
U10s DEVELOPMENT GALA
Congratulations to our U10 boys who travelled to the Kings School in Parramatta for the Wildfires U10s Development Gala in late July. This is the first opportunity players have on the representative pathway and the team included Patrick, Archer, William and Austin. The boys had a challenging time on the field, with some injuries sustained. We are very proud of their effort, resilience and achievements over the weekend.
U11s DEVELOPMENT GALA
We’re proud of our young Wanderers who represented the Hunter Wildfires across two teams at the U11s State Gala in Mudgee in late July. With a strong contingent involved, including many returning from last year’s U10s, our players showed spirit, teamwork, and determination across six games over two days. Well done to all on a fantastic effort!
JUNIOR MILESTONES – 150 CAPS
Recently, we’ve had the honour of celebrating some significant milestones for our dedicated players. These achievements reflect years of hard work and love for the game.
Congratulations to Tayn Cotterell from our U16s, who celebrated an incredible 150 games on 29 June! Tayn is the kind of player everyone wants alongside them, a true team player who always gives his all for the club and his teammates. He first pulled on the Wanderers jersey at just 4 years old, and has been bleeding blue ever since. Well done, Tayn! Your commitment and sportsmanship are what the Wanderers spirit is all about.
Congratulations to Archie Clifford from our U18s, who celebrated a very special 150 games on 19 July! The youngest player in our U18s, Archie plays scrum half and is a great teammate, always bringing energy, skill, and commitment to the field. Well done, Archie! An amazing achievement and a reflection of your dedication to the game and the club.
⚠️ IMPORTANT REMINDER – PROPER CONDUCT
All parents, players, spectators, coaching staff, Ground Marshalls, and Assistant Referees (ARs) are reminded of the following:
Respect for Match Officials
There has been a concerning rise in verbal abuse directed at referees, particularly younger referees. This behaviour is unacceptable regardless of the referee’s age or experience. If anyone is heard yelling or screaming at match officials they must be asked to stop or leave the venue if it continues. Ongoing breaches will result in further action being taken.
Assistant Referees Coaching from the Sideline
ARs must not coach while running the line. This has been observed and needs to stop immediately.
Social Media & Video Use
Clubs using VEO or personal recordings must manage how footage is shared. We are currently in the process of finalising policies for sharing or distributing footage, these must be complied with.
All members of our club are expected to be mindful of any social media misuse. Suspensions may be enforced where necessary by HJRU to protect our players and uphold the integrity of the game.
Netball Update
July was a powerhouse month on the court for our Wanderers Netball teams, with some huge scorelines and dominant performances across the board! From commanding wins to clinical team efforts, our players turned up the intensity and showed what it means to play with pride, passion, and purpose.
Even better—Mother Nature’s been on our side, with no washouts or postponements so far this season. Let’s keep the momentum rolling into August!
Let’s go, Two Blues! 💙🏐
Wanderers Rugby Community (WRC) Update
WRC LUNCHEON – FRIDAY 8 AUGUST 2025
Join us for a special Wanderers Rugby Community Lunch on Friday 8 August at the newly renovated George Darby Hotel! Kicking off at 12:30pm in the upstairs restaurant, the event will feature a Q&A on the upcoming 2027 Rugby World Cup, with insights from Venues NSW directors John Quayle and Lachlan Giles—both seasoned sporting figures with major event experience.
It’s set to be an informative, entertaining afternoon with great company, food, and drinks. Tickets are $120pp (including drinks) and must be purchased by Tuesday 5 August.
Book now and bring a mate!
BOOK ONLINE
Sponsors Shout Out
LITTLE GIANT WINES
Support the Two Blues with Red and White! 🍷💙
Our Platinum Sponsor, Little Giant Wines, is offering an incredible deal for Wanderers members and supporters—grab a case of their bold, flavour-packed wines for just $20 a bottle (normally $32 at Dan Murphy’s), and $120 from every dozen goes straight to Wanderers RFC!
It’s a delicious way to support the club—whether you’re topping up your wine rack or gifting a fellow Two Blue.
📩 To order, email president@wanderersrugby.com.au
📍 Pick-up available from the Blue Room