Broncos forward Millie Boyle has been named the Rebel Sport Rookie of the Year.
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Boyle was announced as the winner over the weekend before her team went on to win the NRLW grand final 30-6 over the St George Illawarra Dragons.
Broncos officials couldn't be happier with Boyle's presence in the front row, earning a scorecard of 9/10 for her efforts on Sunday by NRL.com reporter Chris Kennedy.
"[Millie] set the tone as the Dragons struggled to contain her charges and defended brilliantly," Mr Kennedy said in his round-up of the grand final.
Boyle again led the charge for Brisbane with a match-best 138-metre gain up the field.
Both Boyle and Bega export Kezie Apps were named for the Jillaroos in a Test against the Kiwi Ferns in October. The selection means Boyle will be a dual-national playing at the top level of two codes.
In front of almost 40,000 fans at ANZ stadium on Sunday, the Dragons suffered handovers following unforced errors that gave the Broncos good field position - the Broncos' fitness and ability did the rest with three second half tries sealing the Dragons' fate.
Dragons captain and Bega's own Kezie Apps was the sole try-scorer for the Dragons, rolling out of one tackle attempt before cutting a neat wedge between two Brisbane defenders to find the line.
Coach Daniel Lacey and Apps have both said the team will learn from the result and are keen for the 2020 season.
"We've got a young team there, average age of 23," Lacey said. "We can't find any positives now, but in 24 hours, don't worry about that, I'll be over it, I'll be looking towards next year
"I'm really proud of this club and what it represents, especially in the women's space. We're the only that has five teams in this, some clubs don't want to put their hands up, but we are. "We look forward to the review. We did a review last year, we came last last year and now we're in the grand final, that's what we'll be doing next year, going one better."
The 2019 season marked a significant improvement for the Dragons, with the side rising from last-place in 2018 to grand finalists this year.
With her side growing considerably throughout the four-week competition, St George Illawarra captain Kezie Apps said the team will take plenty of positives into 2020.
"Sometimes footy doesn't go your way," Apps said.
"We've got to learn from that, tomorrow we'll be over it and looking forward to next season and seeing what we can build with this club moving forward next year.
"Hopefully as Lace said, we can go one better."
