The George Tooke Shield will be decided this Saturday, with Harden to host North Canberra in both the men’s and women’s grand finals. The Hawks and Hawkettes clinched both minor premierships this season and go into the weekend as favourites for both titles. It will be the Hawkettes who kick the day off when they stride onto McLean Oval at 1pm in the league tag, with the Hawks match to begin at 2:30pm. North Canberra Bears made their way into both deciders with two gritty wins in their preliminary finals last weekend, winning 14-12 in the women’s and 18-16 in the men’s. These wins both came against Crookwell on the Green Devils home turf, with the Bears hoping to rekindle the same spirit and win on the road this weekend. The Hawks were pushed all the way in their most recent clash against Crookwell, coming from behind to win 20-16 to book themselves into the big dance. In clashes against the Bears this season they’ve won 22-16 in Round 6 and 24-10 in Round 13. For the Hawkettes, they defeated the North Canberra 30-12 in the major semi-final a fortnight ago, as well as 42-22 and 34-8 during the regular season. The Hawks have been beaten by Bungendore in their last two grand final assignments, their last time holding the George Tooke Shield coming in 2017. The girls on the other hand are hoping for a fifth straight title, having won 20-18 against the Crookwell She Devils last season. It promises to be a memorable day for rugby league in Harden-Murrumburrah, with hopes high around the twin towns that they can bring home dual silverware for the 2026 season.
