Cherrypickers prepare for elimination final

The Young Cherrypickers are preparing for a semi-final showdown on their home turf when they face the South City Bulls from 2:30pm on Saturday 29 August. Group 9 Rugby League finals have now begun, with Young finishing fourth position and earning the right to host the elimination final at Alfred Park. The Cherrypickers have lost their last three matches and will need to bounce back to beat the fast-finishing Bulls. South City defeated the Cootamundra Bulldogs 48-4 in the last round of the regular season, which saw them overtake the Bulldogs and the Wagga Kangaroos and finish fifth. The week before that the Bulls belted Wagga Brothers 78-6, breathing fire back into their campaign. The two teams met all the way back in Round 1, where the Pickers came out on top by 34-28. Second-rower Che Hyslop was a standout for Young on that occasion, bagging two tries as they overcame Their victory was even more emphatic in Round 10, where they travelled to Wagga and eased past the Bulls 43-10. The Pickers Under 18s will also be playing an elimination final at Alfred Park this Saturday, taking on the Tumut Blues from 11:45am. Tumut won the most recent encounter between the two sides, with the Pickers looking to channel the energy they showed in Round 4 when they secured a 28-0 win. It will be a bumper day of rugby league in Young, with Tumut taking on Albury Thunder in the league tag at 10:45am. The Kangaroos will then face the Gundagai Tigers in reserve grade from 1pm. Meanwhile in the juniors the Under 14s Cherrypickers will travel to Junee on Saturday dreaming of a shot at grand final glory when they take on the Temora Dragons. The match begins at 11:55am, with the 14s flying the flag for Young at the junior grand finals. The Under 13s, 15s, 16s, 14s League Tag and 14s Girls Tackle all reached the semi-finals, but were beaten despite their best efforts.