Gun halves’ soaring stocks; Dally M winners, Vegas stars snubbed - Jillaroos Winners and Losers

Jillaroos coach Jess Skinner has unveiled her side - led by Kezie Apps and Ali Brigginshaw, and featuring four potential debutants - for the upcoming Pacific Championships.

The Jillaroos will play Fetu Samoa first up at Suncorp Stadium on October 26, then the New Zealand Kiwi Ferns at Eden Park on November 2.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from the Jillaroos squad announcement.

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WINNERS

JESSE SOUTHWELL

Southwell had already cemented herself as a powerful force in the NRLW but in this year guiding NSW to a State of Origin series win after getting a recall, then taking Newcastle to the finals minus Tamika Upton, she proved herself worthy of a Jillaroos call-up.

The 20-year-old debutant now has her sights set on the Australian No.7 jersey, having just being named Dally M Halfback of the Year, though precisely where she stands in a squad containing Brigginshaw, Jocelyn Kelleher and Emma Verran remains to be seen.

After helping the Knights to premierships in 2022 and 2023, Southwell represented the Prime Minister’s XIII last year and was added as an injury cover for the final week of the Pacific Championships.

With Queensland Origin rival Tarryn Aiken sidelined by an ACL injury for this tournament, Southwell may get the opportunity to step up and was branded “the future of our game” by Skinner when named in the squad. Her playmaking and goalkicking have both been elite this season.

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RIMA BUTLER

Butler is another debutant but no stranger to representative football, having played two games for New Zealand Māori. She also made NSW’s extended 30-player Origin squad this year.

Butler just completed her fourth NRLW season and scored five tries for the Roosters in 12 games, more than doubling her previous combined tally, while cementing herself as one the league’s most powerful forwards.

Across stints at the Eels, Knights and Roosters, Butler has made it to three grand finals and played a huge role in a Tricolours side that went undefeated until a narrow GF loss to Brisbane.

If you needed any further proof of Butler’s grit, look no further than her nasty collision with teammate Olivia Kernick in the decider and resulting nasty facial injury - before a brave call to stick it out for the rest of the game.

QUINCY DODD

Cronulla hooker Dodd was impressive when active this season, yet her Jillaroos hopes took a hit following an ankle injury suffered during Round 6 against the Dragons.

Dodd missed the last five games of the regular season and was only cleared before the Sharks’ preliminary final against the Roosters, in which she helped them get within one point of the unbeaten minor premiers.

Dodd’s selection is both an impressive bounce back and a clear sign of the regard in which she is held, having only made her Jillaroos debut last year.

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ELLIE JOHNSTON

Beginning her NRLW career with the Dragons in 2020 and signing with the Sharks in 2023, Johnston just had her most dominant year yet at front-row and is in the brink of a Test debut.

A standout in the 2024 grand final, Johnston continued her passionate performances into this year and was selected for NSW’s Origin series win, making a huge impact on both sides of the ball.

With 38 tackle breaks and an average of 133 running metres this season, Johnston was named a NRLW Dally M Prop of the Year alongside fellow Jillaroos pick Jessika Elliston.

JOCELYN KELLEHER

Roosters half Kelleher has been one of the glamour club’s quiet stars since her debut in 2020 and came into her own this season in a line-up frequently without either Tarryn Aiken or Corban Baxter due to injury.

In an increasingly dominant season for the Roosters, Kelleher became the NRLW’s all-time leading point scorer, now totalling 267 points (from seven tries and 119 goals) across her six years in the league.

Her stellar saw her named in the NSW side for this year’s Origin, playing as the bench utility in a series win. After a narrow loss in the grand final, Kelleher will be hungry for a Test debut and victory in the Pacific Championships alongside her Roosters teammates Keeley Davis, Rima Butler, Olivia Kernick and Isabelle Kelly.

SIENNA LOFIPO

The Titans lock earned a nod after a strong campaign for a side that scraped into the finals despite roster carnage - but she has now opted to stick with representing Samoa.

With a stack of absences and injuries on the Gold Coast, the onus was on younger players to stand up and Lofipo was one who did so with aplomb.

