Haha - spot on!!!
FT at Summer Hill - Waverley 45, Trinity 26
On paper, I expected a big win to W. When the W players ran out and I saw their size across the field, I expected a bigger win.
Credit to T on keeping the HT score at 19 all. 2 YC and a number of injuries to key players left them chasing in the 2nd half.
W's size came to the fore in the 2nd half, rag-dolling the T 9 and 10. 3 quick tries and it was all over, red rover.
Some of the ref decisions or lack therefore were peculiar. I don’t think the result was affected. It may be that the spectators see more of the play at the Knox oval but crikey some of those knox line out throws were at a 30 degree angle. Good to see the Barker forwards improve in the scrums in the second half. Agree it was a good game, hard fought.What a cracking game to finish off the CAS season.
It was 6 tries a piece at Warrawee today. Knox never gave up. That said Barker always looked the better side during the match. I think Barker could have scored on at least 2 other occasions but the final pass either went forward or was dropped. Whenever Knox got within 4 points Barker scored again to keep the buffer.
Its the end of a great era of Barker rugby, with Galloway and Pollard being in the side for 3 years straight, while Weymouth, Cameron and Wilson have been there for the last 2 seasons.
No one really gave this team a chance to win the premiership at the beginning of the season after such a strong year in 2018.
But this team really played for each other. The forwards were strong led by Pollard Wilson and Cameron. They have uncovered a real talent in year 10 lad Ned Slack-Smith who has made no8 his position, while Brown, Stovold ,Wheels and Weymouth ensured ball security and dominant first tackles kept opposing teams from going forward.
But it was the backs that really stood out this year. Kyle Bowen service at 9 was as good as David Tejcek from last year while Ovenden in my opinion was the standout CAS 10 this year. He sliced Knox open on three occasions today while his delivery to his outside backs was sublime. Ben Graham at 12 and Jones at 13 were not talked about much preseason, but gee they developed well and with tall Alex Veivers at 14 as their target, points flowed.
The last 2 players Galloway and Vasse have been outstanding. These guys have speed and skill and really made the most of the opportunity the inside backs gave them. That said, if they were on there own but with space, or in a man on man situation, they backed themselves and invariably scored.
Congratulations to Coach Hargreaves on his management of players. His controlled blooding of 2nds and u16As also ensured that Barker had adequate replacements to cover injuries during the year and also keeping an eye on the 2020 year.
Finally to our hosts Knox. Great rivalries are built on respect. This years match was a fantastic spectacle with two arch rivals leaving it all on the field. Both Barker and Knox lads should be congratulated on todays games. They are winners and losers across all the age groups but all the games were played with passion and heart.
It is the magic that makes CAS rugby.
All I can say is wow.
The Cranbrook v Aloys games will forever be shrouded in controversy(much like it appears the Joeys v scots game).
The refereeing decisions were beyond perplexing and the sportsman ship was non existent from Cranbrook. It was disappointing to see the lack of staff not policing the Cranbrook boys on the sideline as well.
A Poor display of rugby that will be in Aloys fans minds forever.
Aloys will be sending a stern email on Monday to the Head of Sport from Cranbrook.
To be fair, a pretty average game. Trinity had 2 YC, Waverley 1 and all in the first half so Trinity weren't chasing in the second half b/c of them. Injuries were a factor though. The Waverley YC was also part of a penalty try (very fair call), while the 2 Trinity YC were for not releasing less then 10m from the line so while no PT the scoreline could certainly have been worse if the players didn't infringe at those moments. No doubt Waverley were bigger and Trinity did have some real sting in their defence in front of a partisan home crowd on a horrible weather day.
There is a definite lack of cohesion in this Waverley XV for reasons unknown to outside observers. But given the results of the rest of the Opens and the 16As, next year could be a big one for the boys from Bondi. Worryingly for Trinity in particular but CAS rugby more generally Trinity only has one 16s team which can't be healthy by any measure. Well done to Barker as they are clear winners. Now onto RWC 2019 - I'm hoping that a good Wallaby performance may help kick start some interest in the game at schools. We live in hope.