Uni-North Owls raise more than $35,000 for Tongan relief fund

But off it, it was everything the team, and club, had hoped for in order to raise money for the Tongan relief fund.

A $50,000 target was set, and by full-time in the Owls' 36-10 loss to the Canberra Royals they were well on their way to reaching it.

More than $35,000 had been raised as the men's first grade suited up at ANU North Oval.

Norths' coach Ziggy Balmaks said results aside on field, it was a great day for the club and its Tongan community.

"We've always had a really close relationship with the Tongan, and in fact Islander, community," he said.

"But something like today just demonstrates how committed we are to helping the Southwest Pacific."

The donations the Owls raise will help the residents of Kanokupolu relocate and rebuild their village hall, after the town was destroyed by the recent volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami.

News of the fundraiser brought attention across all Norths grades, and even attracted some Canberrans with Tongan heritage to show face at training and take to the field for the first time on Saturday.

Back on the field for the women's first grade, Balmaks said as the Owls sit in third place, they know it will be up to them to build their form heading into the back end of the season.

"It was a really tough game and I thought it was evenly contested. The score line didn't really indicate how hotly contested that was," he said.

"I was really proud of the girls, they played a fantastic game, never dropped the desire to actually win and that was shown by us scoring a late try.

"We weren't able to execute on some of the things that we've trained on, particularly the scrum, it just didn't come together."

One Royals player who had a hand in delivering crucial blows to the Owls defensive efforts was Grace Kemp.

A few weeks after her Wallaroos debut, the powerful No. 8 crossed twice and broke the line numerous times to ensure her side ran away with the 26-point win.

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The scoreline was helped by her Royals teammates Bonnie Brewer, who crossed twice, along with tries from Annie Hack and Kiahan Bellchambers, and the accurate boot of Ashlea Bishop to convert three.

Kemp humbly put her two tries down to the fact she was lucky enough her teammates trusted her to carry the ball each week.

And said there were a number of Royals that if they kept pushing could find themselves in a green and gold jersey in future.

"The girls are get stronger and stronger each game," Kemp said.

"It was a really rough game. The Owls are always tough when they come out at home, we both played our best footy and it really showed out on the field.

"So we're very excited that we won but we want to keep working on the lessons we take out of this game and push forward."

Round 11 results: