CAS 2015 Season Preview

St. Aloysius

Close followers of the Associated Schools know what to think of St Aloysius – they’ll be small, committed and outgunned, right? Well, maybe not this year. They’ll still lack the size of many other teams, and they’ll still be highly determined, but in 2015 they may have the chance to do more than spring the occasional upset.

Many of the team gained First XV experience last season, and most of those players seem to have stepped up to a new level this season. The real reason for optimism is the backline, where gifted fly-half Matt Dainton can spark an exciting running game. Centre Peter Slaven is a handful in attack, and there’s also pace out wide.

The question will be whether the forwards can supply their backs with enough decent possession. That will depend to a large extent upon whether they can compensate for a lack of size with commitment, fitness and technique. There’s plenty of experience in the pack, with plenty of responsibility falling on locks Tom Nowlan and William Halliday, though hooker Eric Stene and flanker Liam Sheil Dick also have experience at First XV level.

And then there’s the perennial problem for St Aloysius – depth. St Aloysius has the smallest pool of players of any school in the competition, and injuries to key players can be very damaging. Rather like Trinity, St Aloysius has the capacity to threaten any side in the competition – but only if it keeps its best squad more or less intact.

Trial form: Encouraging. St Aloysius over-ran St Pius X by 73-15, and it’s hard to recall St Aloysius handing out a thumping like that for years. And a good preparation in New Zealand.

Prediction: Fighting for 3rd

Trinity

The ten-round competition is not Trinity’s friend. It’s inevitable over the long haul that key players will be injured, and that means that every school needs strength in depth. Trinity has a very good First XV, but a shallow pool of players, and if it can’t keep its best team together, things can turn ugly rather rapidly.

There’s plenty to like, though, about the top side. The forward pack is tough, uncompromising and mobile. Expect strong showings from prop Harry McLennan, hooker Anthony Nguyen, lock Liam Rasch, flanker Pernell Filipo and No8 James Wayland.

The backline isn’t, perhaps, quite so strong, although full back Ryan Longville and centre Jordan Morris are dangerous in attack. Fly-half Robert Siteine can be, too, although last season he tended to stand very deep and take the first pass standing still, which left his runners with plenty of work to do before they reached the advantage line.It will be interesting to see whether Trinity persists with that alignment this season.

Scott Sio – Trinity old boy

One area of its game that Trinity will certainly need to improve from last year is its discipline. Last season Trinity conceded far too many unnecessary penalties and lost too many players to yellow cards. A few of the forwards need to gain a better understanding of the fine line between admirable controlled aggression, and what sophisticated Rugby experts call “being dumb”.

If Trinity can harness the power of its pack and Siteine can create room for the backs, then it has the talent to upset any team in the competition on any given day. You just wouldn’t put your house on them maintaining consistency over the course of ten rounds.

Trial form: Discouraging. A 25-25 draw at St Stanislaus was a good result, but losses to Sydney Grammar and St Patrick’s added up to an uninspiring preparation.

Prediction: Struggling for 5th

Waverley

Here’s one for the lovers of CAS Rugby trivia. If you entered Waverley College in Year Seven in 2010, and proceeded in the usual way to Year 12, you have never seen a Waverley team win a CAS Premiership – and this year is your last chance.

And since Waverley joined the Associated Schools in 1944, there has never been a student who stayed at the school for six years who didn’t see Waverley win at least one title. Put simply, unless Waverley lifts the Plume Shield this year, the Class of 2015 will be the first in over seventy years never to experience a Premiership.

If you took a shallow view, you might think that this has been the most barren period in the history of Waverley Rugby. But that’s a slightly deceitful statistic, because in that time Waverley has been runner-up four times in five years, and has contributed three players to the Australian Schoolboys.

Even at its worst, Waverley has never been less than competitive, and the school overcame a bleak start to the 2014 season to finish the season proudly, memorably putting an end to Knox’s premiership aspirations.

Waverley’s team last year was a young one, and the players visibly matured during the season. In the backs, especially, there was plenty of exciting talent on show, and many of those players are back this season. Fly-half Tyzac Jordan fizzes with energy and invention with the ball in hand, and is still only in Year Eleven. Perhaps he hasn’t yet learned fully how to control the game (I hesitate to blame his League background for this), but if his forwards can deliver some good quality possession, he’ll trouble every defence in the competition.

Speedy fullback Jackson Mohi is another potent attacking weapon, and Dion Narayan returns for his third year in the Firsts. Narayan started on the wing in the trials but really could pop up anywhere: he’s played just about every position in the backs over the last three years, and his experience and goal-kicking will be very handy.

In the forwards, I like Zac Cardassilaris, a powerful No8. One of many Waverley players attached to the Roosters, he’s a big, powerful player, and a real handful when he runs. If he gets the ball in hand regularly, Waverley will be going forward.

Coach Paul Cornish faces one serious problem, which is the lack of bulk up front. Waverley’s set-piece isn’t good, and the scrum was taken apart by Newington in a trial. You can win games of Rugby without good, clean first phase possession, but it’s a struggle, and this could prove to be the difference between Waverley and Knox at the season’s end.

Trial form: Promising. There were close losses to two strong opponents in Riverview (10-17) and Newington (24-29), followed by some good wins on tour in New Zealand.

Prediction: 2nd