Queensland 2013 GPS Review + All-Stars: Forward Pack

For the first time in 130+ years of GPS Rugby History, voting for the Queensland 2013 GPS All-Stars is now open.

Who do you think deserves selection in a GPS All-Stars team for 2013? Which School had the most talented squad? Who really knows?

In ages past, there had been no way to definitively find out who exactly was the best. Green and Gold have now provided the solution. Our team of GPS Experts went out to the fixtures, watched, recorded, and covered as much Queensland GPS Schoolboy Action as we could in 2013, and after months of debate and analysis, we feel confident in opening up voting.

This week our analysts pored over our game day notes, and selected the Four best players in each position, 1-15, in the 2013 competition.

The Southport School lead the Forward Pack Voting for  2013, with all 8 players nominated. Nudgee College narrowly missed out on leading the nominations though, with 7 players out of a possible 8 nominated. BBC had 5 players nominated, Churchie 4,  Terrace 3, and Ipswich and Brisbane Grammar tied with 2 nominations apiece. Toowoomba Grammar received 1 nomination, and BSHS missed out altogether in 2013.

We’ve done the tough stuff. All that’s left for you to do now is decide.

Check back to Green and Gold Rugby next week for the full Queensland 2013 GPS All-Stars: Backline.

But first, a recap of the results of the 2013 GPS Rugby Season.

Nudgee College won the premiership after a slow start to their season, but came good just in time to beat arguably the most talented schoolboy team since the 2007 Southport side (which featured Super Rugby players Ben Tapuai, Luke Morahan, Jono Lance, Jarrad Butler, Mark Swanepoel, and James Slipper!) when they came up against the boys from the Gold Coast in Round 4, and played the game of the season. Nudgee raced to a lead, and held off a jaw dropping comeback attempt to come up trumps in what was realistically a mid season Grand Final. Click here to relive the heartstopping action between the two teams.

Southport will remember the season as one of heartbreak, as superior skills, execution, and fitness went unrewarded as a projected “certain” Premiership slipped through their fingers. The defining point of the 2013 Season for the Beach Boys came against Churchie.

Churchie played to their potential several times during the season, being the only team to go undefeated* against both Southport (*a 24-24 tie) and Nudgee, but couldn’t outplay the middle of the pack in securing a top 3 place – that honour went to BBC, and though they certainly had the star power on the field and on the Coaches bench, the Collegian’s struggled to consistently dominate teams in the fashion of Nudgee and Southport.

Gregory Terrace were the big improvers in the comp, rising from the bottom of the heap in 2012 to finish 4th overall in 2013, and for a time were looking like the closest Terrace side in years to top Nudgee at Ross Oval, yet it was not to be. Strong performances from all players combined with a grit not often seen from the Terrace boys yielded their best showing in several years.

Brisbane State High, Ipswich, and Toowoomba all struggled this season in the face of massive competition from those in the top 4, with inconsistency and injury plaguing many of the stars of those teams. Ipswich battled hard with a young but talented forward back, but couldn’t keep it together defensively to mount any real pressure on the top sides, losing Australian Rep outside centre Landon Hayes to injury early in the piece. Toowoomba missed the direction of young star Liam Jurd, co-captain of the First XV and incumbent Australian Fullback, but were devastated by the loss of their former Queensland under 16s’ Coach, Jason Gilmore, to Churchie at the start of the year. State High’s coaching situation was dealt a blow as legendary schoolboy coaches David Noon and Graham Eagle departed the rugby program for greener pastures, and their former First XV suffered from their absence.

The big loser of the 2013 Season was Brisbane Grammar, as Damon Emtage’s First XV completed a fall from grace faster than any seen in GPS history, winning the premiership in 2012 and the spoon in 2013. While many 2013 seniors were members of that premiership team, the loss of key players in Sam Greene, Jack Cornelson, and Joshua Birch was seemingly enough to see the team plummet from the top.

Scroll down to vote – don’t worry if it doesn’t load at first, just hit refresh. Please note all names are listed alphabetically, and you may have to scroll down to view the next question. Happy voting!