C & H Recruitment Partner With Seagulls in 2025

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls are pleased to welcome C&H Recruitment on board as a Platinum Partner for the 2025 season.

C&H Recruitment is a supplier of short- and long-term labour hire solutions to a range of clients and industries Australia wide.

“We support the regions in which we operate through various sponsorships and community involvement. We operate in all major states across Australia, and our diverse team include Recruitment Resources, Recruitment Consultants and Business Account Managers – with dedicated personnel focusing on individual contracts and clients.

Our team are handpicked for their knowledge of the recruitment industry, experience across a variety of fields such as logistics, transport, manufacturing, construction, and mining among others, and their ability to manage complex operations with a focus on safety and efficiency.

We have access to a database of up to 750,000 workready labour resources in Australia, and have achieved retention targets of 83%, well above industry norms.

C&H Recruitment is backed by over 85 years of combined industry knowledge within our leadership team which allows prospective clients in the various sectors to have confidence in our service offering in understanding our clients’ operational needs and methodologies.”

The C&H Recruitment logo will feature on both our Men’s and Women’s jerseys, and they will look to offer employment opportunities to players, and the wider Bayside community, where possible.

To learn more about C&H Recruitment, you can get in touch here:
W: candhrecruitment.com.au/
Ph: 07 3332 0050
E: info@candh.global

BRL A Grade Moves to BMD Kougari Oval in 2025

In exciting news, the back-to-back Premiership winning BRL A Grade team will move from the Wynnum Manly Juniors at Kitchener Park, to the Wynnum Manly Seagulls at BMD Kougari Oval in 2025.

This decision will not only alleviate some financial pressure from our Juniors, but it will create a much stronger Hostplus Cup squad for our seniors.

With all players now able to train and play under the same banner, the pathway from Juniors, to BRL to Hostplus Cup will be as strong as ever.

This will also allow us to have a larger Hostplus Cup squad, with players then splitting in to Cup and BRL A Grade teams for the weekend’s games. However, in this scenario, our players will all play together rather than being split between two affiliate BRL clubs when not selected for Hostplus Cup.

It will also result in more games per gameday at BMD Kougari Oval, as we are hopeful that our BRL A Grade draw will line up nicely with our Hostplus Cup draw (to be released in December).

We’d like to extend our appreciation to the Wynnum Manly Juniors for their efforts in collaborating on this decision over the past few months. We are looking forward to a very successful alignment in 2025.

Seagulls Induct Two New Life Members

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls were proud to induct two new life members at our recent Presentation Gala.

Cate Solah and Steve Heymer are both very deserving recipients of Seagulls life membership given their commitment to the club over decades.

The highest honour our club can award to its members, these two new inductees join an exclusive club of Seagulls legends.

For over 20 years, Cate Solah has dedicated her time to rugby league, from managing junior teams, all the way through to a decade long tenure as a director of this great club. Her passion for footy is demonstrated by her selflessness and dedication of her spare time to help where necessary.

Cate put her hand up immediately to volunteer as team manager for her son’s junior footy teams down the road at Kitchener Park. Her reliability, and care made people believe she could be a real asset to the club, and she was later called upon to be the club registrar. She was then elected by the members of the Wynnum Manly Juniors to be their next president.

As time passed, and her boys grew, her interest swung to senior footy, and back into the team manager role for emerging developmental teams coming through. She was then asked to join the board of directors to help oversee and guide the Seagulls into a new age of professionalism. She continued as a director until the end of the 2023 season, before stepping down to seek further opportunities away from the footy field.

Cate is also a local business owner and was a proud sponsor of the Seagulls for over 10 years through SQS Haulage.

Steve Heymer played all his junior rugby league with Wynnum Manly Juniors, including being the team mascot for the Seagulls 1984 BRL premiership team.

His parents were also heavily involved, with his Dad playing for the Seagulls through the 1960’s and 70’s, and his Mum being the first member of the Wynnum Manly Seagulls cheer squad in the Brisbane Rugby League.

Steve debuted for the Seagulls seniors in 1987, before playing overseas in York, then returning to finish his playing career in our first grade squad in the early 2000’s.

He then began coaching and also held a development role within our academy program. Since that time, Steve has provided outstanding service to our organisation across coaching, managing and sports trainer work – right through to this season with our Hostplus Cup team. He’s been associated with the Seagulls for 40 years across his career as a player and staff member.

Cate and Steve are two people that have committed an incredible amount of time and effort to the club over many years.

The BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls are proud to induct both Cate and Steve as life members of our club.

