The Northern Pride, pictured during a preseason training run at Barlow Park in Cairns, will “almost certainly” play its 2025 Country Week clash in Weipa as the team aims to get its hands on the grand final silverware after claiming this year’s minor premiership and then losing a thrilling preliminary final. Photo: Supplied.
As Cape York waits to see where the Northern Pride’s 2025 Hostplus Cup Country Week round will be played, the team is already into its preseason campaign as it attempts to get its hands on next year’s silverware.
After finishing the regular season as convincing minor premiers, the Pride lost a thrilling golden point preliminary final against the Redcliffe Dolphins to miss out on a spot in the grand final.
With players now back in training, new coach Russ Aitken said the 2024 season had set a benchmark for the Pride as the team aimed to go one better when it took to the paddock in the new year.
“New levels of performance have been reached across the 2024 season – this resulted in a minor premiership and a preliminary final,” he said.
“The standard has now been set and it will be up to the current group – staff and players – to again raise the bar in 2025.”
After hugely successful Country Week clashes in Weipa in 2023 and Cooktown in July, a big crowd is expected to turn out wherever Queensland Rugby League decides to hold the game, with one source saying western Cape York would “almost certainly” get the nod again in 2025 due to the availability of infrastructure to host a match.
