Sunday afternoon in Brisbane, and my friends insisted it was finally time. After dipping my toes into AFL earlier this year, the other side of this country’s great sporting divide was calling. The Brisbane Broncos were hosting the Penrith Panthers in a Preliminary Final: a rematch of 2023’s Grand Final that had the whole city buzzing. Kick-off was set for 4:05 pm, the late-afternoon sun setting the perfect stage for a Queensland rugby league blockbuster.

It was absolute scenes at Seffiert Oval last Sunday as we set our sights on a five-match grand final day. But as the time rolled closer to 3:30, the sea of red, black, light blue and many more colours turned into only two – maroon and white and blue and white for the match of the day, the Queanbeyan derby, Blues and Roos.

This week is a special edition of the CRRL Wrap, where last Wednesday was the night of nights for Canberra Region Rugby League (CRRL) with their annual Les McIntyre Medal Presentation Night.