Brothers Men's Clean Sweep GPS

Brothers First Grade secured an important 40–26 victory over GPS in Round 11 of the Queensland Hospital Cup at Crosby Park on Saturday, ensuring the coveted Bunter Bowl remains firmly in Brethren hands.

Under gloomy Brisbane skies, Brothers came out of the blocks with intent, led by the destructive ball-carrying of Dre Pakeho. The powerful centre dominated the opening stages, repeatedly punching holes in the GPS defensive line with a series of damaging attacking runs.

The hosts struck first through David Fusitua, who showcased his immense strength by carrying three defenders over the try line to open the scoring. Brothers continued to build pressure and were rewarded again when Pakeho capped off his outstanding first-half performance with a well-deserved try of his own.

The home crowd then welcomed the return of Vice Latu from Queensland Reds duty, and it didn’t take long for the dynamic back rower to make his presence felt, crossing for Brothers’ third try of the afternoon.

Just as it looked like Brothers might run away with the contest, GPS responded strongly with two tries of their own, threatening to carry momentum into the halftime break. However, Brothers delivered the perfect response when Finn Prass crossed just a minute later, restoring control and sending the Brethren to the sheds with a commanding 28–12 lead.

The second half became a battle of the big men, with both forward packs asserting themselves through a pair of set-piece tries each. The contest tightened as GPS refused to go away, matching Brothers' physicality and continuing to challenge around the breakdown and set piece.

One of the highlights of the afternoon came from an unlikely source, as winger Henry Smith left his touchline post to inject himself into the attack. Spotting an opportunity, Smith produced a silky flick pass that sent Manu Latu over for a crucial try and brought the Crosby Park faithful to their feet.

To their credit, GPS continued to apply pressure right until the final whistle. Their persistence was rewarded with the last try of the game when their halfback snuck over from close range with a clever dart from the base of the ruck.

Despite the late score, Brothers had done more than enough to secure a deserved 40–26 victory. In front of their home supporters, the Brethren delivered an entertaining performance built on physicality, attacking flair, and clinical finishing to maintain their strong position in the competition and keep the Bunter Bowl safely at Crosby Park.

Colts 1 report by Nick Turner -

In Colts 1, Brothers showed again why they are so hard to beat in a 45-19 win against GPS. It was The Brethren’s sheer talent, depth and ability to pull a rabbit out of a hat that make them favourites to win — if the grand final was played tomorrow.

Finals footy is a different beast. But at the moment Brothers possess too much strike and again it was winger Nick Cordingley who stood out in a fiery clash.

Cordingley has been the find of the season and his hattrick turned a 21-19 arm wrestle into a blow out where the final score did not reflect the closeness of the contest.

GPS took a momentary lead, 19-14 with half an hour to play, when they mounted more than 15 phases before rangy lock Christian Kurylewski crashed over in the right corner.

That lead was vaporised quickly despite some gallant defence from GPS midfielder Tom Millard who forced a knock on with big contact. He was tireless all day.

GPS even turned away a Brothers rolling maul with Australian under-20s lock Will Ross at the epicentre. However the hosts finished with a late onslaught, which started with a strong Rohan Nichol run from flyhalf that got Brothers on the front foot.

Quick service from No. 9 Joe Post and an on-point cut out pass from fullback Brock Coombes found Cordingley for his first try with 22 to go.

Ahead by two points, Brothers scored four more tries before the game was out — one by centre Tai Taka, two more by speedster Cordingley and one from prop Koby Washington who had earlier opened the scoring.

Full Club Results;

1st Grade 40 def GPS 26

2nd Grade 33 def GPS 19

3rd Grade 24 def GPS 21

4th Grade 57 def GPS 26

5th Grade 73 def GPS 5

6th Grade 36 def Brisbane Irish 5

Colts 1 45 def GPS 19

Colts 2 29 def GPS 17

Colts 3 27 def GPS 12

Colts 5 55 Wests def Brothers 33

Women 25 GPS def Brothers 0