The Under 8s competition sees the Short Blacks take part in their first game of contact rugby with matches against the Wagga Crows and the Wyalong Pirates.

Sam Fry set the tone for an exciting game with a great run from the very first run of the game against Wagga, however it was Leamy Lokeni who crossed for the Short Blacks first try of the season following determined run. 

Trailing 15-35 at half time, Griffiths showed great pluck matching the Crows try for try in the second half which featured a hattrick to Darby Robertson. 

The final score was 35-55. Ruben Puntoriero had a tough introduction to the world of rugby, being on the wrong end of a big tackle however showed some grit by making some great tackles.

The second game the Short Blacks saw the Under 8s fall 15-35 to the Wyalong Pirates however the final scoreline did not reflect the closeness of the match. 

Connor Ings led way with bulldozing runs setting up strong rolling-mauls which caught the opposition by surprise. 

Henry Parson worked tirelessly around the rucks and Riley Sillis tormented the Pirates defence with some fantastic runs.

Last season’s runners-up, the Griffith Under 10s, kicked off their 2018 campaign in devastating form with the ruthless demolition of the Hay Whipper Snippers and the Grenfell Panthers.

The hard work in pre-seasoning training that focussed protecting our teammates when they are on the ground paid dividends. 

The glut of possession led to a smorgasbord of tries as the Blacks ran up a 50-0 win over Hay and a 65-15 win over Grenfell.

It was a new look Viva Blackbirds U10s side who took the field against the Wagga Crows and Hay.

The defending premiers came away with a 15-10 win over the Crows and lost another tightly contested match against the Whipper Snippers 5-10.

Griffith have entered two sides in the Under 12s competition and made a bright start to the 2018 season.

The season kicked off the season with a very nice win against West Wyalong Pirates with some excellent work maintaining possession and the creation of space leading to tries.

A bit of excitement saw some structure fall away, letting the opposition get their hands on the ball which ensured plenty of tackling which in the hot weather took its eventual toll with the Blacks succumbing to Wagga and the host club the Tumut Bullants.

The Viva Blackbirds U12 side took on early season favourites the Young Yabbies and, in a replay of the U10 grand final of 2017, the Cootamundra Bears.

New recruit Amy Parker showed a great turn of speed crossing for what will be one of many trues for the Blackbirds however this wasn’t enough as Young outscored the Blacks with a 10 point win.

Tries to Izzy McCloskey and Teagan Flanagan help the girls to a win over the Bears.

The Griffith Blacks U/14s kicked off their title defence with convincing wins over the Young Yabbies and the Grenfell Panthers, 56-5 and 45-0 respectively.

Coach Ashley Gunn was keen to give credit to the leadership displayed by experienced players which saw the big forwards paving the way for the classy backline to finish off with a number of great team tries.

Best on the day were Lachie Robertson, Fergus Shelton, Dylan McFadzean, Angus Randall, David White up front and Jett Marcus and Jay Summers having a field day in the backs.With the teething problems associated with moving to an evens competition in 2017 the Under 16s competition has expanded to a four team competition featuring the Griffith Blacks, the Temora Tuskers, the Leeton Phantoms and a the Tumut-Wagga Barbarians.

The arduous pre-season training endured by the Blacks has already reaped its reward with the Blacks coming away with three wins from three starts.

The Under 16s held the Phantoms scoreless in the opening game of the season with a comprehensive 41-0 win with Connor Higgins and Aisea Taupeamuhu running lines which saw no answer from Leeton.

Game two saw the Blacks face arch-rivals the Tuskers in a rugged encounter which saw Jack Marcus earn the highest of praise from his coach has he produced a stand out performance in Griffith’s 31-5 victory.

The final match of the round was against an unknown quantity as the Blacks faced the combined Tumut-Barbarian side which includes several Southern Academy players.

Olivah Smyth and Elijah Lokeni led the Blacks to a dominant 41-0 win.

In the girls tag rugby completion the Griffith Blackbirds Under 16s scored two impressive wins to open their account for 2018, including a 10-5 win over reigning premiers Leeton – the first time Griffith has managed to finish on top in the local derby.

With confidence sky-high, the Blackbirds notched up one of their biggest wins, defeating the Albury Steamers 35-5.