Australia’s selection was a huge tick for Lofipo’s career trajectory - but instead of being a fifth potential Aussie debutant, she’ll now line up against the Jillaroos in the tournament opener.

LOSERS

SHERIDAN GALLAGHER

With a premiership in her first year at Newcastle in 2023, Gallagher has fast emerged as an outstanding tryscorer.

Playing a powerful role in the Knights’ finals run with nine tries this year, Gallagher earned a Dally M Winger of the Year award and must have held hopes of a Jillaroos call-up.

Skinner appears to have picked who she’s deemed the best outside backs, even though most selections are playing in the centres. With Julia Robinson, Isabelle Kelly, Jessica Sergis and Tiana Penitani Gray all there, plus Cowboys fullback Jakiya Whitfield, perhaps it’s hard to argue.

EMMA MANZELMANN

Another Dally M positional winner who missed the squad, Manzelmann had a great year with the Cowboys, helping lead them to a first-ever finals appearance.

Manzelmann was averaging 30 tackles and 52 running metres per game and was aiming to add to her 2023 Jillaroos debut, yet was instead overlooked; as she was for Queensland Origin duty this season.

While Keeley Davis was a clear pick, Manzelmann can perhaps consider herself unlucky to have not pipped Dodd as the second hooker.

OLIVIA HIGGINS

Higgins was the Jillaroos hooker under Skinner when the team destroyed England 90-4 in Las Vegas to launch the season, yet hasn’t held her spot in the coach’s calculations.

The Knight hooker delivered a solid campaign as Newcastle finished third in the NRLW, having been a fairytale pick for an Australian Test debut last year.

But now aged 33, it may have been a short-lived stint in green and gold for the three-time premiership winner.

ROMY TEITZEL

Despite a large amount of selections coming from the Roosters and Broncos, a notable snub was Broncos forward Teitzel, a Dally M Second-Rower of the Year alongside Yasmin Clydesdale.

With four tries and 50 goals, Teitzel was the NRLW’s leading pointscorer (116) and also averaged nearly 100 running metres per game on the edge.

Teitzel played a large role in the Broncos’ most significant season, winning 10 out of 11 regular season games before grand final glory over the Roosters, yet it didn’t get the Queensland Origin staple a first Jillaroos nod.

LAUREN BROWN

Brown represented Australia in 2022-23, yet despite a terrific year with the Titans was again a notable Jillaroos omission.

The long-time Maroons Origin staple was the reason Gold Coast made the finals, with a late field goal in Round 11 against the Raiders sealing their place in the top six, yet she could not force the selectors’ hands.

With Southwell’s star soaring, Kelleher now firmly in the Australian team mix and Aiken to return when healthy, Brown has slid down the pecking order while ticking past age 30.

SIMAIMA TAUFA

Taufa was another player who started for Skinner in the Las Vegas Test, wearing the No.13 as Olivia Kernick shifted to edge backrow.

While she played her heart out in a modestly-performed Canberra team this NRLW season, as well as the victorious Blues in Origin, Taufa was missing from this Jillaroos squad and Kernick is now one of the biggest stars on the team sheet.

At age 31, she’s another player fighting the clock as well as selection rivals.

JILLAROOS SQUAD

Kezie Apps - c (Wests Tigers)

Ali Brigginshaw - c (Brisbane Broncos)

Rima Butler * (Sydney Roosters)

Yasmin Clydsdale (Newcastle Knights)

Keeley Davis (Sydney Roosters)

Quincy Dodd (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)

Jessika Elliston (Gold Coast Titans)

Ellie Johnston * (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)

Keilee Joseph (Brisbane Broncos)

Jocelyn Kelleher * (Sydney Roosters)

Isabelle Kelly (Sydney Roosters)

Olivia Kernick (Sydney Roosters)

Sienna Lofipo * (Gold Coast Titans) - withdrew to play for Samoa

Tiana Penitani Gray (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)

Julia Robinson (Brisbane Broncos)

Jessica Sergis (Sydney Roosters)

Jesse Southwell * (Newcastle Knights)

Sarah Togatuki (Wests Tigers)

Tamika Upton (Brisbane Broncos)

Jakiya Whitfeld (North Queensland Cowboys)

Emma Verran (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)

* Denotes potential debut

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