Rugby Ref
Herbert Moran (7)
I remember playing in the Coogee U-8s and we used to eat the oranges at half-time... (so many years ago now)
NSW AAGPS 2021
- Thread starter Joker
- Start date
I remember playing in the Coogee U-8s and we used to eat the oranges at half-time... (so many years ago now)
Rugby Ref
Herbert Moran (7)
formerflanker
Ken Catchpole (46)
Did you move over the years to port at half time of Golden Oldies?
Tap and Go
Frank Row (1)
Hi all, Tap and Go here.
Long time follower of the forum, first time poster. Hope you don't mind if I throw my two cents in.
After seeing many of the trial games and the first round myself, as well as all results, it's exciting to see what the boys have in stall for us for the rest of the season.
First Newington. Although they have some definite skill in their team, with the likes of Hugh Bell and a few others like Siteni Taukamo, they are lacking strength and depth that they have had in previous years. I don't see them doing much this season but may pull off a win or two against some of the weaker teams.
Now onto Kings. Players such as Ed Arnott (very surprised he didn't make the GPS 1st team!!), Will Johnston and Riley Hemsworth all have the ability to play very high quality rugby. However, without the players to provide some support to them during games I feel as though they will struggle this year. They will have to put in top performances to be able to compete with the top few teams (they did quite well against Scots in Round 1 to my surprise). They also competed well against View in the trials, however I have heard that it wasn't Views greatest performance.
Shore. A definite dark horse this year. They don't really have any standout GPS players, but they seem to work fantastically as a team. Hearing about their first half performance against View only reinforced my opinion on this. If they can work hard over this break between terms they can definitely pull off an upset or two, but it will require a whole team performance.
The boys from Bellevue Hill now. Some serious strength in this team with six players in the 1st and 2nd GPS teams. They have had to face a lot of strong teams in their trial games, and competed well, but were just not good enough. In my opinion one of the better teams in this GPS comp but i don't see them winning against Joeys or View later this season.
Joeys this year a looking strong as always. The pack is undeniably one of the strongest in the GPS, with the front row all representing GPS 1sts. The backline has both class and size with the likes of Ned Dalton, Jonny Chan and Max Jorgensen. I think they will run over all teams except for View, which will be a tight one and could go either way. With very tight losses to Barker and View, it will be very interesting to see how they can finish the rest of the season after a first round win over Newington.
View, in my opinion, are the team to beat this year. The backline doesn't have a single weakness. Even with O'Donnell out, his spot was filled excellently by the 2s inside, Conners, and with O'Donnell expected to return for the last few rounds it gives them every opportunity to win the comp. The class of the inside backs will be too much to handle for many teams, and the forward pack is full or workhorses and power runners that are very strong through the middle. The biggest challenge will be Joeys, and being in the final round I'd say it will be a premiership game.
Final Predictions:
1. View
2. Joeys
3. Scots
4. Shore
5. Kings
6. Newington
Let me hear your thoughts.
TnG
Long time follower of the forum, first time poster. Hope you don't mind if I throw my two cents in.
After seeing many of the trial games and the first round myself, as well as all results, it's exciting to see what the boys have in stall for us for the rest of the season.
First Newington. Although they have some definite skill in their team, with the likes of Hugh Bell and a few others like Siteni Taukamo, they are lacking strength and depth that they have had in previous years. I don't see them doing much this season but may pull off a win or two against some of the weaker teams.
Now onto Kings. Players such as Ed Arnott (very surprised he didn't make the GPS 1st team!!), Will Johnston and Riley Hemsworth all have the ability to play very high quality rugby. However, without the players to provide some support to them during games I feel as though they will struggle this year. They will have to put in top performances to be able to compete with the top few teams (they did quite well against Scots in Round 1 to my surprise). They also competed well against View in the trials, however I have heard that it wasn't Views greatest performance.
Shore. A definite dark horse this year. They don't really have any standout GPS players, but they seem to work fantastically as a team. Hearing about their first half performance against View only reinforced my opinion on this. If they can work hard over this break between terms they can definitely pull off an upset or two, but it will require a whole team performance.
The boys from Bellevue Hill now. Some serious strength in this team with six players in the 1st and 2nd GPS teams. They have had to face a lot of strong teams in their trial games, and competed well, but were just not good enough. In my opinion one of the better teams in this GPS comp but i don't see them winning against Joeys or View later this season.
Joeys this year a looking strong as always. The pack is undeniably one of the strongest in the GPS, with the front row all representing GPS 1sts. The backline has both class and size with the likes of Ned Dalton, Jonny Chan and Max Jorgensen. I think they will run over all teams except for View, which will be a tight one and could go either way. With very tight losses to Barker and View, it will be very interesting to see how they can finish the rest of the season after a first round win over Newington.
