We’re a month in to the 2025 Shute Shield regular season and have seen just enough footy to have some idea of what to expect for the rest of the season. 

In summary, it’s bloody tight again. 

Just a bonus point win separates Warringah in first and Norths in eighth, with the rest of the competition not too far behind. 

Here’s what Rugby News has learnt from the opening month of the season.

Hunter and Uni the big improvers

Hunter and Uni appear to be the big improvers from last year. The Wildfires were unlucky not to take points away from a trip down to Woollahra in a 15-12 loss to the reigning premiers and have beaten Warringah, Eastwood and Souths. 

Uni were disappointing up at Rat Park but recorded impressive wins over Randwick and Gordon on either side of their only loss. 

Both sides have added size and experience to their forward packs and have quite a few players still to return. 

Connor Winchester in Newcastle is also making a big difference after spending a year playing professionally in the US. 

Local derbies are unpredictable

Heading into both local derbies, the punter’s money would have likely been on Norths to beat Gordon in round two and on Easts to beat Randwick last weekend. 

But excitement around a derby often acts as a strange equaliser. Even winless Manly matched Warringah until half time in their Anzac Day clash. 

Regardless of competition standings, every team in this year’s Shute Shield competition is good enough to get up and win on their day and most will have a good crack at doing just that against their nearest rival. 

Eight doesn’t go into six

At the moment, there are probably eight teams expecting to play finals footy this year. 

Below that, Two Blues, Souths, West Harbour and Manly certainly aren’t out of it yet, but there appears to be a bit of a divide at this stage.  

The problem for those teams at the top end of the ladder is that eight won’t go into six and two very good football sides, perhaps more, will finish their year after round 18. 

Tahs depth significantly impacting Shute Shield

Rugby Australia’s move to four domestic teams has certainly made Super Rugby a lot more enjoyable this year, but it’s also having a pretty significant impact on the Shute Shield. 

The depth of the Tahs’ squad, following the addition of the best of the Melbourne Rebels, is the strongest it’s been since that incredible 2014 title. 

Every week, very good players are left out of the Waratahs’ matchday 23 and the organisation deserves credit for allowing those players to return consistently back to play for their clubs, so far. 

If everyone stays fit, we’ll have Jack Bowen or Tane Edmed playing Shute Shield most weeks. 

Darby Lancaster and Archie Saunders are both going to make a significant impact every time they play in clubland. 

Felix Kalapu has been an absolute weapon for the Two Blues every time he’s played and Mesu Kunavula and Daniel Maiava have added incredible size and power to the Wildfires’ forward pack. 

Bonus points are crucial

In a competition as tight as this, every point is crucial and some teams have been better than others at racking up bonus points so far this year. 

At the lower end of the ladder, Manly have kept touch with the top six by picking up four bonus points from four losses. 

Souths on the other hand have won a game, but find themselves just one competition point ahead of the Marlins. 

Further up the ladder, Eastwood and Randwick’s six bonus points each make their 2-2 starts look a helluva lot better. 

Scoring late tries or closing out games will be crucial as the season progresses. 

Rookie of the Year favourite so far

It’s very, very early and there are no shortage of talented new, young players. But keep an eye on 21-year old Two Blues recruit Fionn Clifford. 

A big bodied No.7 who moved up from Melbourne, Clifford leads the competition for tackles made (9 ahead of last year’s RoY Sam Allsopp), pilfers and defensive ruck arrivals and ranks second for dominant tackles. 

The English-born forward moved to Melbourne while at school and featured in several Victorian under-ago rep teams before moving up to Sydney over summer.