You may as well just have one round, just have a grand final
In the unfolding story of women's rugby league, talent has a way of finding its own gravity — and right now, that gravity pulls toward Brisbane. Jesse Southwell, a 20-year-old halfback of rare vision and just beginning her career, has chosen to leave Newcastle for the Broncos, a club already dominant enough to render the question of competition almost philosophical. Her move arrives not merely as a personal career decision but as a kind of reckoning: a signal that the NRLW, still young and still finding its shape, must now confront whether abundance at the top can coexist with meaning at the bottom.
- A competition that expanded to 12 teams in 2025 hoping for greater depth is instead watching its best talent concentrate in two clubs — the Broncos and Roosters won every match they played against all other sides.
- Southwell's departure strips Newcastle of its second marquee player in as many off-seasons, following fullback Tamika Upton's move to Brisbane last year, leaving a club that was supposed to be rising instead hollowing out.
- Rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns publicly called on the NRL to block the transfer, warning that Southwell's elite kicking and vision added to Brisbane's already formidable roster could produce 40 to 50-point weekly margins.
- NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo had resisted declaring the competition imbalanced, but the 2025 season's scorelines — Brisbane finishing with four times the competition points of last-placed Wests Tigers — made that position increasingly difficult to hold.
- The Broncos will lose several players including Gayle Broughton and Mele Hufanga, but Southwell's signing signals the club believes it is building toward something more dominant, not less — and the rest of the competition is left to reckon with what that means.
Jesse Southwell's decision to leave Newcastle and sign a two-year deal with Brisbane has reopened a debate the NRLW cannot afford to leave unresolved. The 20-year-old NSW State of Origin halfback will join the Broncos next season alongside Ali Brigginshaw before taking sole control of the attack in 2027 — a move that reads less like a career choice and more like a verdict on where power in the women's competition now resides.
The numbers from the 2025 regular season make the concern concrete. Neither the Broncos nor the Roosters lost a match to any team outside their own rivalry. Brisbane finished with four times as many competition points as last-placed Wests Tigers. The grand final, a 22-18 Broncos win over the Roosters, was thrilling — but it was thrilling precisely because it was the only contest that truly mattered all season.
Rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns had already sounded the alarm in August, publicly urging the NRL to block the transfer. His argument was straightforward: Southwell's kicking game and vision are unmatched in the women's competition, and placing her into a Broncos side already featuring Tamika Upton, Julia Robinson, and a dominant forward pack would not produce a competition — it would produce a coronation. He predicted 40 or 50-point margins weekly.
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo had resisted such characterisations before the finals, pointing to the league's recent expansion as reason for patience. But Newcastle's trajectory tells its own story. Upton left for Brisbane last off-season. Now Southwell is following. The club that was supposed to be building is instead watching its foundations walk out the door.
Southwell spoke professionally about Brisbane's culture, their history in women's rugby league, and the opportunity to develop. Beneath the measured words sits a simpler truth: the Broncos are where the best players want to be, and they keep getting better because of it. The club will lose Gayle Broughton, Mele Hufanga, and Keilee Joseph to other sides — but Southwell's arrival suggests they are not concerned. If the 2025 season proved anything, it is that Brisbane and the Roosters have already separated themselves from the field. Southwell's move may simply be the moment the competition stopped pretending otherwise.
Jesse Southwell's decision to leave Newcastle and sign with Brisbane has opened a wound in women's rugby league that was already bleeding. The 20-year-old halfback, a fixture in the NSW State of Origin side, confirmed on Monday that she would not extend her contract with the Knights. Instead, she is heading north for a two-year deal with the Broncos, where she will share the halves with Ali Brigginshaw next season before taking sole control of the attack in 2027. It is a move that feels less like a career choice and more like a statement about where power in the NRLW now lives.