View, in my opinion, are the team to beat this year. The backline doesn't have a single weakness. Even with O'Donnell out, his spot was filled excellently by the 2s inside, Conners, and with O'Donnell expected to return for the last few rounds it gives them every opportunity to win the comp. The class of the inside backs will be too much to handle for many teams, and the forward pack is full or workhorses and power runners that are very strong through the middle. The biggest challenge will be Joeys, and being in the final round I'd say it will be a premiership game.
Final Predictions:
1. View
2. Joeys
3. Scots
4. Shore
5. Kings
6. Newington
Let me hear your thoughts.
TnG
keenas
Allen Oxlade (6)
Well I reckon you've hit the nail on the head !
I'm watching.
I'll say one thing, shit-posting current school students are easier to spot than they might like to think.
Happy for school students to post, but most of the rest of us are (not - idiot) that interested in, or impressed by, your "bantz". Save it for WhatsApp or whatever, and try to contribute something useful. Spelling would also be good, but clearly optional for many.
Ace Ventura
Ted Fahey (11)
...presume you meant "aren't that interested"... (bit ironic when you're criticising kids for their spelling)
Well spotted!
I'd love to claim it was a test, but it was just a fuck-up.
I'll avoid commenting on punctuation!
Stephgun12
Bob McCowan (2)
You do not know who your messing with Ace. Cyclops is a force to be reckoned with. And that’s on the gang
I made a mistake, I can cop that being pointed out. The gist of the post still stands.
T
timmymont23
Guest
More breaking news from gps camp.
Riverview seconds winger who went on for Henry O’Donnell against joeys has been promoted to gps seconds inside over siua (josh) wong
Riverview seconds winger who went on for Henry O’Donnell against joeys has been promoted to gps seconds inside over siua (josh) wong
massivehog100
Frank Row (1)
Evening All,
With the annual GPS vs CAS duel upon us I can sense a certain excitement within the forum. It will be intriguing to see the best of each competition do battle. I do have some predictions for the game that i felt compelled to share.
GEEPS -
With a considerably smaller pack, the GPS side will look to compete less in the set piece and more in the breakdown; having some great on the ball and mobile players in the pack allows for them to play a breakdown focussed game plan. The GPS backline in my opinion is the stronger of the two, even withstanding the omissions from the side earlier in the week. They will look to play a non-nonsense brand of rugby and focus on beating their CAS counterparts on the edges of the park.
CAS -
There is no doubt the CAS forward pack is considerably larger than that of the GPS, HOWEVER, in the forecast conditions (wet and cold) I think the danger of their size may be mitigated. It is no secret that the offload game of the Waverley side is impeccable, however, the offload may be ruled out due to the conditions and ball retention will be paramount. I believe the CAS side will use their size in the set piece predominantly. The backline of the CAS is somewhat comparably to that of the GPS counterparts. Much like the GPS side, CAS have bounties of speed in which can be lethal.
My prediction is that it is going to be a close contest. It wouldn't surprise me if either team won, however, if the GPS side suffered a defeat one would have to question whether the right selections were made. The omission of Bowen (I) is one that stands out to me. Not withstanding the ability of McMullen, Bowen has been the first choice fly half in NSW since 2017. One must ponder what he has (or has not) done to warrant missing out on the GPS1s side.
If anyone is going to be attending I would love to catch up and have a more in depth chat about the approaching season and schoolboy rugby in general.
MHOG.
With the annual GPS vs CAS duel upon us I can sense a certain excitement within the forum. It will be intriguing to see the best of each competition do battle. I do have some predictions for the game that i felt compelled to share.
GEEPS -
With a considerably smaller pack, the GPS side will look to compete less in the set piece and more in the breakdown; having some great on the ball and mobile players in the pack allows for them to play a breakdown focussed game plan. The GPS backline in my opinion is the stronger of the two, even withstanding the omissions from the side earlier in the week. They will look to play a non-nonsense brand of rugby and focus on beating their CAS counterparts on the edges of the park.
CAS -
There is no doubt the CAS forward pack is considerably larger than that of the GPS, HOWEVER, in the forecast conditions (wet and cold) I think the danger of their size may be mitigated. It is no secret that the offload game of the Waverley side is impeccable, however, the offload may be ruled out due to the conditions and ball retention will be paramount. I believe the CAS side will use their size in the set piece predominantly. The backline of the CAS is somewhat comparably to that of the GPS counterparts. Much like the GPS side, CAS have bounties of speed in which can be lethal.
