The Townsville & Districts Blackhawks are an Australian semi-professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

football club based in

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. They compete in Queensland's top rugby league competition, the

Queensland Cup The Queensland Cup, currently known as the Hostplus Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level regional rugby league football competition in Queensland, Australia. It is run by the Queensland Rugby League (QRL) and is contested by fou ...

. The club was admitted to the Queensland Cup in September 2014, first competing in the 2015 season. The side plays their home games at

Jack Manski Oval Jack Manski Oval is a sporting venue situated in the suburb of Kirwan in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. Predominantly used as a rugby league ground, it is the home ground of the Townsville Blackhawks, who play in the Queensland Cup. The gro ...

History

The beginnings of a Townsville team's bid to return to the Queensland Cup date back to 2007, when the Townsville-based North Queensland Young Guns folded at the end of the season. Before the Young Guns entered the competition in 2002, Townsville was represented in the Queensland Cup by the Townsville Stingers, who only lasted one season in 1998. In 2008, the Queensland Cup expanded to Cairns with the Northern Pride and

Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airpor ...

with the

Mackay Cutters The Mackay Cutters are a semi-professional rugby league football club based in Mackay, Queensland. They compete in Queensland's top rugby league competition, the Queensland Cup. The club was admitted to the Queensland Cup in 2007, alongside th ...

. Both clubs became feeder sides for the Townsville-based NRL club, the

North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest town in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...

. In 2012, the Townsville Brothers League club sent a letter to Townsville & Districts Rugby League (TDRL) chairman Ross Anderson outlining their interest in joining the Queensland Cup. On 10 September 2014, Queensland Rugby League chairman Peter Betros announced that the Brothers-led Townsville Blackhawks bid had been successful and the side would compete in the 2015 competition. The club will be backed by the

, who will use the Blackhawks as one of their feeder sides, along with the Pride and the Cutters. On 29 September 2014, former

Under 20s head coach and

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite c ...

assistant coach Kristian Woolf was announced as the inaugural head coach of the Blackhawks. On 16 October 2014, the Blackhawks announced their first six signings for their inaugural season. They included former NRL players Tom Humble, Anthony Mitchell and Ricky Thorby, former

Under 20s players Corey Jensen and Chris McLean, and

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

international Taylor Welch. On 28 February 2015, Daniel Beasley was named inaugural club captain at the team's season launch. On 7 March 2015, the Blackhawks played their first

game, defeating the

30-16 at

. Jahrome Hughes scored the club's first try. The Blackhawks finished their inaugural season as minor premiers and runners-up in the Grand Final, losing to the

Ipswich Jets The Ipswich Jets are an Australian rugby league football club based in Ipswich, Queensland. Their name comes from nearby RAAF Base Amberley, one of the largest airbases in Australia. The Jets compete in the Queensland Cup competition. Original ...

. On 9 November 2015, it was announced that Townsville’s Cyril Connell (under-16) and Mal Meninga (under-18) Cup sides, formerly known as the Townsville Stingers, will now be known as the Townsville & Districts Blackhawks in their respective competitions. On 28 September 2018,

Aaron Payne Aaron Payne (born 18 November 1982) is an Australian rugby league coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the Townsville Blackhawks in the Intrust Super Cup. Primarily a , he played his entire career for the North Queen ...

was announced as the club's second head coach, after inaugural coach

Kristian Woolf Kristian Woolf (born 6 July 1975) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach who is the assistant coach of the Dolphins in the NRL and the head coach of Tonga at international level. He previously was the head coach of St Hel ...

joined the

Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...

NRL side as an assistant coach.

Season summaries

Players

2022 squad

R Thorby, Souths vs Townsville 12 April 2015 05

Coaches

The Blackhawks' current coach,

, is their second in club history.

is their longest serving coach.

Emblems and colours

Despite being backed by the Townsville Brothers League Club, the bid team adopted a new name, logo and colour scheme for the club. The Blackhawks moniker was chosen after Matt Cocker, a local firefighter at

Townsville Airport Townsville Airport is a major Australian regional airport that services the city of Townsville, Queensland. The airport is also known as Townsville International Airport, and Garbutt Airport, a reference to its location in the Townsville sub ...

, won a "name the team" competition in 2012. The city of Townsville has a military history and is home to an RAAF Base. The club's primary colours are green, black and white and their major sponsor is Mendi Construction, who are based in Townsville.

Honours

* Runners Up: 1 :: 2015 * Minor Premiership: 1 :: 2015

Statistics and Records

Biggest Wins Biggest Losses Most Consecutive Wins *8, 9 June 2019 – 10 August 2019 *8, 22 March 2015 – 17 May 2015 Most Consecutive Losses *4, 10 April 2021 – 9 May 2021 *3, 4 August 2018 – 18 August 2018 *3, 17 March 2018 – 31 March 2018 *3, 12 August 2017 – 3 September 2017 Most Games for Club *84, Kyle Laybutt (2016-2017, 2019-2022) *79, Corey Jensen (2015–2019, 2021) *75, Michael Parker-Walshe (2015–2017, 2019) *72, Anthony Mitchell (2015–2017) *70, Sione Lousi (2017-2021) Most Tries for Club *70, Jonathon Reuben (2015–2018) *53, Kalifa Faifai Loa (2018–2022) *42,

Zac Santo Zachary Santo (born 8 April 1993) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Limoux Grizzlies in the Elite One Championship. He plays at and , and formerly played for the North Queensland Cowboys and th ...

(2015, 2018–2019) *36, Michael Parker-Walshe (2015–2017, 2019) *35,

Jaelen Feeney Jaelen Feeney (born 14 October 1994) is an Indigenous Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a and for the Townsville Blackhawks in the Queensland Cup. He previously played for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL. Backgrou ...

(2018-2022) Most tries in a match *4, Jonathon Reuben against CQ Capras at

(21 May 2017) *4, Rhyse Martin against CQ Capras at

(28 March 2015) Most Goals in a Match *10, Shaun Nona against

Souths Logan Magpies The Souths Logan Magpies, more commonly referred to by their former names Southern Suburbs Magpies, or South Brisbane Magpies, or often simply referred to as Souths, are a rugby league football club based in the southern suburbs of Brisbane, Au ...

(9 July 2022) *10, Carlin Anderson against

(18 March 2017) Most Points in a Match *28, (2 tries, 10 goals), Carlin Anderson against

(18 March 2017) Most Tries in a Season *31,

in 2015 Most Points in a Season *220 (20 tries, 70 goals), Carlin Anderson in 2017

References

External links

Blackhawks Official Website
{{Use dmy dates, date=September 2014 Rugby clubs established in 2014 Sport in Townsville Rugby league teams in Queensland 2014 establishments in Australia