The timing of Southwell's departure cuts deeper because the numbers tell a story the league cannot ignore. During the 2025 regular season, neither the Broncos nor the Roosters conceded a match to any team outside their own rivalry. Brisbane finished with four times as many competition points as the Wests Tigers, who languished in last place. The gap between the top and the rest has become a chasm. When the finals arrived, the Roosters at least faced a genuine challenge from Cronulla. The Broncos faced no such test. They beat the Roosters 22-18 in a grand final that was thrilling precisely because it was the only match that mattered.
This is the backdrop against which Southwell's move arrives. In August, before the deal was confirmed, rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns made a public plea for the NRL to block the transfer. His reasoning was blunt: Southwell's kicking game is elite, her vision unmatched in the women's competition. Put her into a Broncos side already stacked with Tamika Upton at fullback, Julia Robinson in the centres, and a forward pack built to dominate, and you do not have a competition anymore. You have a coronation. Johns predicted 40 or 50-point margins every week. He was not questioning whether the NRLW had enough talent overall. He was saying too much of it had pooled in two clubs.
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo had resisted such talk before the finals, insisting it was premature to declare the competition lopsided in its first season after expanding from 10 to 12 teams. But the evidence was already there. The Broncos and Roosters won every match they played against everyone else. Newcastle finished third, a distant third, and they still could not get within striking distance of the top two. The Knights had Upton until last off-season, when she moved to Brisbane. Now they are losing Southwell. The club that was supposed to be building something is instead watching its best players depart.
Southwell's explanation for the move was measured and professional. She spoke of the Broncos' professionalism, their long history in women's rugby league, the style of football they play. She mentioned the chance to learn from her teammates and coaches. These are the things players say when they are making a calculated decision about where they will develop fastest. But beneath that sits a simpler truth: the Broncos are where the best players want to be, and they are getting better because of it.
The Broncos will lose some pieces. Five-eighth Gayle Broughton is heading to the Warriors, as is Karyn Murphy medallist Mele Hufanga. Lock Keilee Joseph is bound for Parramatta. These are meaningful departures. But Southwell's arrival suggests the club is not worried about the losses. They are building something they believe will be harder to beat, not easier. And if the 2025 season proved anything, it is that the Broncos and Roosters have already separated themselves from the field. Southwell's move may simply be the moment when everyone stopped pretending otherwise.
Notable Quotes
If Jesse goes to Brisbane, you may as well just have one round, just have a grand final: Brisbane against the Roosters. No-one is going to get near them. Every week they will be winning by 40 or 50 points, which will be sad.— Andrew Johns, rugby league Immortal
They're obviously a really professional club and they've been around the women's space for a long time. That really enticed me.— Jesse Southwell
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does one player's transfer matter so much to a whole competition?
Because Southwell is not just any player. She's the best halfback in the women's game right now, and she's only 20. In a league where the Broncos already won by 40 points regularly, adding her kicking game and vision changes the mathematics of every match they play.
But the Broncos already won the grand final. Weren't they already the best?
Yes, but there's a difference between being the best and being untouchable. The Roosters pushed them in the finals. Other teams might have had a chance to build toward that level. Southwell's move closes that window.
Is the problem really one player, or is it something bigger about how the league is structured?
It's both. The NRLW expanded to 12 teams, but the investment and infrastructure didn't spread evenly. Brisbane and Sydney have resources and history. Newer clubs are still finding their feet. One elite player going to an already dominant team just accelerates what was already happening.
What does Newcastle lose by her leaving?
They lose the player who could have been their pathway back to the top. They had Tamika Upton, then she left. Now Southwell. It's not just about this season—it's about the message it sends. If your best young players keep leaving, why would recruits want to stay?
Can the NRL actually stop transfers like this?
Legally, probably not without major changes to player contracts. But Andrew Johns was arguing they should try, that competitive balance matters more than letting players chase the strongest teams. It's an old debate in sports, and there's no clean answer.
So what happens next?
Brisbane gets stronger. The gap widens. And the league has to decide whether that's acceptable or whether they need to change the rules to force talent to spread out. The 2026 season will tell us if they're serious about it.