Seagulls Celebrate 2024 Season

On Friday, the BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls celebrated the 2024 season with our Presentation Gala at the Wynnum Manly Leagues Club.

Luke Gale was the big winner on the night as he claimed 3 awards.

Players from our Hostplus Cup and BMD Premiership teams, as well as our award winners from the McDonalds Seagulls Academy, joined staff, club sponsors and special guests to finalise the season.

Led by MC Steve Haddan, the best players from each team were acknowledged with the Player of the Year and Players’ Player awards.

Additionally, the club awarded Life Membership to both Cate Solah and Steve Heymer for their incredible contributions over a long period of time.

Two other awards for outstanding achievement across the season were recognised through the Mitch Cronin Medal and the Volunteer of the Year.

The full list of award winners are below:
Life Membership
Cate Solah
Steve Heymer

Hostplus Cup
Player of the Year – Luke Gale
Players’ Player – Cory Paix
Most Diligent – Sione Hopoate
Anthony ‘Chook’ Schweitzer Memorial Supporter’s Award – Luke Gale

BMD Premiership
Player of the Year – Jayda Lofipo
Players’ Player – Sienna Lofipo

Mitch Cronin Medal (Club Person of the Year)
Luke Gale

Best Junior to Senior
Male – Ethan Malt
Female – Mariah Brown

Mal Meninga Cup
Player of the Year – Zane Ford
Players’ Player – Jaycob Kingston-Francis

Cyril Connell Cup
Player of the Year – Zeke Jones
Players’ Player – Zeke Jones

Harvey Norman U19
Player of the Year – Mariah Brown & Hayley Bush
Players’ Player – Caitlin Tanner

Harvey Norman U17
Player of the Year – Emily Whittaker
Players’ Player – Emily Whittaker

Volunteer of the Year (Arch Geary Shield)
Shaun ‘Porky’ Watego

Seagulls 2025 TAFE Program Applications Open

Based at BMD Kougari Oval, the Wynnum Manly Seagulls TAFE at School Program promotes excellence by equipping senior high school rugby league players with the right tools to pursue success in and outside the playing arena, while providing a clear pathway to employment in the sports industry.

Students enter the 2-year rugby league coaching immersion program in year 10 or 11, attending 1-day a week during the school year while completing two qualifications, Certificate II in Sport Coaching and III in Sport Coaching (SIS20321/SIS3042) delivered by a specialised educator from TAFE Queensland (RTO 0275).

The program is fully contextualised around the sport of rugby league and the class regularly transitions between the classroom, pitch and gym to create an active and engaging learning environment. Upon completion, students will earn up to 8QCE credit points, contribute to their ATAR, qualify to work or volunteer in assistant coaching roles at rugby league clubs and sports organisations and/or pathway into higher study.

TAFE Queensland Academy of Sport Manager, Jesse O’Hara said “This program based at the home of the Wynnum Manly Seagulls creates a fully contextualised rugby league coach education program for students in their final years of high school, building in two qualifications so that players get the benefit of an awesome education to support their QCE or ATAR, while learning in a highly engaging and active environment.”

This ideal is perfect for players who want to incorporate their passion for rugby league and the sports industry into their final years of high school.

If you are interested in learning more about the 2025 program and how to join, follow these steps:

To Apply

  1. Visit www.tafeapply.com
  2. Use the application code TQB2501
  3. Follow the prompts and select the Wynnum Manly Seagulls TAFE at School program
  4. Check with your school to approve the application

2024 Season Finishes in PNG

The 2024 season is officially over for the BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls.

After a Round 23 loss to the Brisbane Tigers finalised our 8th spot on the ladder, the boys travelled to Port Moresby to take on the PNG Hunters in an elimination final (5th vs 8th).

Faced with the toughest away trip in the competition, our Seagulls weren’t overawed by the challenge. In fact there was part of them seeking redemption for a Rd1 loss, also to the Hunters in Port Moresby.

As with every trip to PNG, the rugby league-mad supporters are everywhere and are thankful to have high quality football on display.

Brendan Frei has made some new PNG fans.

A great crowd came through the gates of the Santos National Football Stadium to watch this do or die clash.

The Seagulls weathered a bruising start from the Hunters, with their typical hard-running, hard-hitting style evident from the outset.

Connor Broadhurst then shocked the home fans when he beat his man to score in the 8th minute.

A successful conversion, and then another penalty from Bryce Donovan, had the Seagulls in front 8-0 after 16 minutes.

To the Hunters’ credit, they were shown an opening and took full advantage to blow the game wide open, scoring in the 20th, 24th and 27th minutes.

The game had flipped on its head and the Hunters now led 16-8.

