The key moments from a mammoth weekend just gone in Illawarra sport

The region's sports nuts were treated to plenty of action on offer, including Illawarra and Group Seven Rugby League, Illawarra Premier and District League football, rugby, and Aussie Rules.

In rep footy, the Illawarra Steelers' Tarsha Gale Cup side picked up a huge grand final win against the Knights in Parramatta.

So let's go through the most memorable moments...

In the early stages of the Group Seven season, three teams look unbeatable on their quest for a premiership.

Defending premiers Gerringong, Shellharbour, and 2022 champions Warilla Lake South are still unbeaten and look a class above the rest.

The Sharks perfect start to the rugby league competition continued on Sunday with a hard-fought 24-4 win over Albion Park Oak Flats Eagles at Des King Oval. Made even more impressive was the fact that they did it with a man down in the final stages after Brody Rigg was put on report and sent to the sin-bin for an apparent high shot.

Despite plenty of points, keeping the Eagles to four points pleased Sharks captain James Ralphs.

"It's something we spoke about all year, how we'd react if we had to play with a man down.

"We always try and speak about it and sometimes at training we even drop a bloke off if we're doing a pose and we wanna challenge ourselves. That really showed today," he said.

"Albion Park have got weapons across the field and for them not to be able to put any points on us, and we actually went up by a try with 12 men on the field is a real credit to the boys and I'm really proud of their effort."

Defending Illawarra Rugby League premiers Thirroul picked up its first win of the season against Collegians.

The Butchers overcame a poor start to the season last year to ultimately claim the title with a strong back-end, but both coach Jarrod Costello and skipper Hayden Crosland have been up front about the fact it's not a path they wish to tread again in 2024.

In the end, the Butchers got over Collies, 22-12.

"We said the only thing that we were going to accept today was a win," Costello said.

"We weren't going to lose twice [in a row] at home in a blue and white jumper at Gibbo. The boys were pretty determined to get it done.

A seven-goal thriller highlighted the latest Illawarra Women's Premier League round between defending league champions Woonona and Thirroul.

The Sharks are currently battling an injury crisis, with four to five regular first graders out with knocks.

Goals to Sophie Heath and Dharmini Chauhan got Woonona off to the best possible start at Ocean Park, before Thirroul hit back with three second half goals to turn the game on its head at 3-2.

But Woonona showed plenty of resolve, getting up 4-3 in the end with strikes from Jessica Beale and Kelsey Clements.

The all-conquering Tarsha Gale Cup Steelers picked up a huge victory in its grand final against the Knights at Commbank Stadium in Parramatta on Saturday, April 27.

Ironically, the Steelers last claimed the trophy in 2019 - a side featuring the likes of Maddie Weatherall and Teagan Berry - by beating the Knights by an identical 24-12 scoreline.

The Steelers had conceded three tries total since February, but surrendered three four-pointers in the first half alone, two in the seven minutes before halftime in what was no doubt their toughest outing of the year.

Steelers coach Courtney Crawford would not have had it any other way, saying the gritty win showed the hard edge her side's campaign was built on despite making the regular season look a breeze.

"That's one thing that we've known in our inner circle all year," Crawford said.

"This group's worked really hard and they're not just a talented team, they work hard for each other and they do all the little things really well and that showed.

"We probably didn't put our best performance on the field, but we dug in deep, worked hard for each other, and it was good for us to be able to get the result under a lot of pressure.

"We knew Newcastle were going to be a good outfit, they work hard for each other and they don't give you many opportunities. For us to stick strong in that second half and take it six-nil was really impressive.

"I'm definitely proud for the group to do what they did, to go undefeated in a Tarsha Gale competition that's only getting stronger each year is an incredible effort.

"It's a credit to their hard work and their ability to connect as a group."

Rob Jonovski's Wollongong United desperately needed a victory in the Illawarra Premier League after a couple of lean weeks. In the end, they delivered with a 2-1 victory against Port Kembla.

In a dour arm-wrestle at Wetherall Park, it was Nav Darjani who stood up and delivered the match-winning goal for the visitors midway through the second half.

Earlier in the game, United had jumped out to an early lead via Klime Sekutkoski, which was quickly cancelled out by a reply from Nic Tomasiello.

The result marked United's fourth win of the season and snapped a two-game losing streak.