Gregs are really starting to struggle in the ISA Div 1. Any idea what the margins were like in the other A grade games?
That is a conclusion on this score alone QH; but not really applicable here, for a number of reasons.
Word on the sideline is that Greg's were down 8 regular firsts, due to injury. Players came up from the seconds and U16's to make up the numbers. And yet, Greg's second XV recorded a comfortable win over Pat's.
St Greg's is a proud rugby league school. It is a credit to their administration that they have engaged our code. A lot of the Greg's players were backing up from their MCS duties on Thursday. 16A result was close; Sorry, I don't have results for other games; My understanding is that it was a competitive day in most games.
Now to the game itself, and how the score got so large. St Greg's fielded a tough, athletic team. Their one-on-one defence was strong; truly, this was a tough game, in the middle. Pat's forwards were dominant, but not to the extent indicated by the score. The game was decided at the breakdown, and the resulting penalty count (also around 80-0). Toward the end of the match, even the Pat's supporters were wincing, as more and more penalties emerged from the rucks.
There is really only a half-a-second for a player to release the ball or to release the tackled player. This became the key difference between the teams. I was told that most of the Greg's forward pack were not specialist rugby forwards. St Greg's had a promising pre-season and a couple of reasonable losses in ISA rounds 1 & 2. I hope they can recover in the holidays and come back strongly for the later rounds. On the other hand, St Pat's were at full strength and they used their extensive reserve bench, throughout the second half.
Suffice to say that the bounce of the ball was going St Pats' way. 12 tries, including a phenomenal 106 metre effort, in counter to a strong Greg's foray, was a great result for Pat's. 10 from 12 conversions pushed the scoreline even higher.
Play-of-the-day:
At the end of the afternoon tea, the St Greg's boys filed through the St Pat's parents and shook each and every hand, thanking them for the hospitality. They made their way to the buses with heads held high.
My uncle was a principal at Greg's, before these guys were born. He would certainly be proud of this fine bunch of gentlemen, who showed courage and dignity, in the face of such a difficult outing.