My prediction is that it is going to be a close contest. It wouldn't surprise me if either team won, however, if the GPS side suffered a defeat one would have to question whether the right selections were made. The omission of Bowen (I) is one that stands out to me. Not withstanding the ability of McMullen, Bowen has been the first choice fly half in NSW since 2017. One must ponder what he has (or has not) done to warrant missing out on the GPS1s side.
If anyone is going to be attending I would love to catch up and have a more in depth chat about the approaching season and schoolboy rugby in general.
MHOG.
thedutchoven
Chris McKivat (8)
The Metre Eater
Ward Prentice (10)
Usually the schoolboy’s contribution is rather witty considering they are studying creative writing and whatnot in English, but this match are seriously lacking.
Ace Ventura
Ted Fahey (11)
Like the much-quoted financial services disclaimer "past performance is not an indicator of future performance", and this applies also to schoolboy rugby players. I've not seen Jack Bowen in action, and I'm sure he's a very fine player, but other kids grow and develop their games at different rates, so it behoves selectors to keep an open mind and judge players on their (current) merits. In any case all players in all 4 GPS sides will be given their chance to show what they can do in the upcoming series of games, and my prediction is that there will be some surprises when higher rep teams are announced.
Just sayin'
PS - don't write off the GPS1 pack due to perceived lack of size. They have a small but powerful front row backed by some big units in the back 5. They will more than hold their own in the set pieces.
massivehog100
Frank Row (1)
Hey Ace,
I agree that there will be some surprises when it comes to higher rep teams... however I will go out and say that the 10,12,13 will be Bowen, O'Donnell and Arnott. They've all had much time and resources invested in their development and from what i've seen from following Junior Rugby for a number of years is that when it comes to crunch time the players that the Tahs have invested energy into don't get kicked to the wayside. I feel as though this selection is a wake-up call for Bowen - It would not surprise me one bit if this places a chip on his shoulder and he decides to crank through the gears for the remainder of the season.
Just some food for thought,
MHOG.
Rich_E
Ron Walden (29)
Morning gents. Its been a while.
Some thoughts / insights re GPS v CAS not broadly covered.
The Joeys front row, while smaller, have as many (possibly more) NSW (Gen Blue) caps combined from 2019 and 2020 than their CAS counterparts.
McMullen, GPS 10, is no stranger to NSW selectors either, having been selected in the 7s team in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
McMullen does have a great boot as acknowledged by others, but playing conservatively does not come instinctively - his 7s selection a sign he is very creative. Imo, his selection is a reflection of the type of game GPS plan to play, rather than a selectors' statement that he is a better player than Bowen.
In fact, four of the GPS backs were picked in the 2021 NSW 7s side - McMullen, Lancaster, Hemsworth and Jorgensen.
Combined with a very mobile pack, I expect to see a very expansive game aimed at running the bigger CAS forwards off their feet.
GPS 4 to 8, while not particularly tall (ie not 6'6" like CAS) are certainly not small. And all are very aggressive defenders. The physicality in defence from Virw 4,5 and 8 a big factor in their win over Barker.
While I think CAS start favorites, predictions that CAS will win by 20+ points could be a bit misguided.
.
Some thoughts / insights re GPS v CAS not broadly covered.
The Joeys front row, while smaller, have as many (possibly more) NSW (Gen Blue) caps combined from 2019 and 2020 than their CAS counterparts.
McMullen, GPS 10, is no stranger to NSW selectors either, having been selected in the 7s team in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
McMullen does have a great boot as acknowledged by others, but playing conservatively does not come instinctively - his 7s selection a sign he is very creative. Imo, his selection is a reflection of the type of game GPS plan to play, rather than a selectors' statement that he is a better player than Bowen.
In fact, four of the GPS backs were picked in the 2021 NSW 7s side - McMullen, Lancaster, Hemsworth and Jorgensen.
Combined with a very mobile pack, I expect to see a very expansive game aimed at running the bigger CAS forwards off their feet.
GPS 4 to 8, while not particularly tall (ie not 6'6" like CAS) are certainly not small. And all are very aggressive defenders. The physicality in defence from Virw 4,5 and 8 a big factor in their win over Barker.
While I think CAS start favorites, predictions that CAS will win by 20+ points could be a bit misguided.
.
Rugby Ref
Herbert Moran (7)
AroundTheAnkles
Banned
Great assessment, I honestly don’t know why anyone thinks CAS start as firm favourites. The GPS team is built for speed and full of skill. It will be an awesome contest.
T
timmymont23
Guest
I said earlier that the selectors were from scots. I think it is evident that they are with the selection of Darby playing 13 over arnott. Darby played 1 game i believe at outside and gets selected in the first side