The Seagulls did their best to hold on, and got back into the arm wrestle to maintain the same score at the halftime break.

The second half started how the first half finished, with a very even battle for possession and territory, and both teams struggling to outdo the other.

However, in the 59th minute, the Hunters capitalised on a Seagulls error and scored a great counter-attacking try.

A late field goal sealed to game for the Hunters, who ran out 23-8 winners.

That is the end of our 2024 season – earlier than we would have liked. But there has been a lot of positive change both on and off the field.

We look forward to a big 2025 season!

#UpTheGulls

Seagulls Celebrate 1984 Premiership Team

To kickstart Paul Green Medal Day on Sunday, the BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls welcomed back our 1984 Premiership team for their 40 year reunion.

Hosted by the Wynnum Manly Leagues Club, a full house attended to celebrate potentially the best BRL team ever put together.

In addition, 50% of the proceeds from the reunion lunch were split evenly with the Australian Sports Brain Bank (ASBB), who are Australia’s leading researcher into the effects of CTE in sportspeople.

Steve Haddan kept our guests entertained as MC, and showed his extensive knowledge of the BRL throughout the event.

MC Steve Haddan leads the live auction.

Ladbrokes came on board as a sponsor of the event and gave away a trip for 2 to the NRL Grand Final, including diamond seats, an ambassador cruise, food & drinks, valued at $5,000!

Wally Lewis and Prof. Michael Buckland were the first guests on stage to discuss CTE and the importance of research into the issue.

Then halfback Peter Dawes joined Coach Des and Captain Rod Morris on stage to recap the 1982 team’s triumph as a lead-in to the 1984 team.

After lunch, Wally was back on stage with Des Morris and Greg Dowling to share the memories from the 1984 premiership win.

Rod Morris, Wally Lewis and Greg Dowling telling stories from 1984.

Plenty of money was raised for the ASBB during the live and silent auctions, with some very generous contributions, particularly from BMD’s Mick Power and Bartons’ Mark Beitz.

All in all, a very special event to celebrate a year of dominance from the Seagulls in 1984, as well continuing the fundraising for CTE research.

The Seagulls would like to thank the following people for the contributions to our 1984 premiership reunion:
– BMD’s Mick Power AM, Scott Power, Toni Richards
– Bartons’ Mark Beitz, Kelly McKenna, Gaylene Gillard-Beitz
– Amanda Green
– Peter Dawes, Gene Miles, Bruce Cory, Wally Lewis
– Event sponsor – Ladbrokes
– Creatives – Kit Kreative, Signmart, Bayside Hampers, Paul Comber

Set yourself a reminder for 2026 as well wrap up an incredible period of football for the Seagulls, and celebrate the 1986 premiership win!

Gulls Go Down to Tigers in Final Round

Match report presented by George Hartnett Metropolitan Funerals

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls hosted the Brisbane Tigers in the final round of the Hostplus Cup on Sunday.

Known as our annual Paul Green Medal Day, the final round saw a bumper crowd swarm on BMD Kougari Oval for multiple reasons.

To kick off the day, the Seagulls hosted our 1984 Premiership team for their 40-year anniversary. The event was a full house, with 50% of the proceeds from the lunch going to the Australian Sports Brain Bank – a leading Australian charity that researches the cause and effects of CTE in sportspeople.

Following the lunch, the Wynnum Manly legends played against the Easts legends for the BMD-Bartons Cup. This game is played in memory of Paul Green, who played at Easts and coached Wynnum Manly’s most recent premierships. Wynnum Manly came out on top 16-8.

Paul’s kids, Emerson and Jed, led out the two Hostplus Cup teams onto the field to the tune of Pete Murray’s ‘Seen Better Days’, in QRL’s Turn To Me Round – a men’s mental health initiative.

Emerson and Jed Green lead out both teams. 

The Seagulls got off to a flyer and were unlucky to have 2 tries disallowed within the first 10 minutes. They maintained their momentum as Matt Milson sliced through a gap to beat the fullback and score under the posts in the 10th minute.

Sione Hopoate and Connor Broadhurst, after being disallowed earlier, scored in quick succession in the 20th and 24th minutes. 16-0 Seagulls.

The Tigers hit back through former QLD Origin player Chris McQueen, before Ethan Malt pounced on an Easts knock-on and ran 20m to score his first Hostplus Cup try.

Easts snuck in just before the break to take the Seagulls momentum away and bring the score to 22-12 at halftime.

The Tigers were in again shortly after halftime and closed the gap to 22-18. Then in the 59th minute, the Tigers hit the front for the first time 24-22.

