A very windy day down at Weigall greeted a good crowd for the second last game of the season between Sydney Grammar School and The Scots College. Grammar’s old boys were out in force and the Father’s Day Raffle was popular.
Grammar 5 – Scots 114
One wondered what was in store during the Seconds’ match. Grammar looked pretty good – fighting fiercely through a very even contest. Sideline commentary suggested Grammar’s 16As are pretty good this year. The Grammar 10 looked very sharp in the 2nds, passing crisply and taking the ball on the front foot.
The 1sts match rolled on and what was expected transpired. Scots ran in about 20 tries for a 114-5 score line. Scots maintained impressive discipline, with no one succumbing to the temptation to indulge in silly rugby.
Grammar’s pack is in fact quite a handy unit, with a good understanding of tight play. They played with outstanding spirit, given the unevenness of the contest. When Grammar’s pack gained possession of the ball, it was able to string together a few ten-phase sequences that revealed that a rugby XV is built on the platform laid down by the forwards. Nonetheless, the class and size differential is undeniable.
However, in front of us were two teams working hard to present quality schoolboy rugby for an enthusiastic crowd. Grammar’s Weigall Field is, in fact a wonderful place to watch rugby, and the Grammar boys made sure their team knows it is appreciated. The highlight of the match came in the final five minutes when Grammar’s pack gained its due reward with a well-controlled forward surge. Congratulations to Grammar’s prop, Harrison Rosen for his try. Didn’t the Grammar boys roar!
During the 1sts, much of the sideline commentary revolved around text messages from the Newington–Shore match, and some excitement was generated when it was reported that Shore was in front. An oft-repeated sentiment was the need for a promotion-relegation, or two-tier system among Sydney’s rugby high schools.
