By Matthew Mazzier Bautista for the Griffith Journal

7 August 2026

The Griffith Dragons are now the URLQ 2026 minor premiers, following a 38-22 win over the QUT Trouts on Wednesday.

The game was close all throughout before the Dragons put their foot down and closed the game out in the final 10 minutes.

After receiving the kick-off, the Dragons put themselves under immediate pressure following an error just metres from their goal line.

Any resistance that Griffith put up was quickly taken away which resulted in QUT opening the scoring in the 6^th minute.

But the Dragons responded in the 10^th minute with a try of their own as Warao Kaeok captured Lachlan Moore’s grubber kick to make the scores 4-6.

Just a few minutes elapsed before the Dragons scored another with Ben Rynsbergen scoring underneath the posts granting Griffith the lead at 10-6.

Griffith began knocking on the door again but were shutout on two separate occasions before Jeremiah Viliamu took matters into his own hands and scored with a dummy half dive to cross the line.

The 24^th minute try extended the Dragons’ lead to 16-6 before QUT responded just 5 minutes later scoring in the right corner.

With the scores close at 16-12, Griffith looked to close out the half strong.

A strong defensive effort pinned QUT in their own half, dragging the ball carrier into touch.

Griffith’s Terence Kane rewarded the team’s efforts with a left edge try in the 32^nd minute allowing the team to take a 20-12 lead into halftime.

Coming out of the second half, Griffith’s Connor Gregory scored in the right corner in the 44^th minute, tightening the team’s grip on the contest with a 24-12 lead.

However, back-to-back penalties and a sin bin allowed QUT back into the game, with a 51^st minute try cutting the Dragons’ lead to 24-18, reducing the margin to just one converted try.

Griffith’s ill-discipline continued to hurt them, granting QUT another try in the 54^th minute making the scores 24-22.

The Dragons’ defence dug deep resisting QUT’s attempts at claiming the lead in the 60^th minute before back-to-back penalties allowed them to claim good field position.

Dante Ioane punished QUT’s ill-discipline scoring to the right of the posts, extending the Dragons’ lead 30-22.

QUT then conceded another penalty this time for an incorrect restart, allowing Griffith to start their set in the Trouts’ half.

Lachlan Moore all but sealed the win for Griffith in the 66^th minute, breaking away from dummy-half for a 40-metre solo try to stretch the lead 36-22.

Dante Ioane added the finishing touches by nailing a 35-metre penalty goal in the 69^th minute, to cap off Griffith’s win 38-22.

With just one round remaining, the Dragons are now untouchable at the top of the table, adding a minor premiership to the 2026 URLQ history books.

This also means that Griffith will host their preliminary final against the team sitting in fourth, which takes place following the regular season.

The Dragon’s next and final game for the regular season will take place at home against UQ on Wednesday August 19.

The fixture will take place at Griffith Nathan Fields kicking off at 7:30pm.

Members of the Griffith community are strongly encouraged to come down and support the team as they look finish the regular season strong.