With Premier Rugby legend Mick Heenan at the helm, most expected Bond to feature at the pointy end of the Hospital Cup ladder again this season.

But Heenan’s young side struggled to close out games and the Bull Sharks ultimately missed the playoffs.

Overview with Mick Heenan: 

“We had a lot of players move on at the end of 2023 and that created a really young group this season,” Heenan told Rugby News. 

“I thought we’d finish about mid table this year and I was hoping we could sneak into fourth spot, but it didn’t work out that way. 

“Ultimately, we just lost too many close games. 

“We used 56 players this year, which is on the high side. We didn’t necessarily plan it that way this time last year, but I think once we got into pre-season we realised that there wasn’t a lot of  experience there and we’d have a lot of guys playing first grade for the first time.  

“We had nine colts debut in first grade as well. 

“I was hoping we’d be good enough to win a few of those close matches, but that inexperience cost us at the backend of games. 

“There were nine games this year where we were either in front or within a score with five minutes to go and we just couldn’t get the job done. 

“But all of our players will be better for the experiences of this season. Having said that, the next step is probably the hardest step to take. 

“We’ve got to go from being in games, to winning them consistently and we’ve got to be physically competitive for 80 minutes week in, week out. 

“Our pre-season will be quite important in setting our young guys up for that.”

What is the focus between now and round one next year? 

“Physically, we’ve got to improve the way we manage contact. That can be cleaning out, making tackles or carrying the ball,” the coach said. 

“We’ve got to be much more aggressive and physical in the way we go about those aspects of the game. 

“Our skill level is okay and we ended the year as one of the higher passing teams which is pretty standard for teams from the Gold Coast. 

“We scored enough points to win games, but we conceded too many and we want to change that for next season.”

Which of your players do you think can push on next year? 

“Zeb Misios was a young guy who played most of the year in first grade. He just got better and better as the season went on,” the coach said. 

“I think our front row were probably our most consistent performers week in, week out – Rhys Sheriff, Levi Samuela and Harrison Usher. They were great this year and I think they’ll improve again next season. 

“Our lock Dylan Loader also impressed me in his first year in first grade. I expect him to push on next season.”

What can we expect in 2025?  

“We’ve got to sharpen up around the contact area and that’s going to allow us to play the type of game we want to play,” Heenan said. 

“From a recruitment focus, if you look through the history when Gold Coast teams have done well, even going back to the Breakers, they’ve done it on the back of local talent. So that’s a big focus for us. 

“We’re always going to have some guys coming in from elsewhere, but we really want to make this club representative of the Gold Coast.

“There’s a strong school competition on the Gold Coast, we’ve obviously got TSS, which has always been an important recruitment pathway, then there are eight local clubs down here as well. 

“We want the pathway to be really clear for juniors playing in the local competition or at local schools. When they are ready, they either join one of the local clubs or they come and play colts at Bond and I think we’ve made some headway on that this year.”