Everything you need to know: Wheelchair State Challenge

Queensland will be looking to secure a third-straight win over New South Wales at the Wheelchair State Challenge on Saturday, July 8.

The 2023 one-off match, taking place at the Whitlam Leisure Centre in Sydney, starts at 3pm and will be available to view live on Qplus.tv. 

The contest marks a special milestone for Queensland veteran and Wheelaroos representative Shaun Harre, who will bring up his 10th appearance for his state on Saturday.

Queensland Wheelchair Rugby league chairman David Nugent said with the right people guiding the team, including the likes of England World Cup winner Jack Brown as coach, they were in a strong position to bring home the shield once again.

"I've been really excited since seeing the calibre of the game in City-Country," Nugent said.

"I knew then having watched the closeness of that game... that we would pick a strong team.

"Jack does an outstanding job. There's not too many times you see really good players convert into really good coaches. I think we've got one of those rare cases.

"I couldn't be more excited about where he can take his team in the next few years as well."

Nugent said while Queensland boasted six Australian players, NSW shaped as a "dangerous" opposition.

"I think the preparation has been really sound and they've done enough to put out a really good performance," Nugent said.

"We'll face a more youthful side than what we've probably faced in the past. I think they will be better for that, New South Wales.

"So we have to be prepared for that, but I'm confident that we are.

"Hopefully we come up with the shield again."

Nugent said he hoped the interstate clashes could grow into a multi-game series in the near future.

Everything you need to know

What

Wheelchair State Challenge, Queensland v NSW

When

Saturday, July 8 at 3pm

Where

Whitlam Leisure Centre, Sydney

Broadcast

 Qplus.tv, ABC Radio

Last time they met

Queensland 49 def NSW 24 (July 2022)

Teams 

NSW

Brad Grove, Diab Karim, William Derederenalagi, Liam Luff, Zac Carl, Brett Henman, Rick Engles, Chris O'Brien, Toby Popple, Cory Cannane

Queensland

Zac Schumacher, Pete Arbuckle, Dan Anstey (debut), Shaun Harre, James Hill, Gage Ives, Brett Bazley (debut), Bayley McKenna, Adam Tannock, Cory Mostran

Rules to know

• Teams are made up of 10 players, with five on the court at any given time. Two non-classified players are allowed per team
• A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition’s in-goal area or on the goal line
• Conversions, penalty goals and drop goals can be ‘kicked’ by punching the ball over the posts using the fist. A 'kicking' tee can be used for conversions 
• All players wear Velcro shoulder tags. Defenders must remove a tag from the shoulder of the ball carrier to constitute a ‘tackle’
• To restart play after a tackle, a modified version of the play-the-ball is used
• Most other rules resemble traditional rugby league