Ethan Malt’s first Hostplus Cup try.

Seagulls captain Brendan Frei, led by example and grabbed a Bryce Donovan kick to score under the posts and put his team back in the lead 28-24

Then with 5 minutes to go, the Tigers broke the Seagulls hearts with a try, and successful conversion, to lead 30-28.

A final minute penalty to the Tigers ensured their victory, and confirmed an 8th place finish in the 2024 season for the Seagulls.

This result means a trip to Papua New Guinea to take on the Hunters on Saturday afternoon. The most daunting away trip in the league, but a game that the Seagulls will be up for.

Tune in on QPlus.tv on Saturday at 4pm to watch the Seagulls vs Hunters in an elimination final.

Seagulls Field Blockbuster Legends Team

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls legends will run out for their annual match this coming Sunday 25th August at 2:10pm.

Taking on the Easts Tigers legends team, the Seagulls have named a lineup of superstars looking to retain the BMD-Bartons Cup.

An exciting tradition on the second annual Paul Green Medal Day, the legends match brings former greats of both clubs out of retirement in tribute to another Bayside legend, Paul Green.

Greeny played at Easts, and then coached the Seagulls to back-to-back premierships in 2011 and 2012.

This game is an opportunity for the Old Boys to express their love for Greeny, and put on a show for the adoring Chook Pen.

Some players may still be physically hurting from last year’s corresponding game, but they wouldn’t miss this one.

Seagulls legends captain Luke Dalziel-Don is awarded the BMD-Bartons Cup in 2023.

Players such as Seagulls leading points scorer Mat Seamark, former QLD Cup coach Adam Brideson, and former club CEO Hanan Laban, will run out in Seagulls retro jerseys, which are on sale now and will continue to be sold on the day.

Following the legends match, the final round of the Hostplus Cup will kick off at 3:10pm, broadcast for free on Kayo Freebies, 9Now, QPlus.tv and Facebook livestream. The player of the match will be awarded the Paul Green Medal.

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls legends team list:
1 Shea Moylan
2 Peter Gubb
3 Damian Quinn
4 Chris Currie
5 Daniel Ogden
6 Jon jon TeReo
7 Mat Seamark
8 Craig Greenhill
9 Wade Bachmann
10 Chris Muckert
11 Adam Brideson
12 Darren Bain
13 Luke Dalziel-Don
14 Ben Czislowski
15 Mitchell Dodds
16 Brad Nairn
17 Tanu Wulf
18 Hanan Laban
19 Tony Gollan
20 Will Scanlan
21 Gus Martin
22 Clayton Maher
23 Denny Lambert
24 Mark Lane

Staff:
Head Coach – Ben Ikin
Assistant – Jed Green
Assistant – Andrew Gee
Manager – Kerry Crosbie
Asst Manager – Andrew Clayton
Head of Performance – Tony Wood
Performance & Rehab – Brendan Turnbull
Head of Hydration – Danny Grimley
Hydration Assistant – Ian Turner
Hype Manager – Shane Yeo
Trainers – Kevin Crease / Graeme Kirk

Jersey Presenters:
Steve Plath
Steve Malt
Paul Lineburg

Tough Loss in Rockhampton

George Hartnett Metropolitan Funerals match report

BMD Wynnum Manly Seagulls travelled to Rockhampton for Women In League Round over the weekend to face the Central QLD Capras.

Coming off a 32-12 loss to the 1st-placed Northern Pride in Cooktown the week before, the Seagulls were hoping to get through another big trip and put a win on the board.

Wynnum Manly started well, with a couple of early breaks in an opening 14-minute period of relatively free-flowing football.

The Capras scored first in the 14th minute and unfortunately for the Seagulls, it was one-way traffic from that point on. The Capras then scored 3 more tries to take a 24-0 lead into the halftime break.

Anthony Milford scored first for the Capras in the second half, as the Dolphins-contracted half led his team around the park.

Brendan Frei ran a great line in the 51st minute to get the Seagulls on the scoreboard. Then Josh Stuckey barged his way through defenders in the 54th minutes, creating a glimmer of hope for a comeback.

But being down 30-12 proved too much, as the Capras scored another 3 tries to seal the game, 48-12.

The Seagulls are a lot closer to home for this weekend’s Round 21 away game. We’ll take on the Norths Devils on Sunday at 2:10pm. This is the feature broadcast match of the round, and can be viewed for free on Kayo Freebies, 9Now and QPlus.tv.

Following that, the Seagulls have 2 home games to finish the regular season, against Townsville Blackhawks and then Brisbane Tigers on Paul Green Medal Day.