NSW Suburban Rugby 2012

[HarryElite]

Congratulations to Petersham who had 3 grades playing in finals on Saturday at UNSW. All 3 teams were victorious. 3rd grade straight to the GF with 2nd and 1st grade heading to GF qualifiers next weekend. not bad for a team just promoted to Div 2 and have NO (ZERO) paid players in the whole club.

 

[Jacko096]

Finals success must be inversely proportional to player payments then because I see that Balmain went 1 from 5.

 

[barbarian]

Balmain don't pay players. I don't know that for certain, but have asked their guys and have received a pretty strong 'no' each time I asked. Why would they lie? They are all decent blokes.

They do spend a fair bit more than a lot of other clubs on the actual running of the rugby club, and having a wealthy and active president with good connections obviously helps.

However my opinion after watching Balmain a few times this season (as they roll over us in almost every grade) is they just work harder than everyone else. They are better drilled, fitter, and have better skills. You can spend as much money as you want but those three things you can never buy.

I was a bit surprised at their poor results on Saturday, especially their 2nds.

Great for Petersham too, although I would have liked the 3rd grade result to be slightly different!
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[Ozzie Bob]

Can anyone stop Brothers in Div 3 and Balmain in Div 2?

 

[Keithy]

Congratulations to Petersham who had 3 grades playing in finals on Saturday at UNSW. All 3 teams were victorious. 3rd grade straight to the GF with 2nd and 1st grade heading to GF qualifiers next weekend. not bad for a team just promoted to Div 2 and have NO (ZERO) paid players in the whole club.

Maybe not paid by the club but are paid by a coach or sponsor direct so as not to show on the club's books. Petersham is like all subbies clubs NO ONE IS PAID.

 

[barbarian]

Really? Again I find that very hard to believe. Why wouldn't they want it on the club books? It isn't illegal.
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[Jacko096]

I play for Petersham and I am paid the princely sum of negative $250 per season.

In addition, I receive match payments for home games of negative $4 - and I also get a free sausage on a roll.

Somebody alert the ATO. This is clearly a rort.

 

[Camo]

No one gets paid to play, i can assure you all of that..

 

[Ozzie Bob]

No one gets paid to play, i can assure you all of that..

Ok this seems well and good, but how do you get a former Wallaby and waratah (Cross) to play for you? I am sure he is not doing it out of the goodness of his own heart. Why would he turn down professional contracts to play subbies?

Maybe i am just jealous of the success you guys have had this year, but the fact that you got promoted to Div 2 without winning the club champs and are now on your way to Div 1. You have a bloke playing for you that was playing for the tahs last year means you are always going to be a target in peoples eyes

 

[southsider]

No one gets paid to play, i can assure you all of that..

do they get other incentives though?

sorry know you will probably say no but enjoy a good pot stir every once in a while

 

[barbarian]

Ok this seems well and good, but how do you get a former Wallaby and waratah (Cross) to play for you? I am sure he is not doing it out of the goodness of his own heart. Why would he turn down professional contracts to play subbies?

Don't want to speak for Camo or the club, but pretty sure Cross's dad is heavily involved in Balmain and has been for quite some time, so there is a family thing there.
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[Camo]

Ozzie Bob, Crossy has been clear with us from day 1 that if a professional contract in Sydney came along then he would be leaving Balmain straight away.

But the thing is that he’s been playing pro footy for 14 years – straight out of school. From what I have been told he got lots of big offers to play in the UK and France this year but he didn’t want to pack up his family and move again. He was born in the East and still lives in the same area he grew up in. There comes a time when you need to think about the future and in his last year at NSW in 2011 he started work at a stock broker 1 day a week on his rest days and he is now working there full-time.

If he left this year for a 2 year deal in the UK or France he would come back and have to start a post-game career again. His kids are getting older and they want to live in Sydney. Obviously if he got a shot at NRL or with the Tahs this year he would have been gone straight away and maybe that’s why he started playing for us to keep fit just in case?

His Dad is involved with the Club and is a great supporter and Crossy is mates with a few other guys that play with us hence the connection. Crossy confirmed in the sheds after the Semi win that next weekend’s GF was his final game of footy and from how he sounded he has more than had enough. Good luck to him.

 

[Ozzie Bob]

Question for you all out there in subbies land and i think Barbarian will be able to chip in with some advice.

How have clubs relegated from Div 1 back to Div 2 rebounded the next year? I know Kings were promoted for season 2009 but went straight back down.

Were player numbers decimated for the following season? I know you beat us in Extra time in first Grade GF in 2010 but it looks like 11, and 12 were tough years.

I am very surprised that clubs like Forest and UNSW havent destroyed Div 2 and returned to Div 1. I am really looking for a reason why those clubs havent gone straight back up.

I am sure BOBs are looking forward to being competitive in Div 2

 

[Keithy]

Not many clubs rebound straight back. I think many old timers see it as a chance to hang up the boots so teams struggle with numbers. They also struggle to beat 2nd div clubs who are on the move, those who want to be in div 1.
You only have to look at where some of the former div 1. Clubs are now
Div 2
Kings
St Ives
Newport
UNSW
Lindfield
Forest
Div 3
UWS
Waverley
Div 5
Canterbury
Div 6
Chatswood
Dundas

 

[barbarian]

How have clubs relegated from Div 1 back to Div 2 rebounded the next year? I know Kings were promoted for season 2009 but went straight back down.

Were player numbers decimated for the following season? I know you beat us in Extra time in first Grade GF in 2010 but it looks like 11, and 12 were tough years.

I am very surprised that clubs like Forest and UNSW havent destroyed Div 2 and returned to Div 1. I am really looking for a reason why those clubs havent gone straight back up.

Yeah we struggled with the pace and numbers requirements of 1st division. We weren’t abjectly horrible, and were only just relegated, but it clearly was a bit too much to handle.

We had a good year in 2010 culminating in winning the 1st grade final. We had an older first grade side, and of the 15 blokes who played in that final only 2 came back the following year. Winning tends to be a double-edged sword, as people like to ‘go out on a high’ so you generally get a few retirements. As it was we were cleaned out.

So 2011 became a rebuilding year, and we struggled. After that season we lost our president, treasurer, registrar, and first grade coach (they all moved overseas). So 2012 has again been a bit of a clean slate, and even though we were grappling with relegation there were some positive signs, and it looks like we will be stronger next season.

In the end success breeds success and failure breeds failure. It can be tough to break a losing cycle, just ask Hornsby. But when you are winning you have to turn blokes away. We were flirting with failure in 2011 and a bit in 2012, but kept it together, and most of our players are staying for 2013.

PS. We are back on the coach search for 2013, anyone have any leads feel free to drop me a message

 

[Ozzie Bob]

Yeah we struggled with the pace and numbers requirements of 1st division. We weren’t abjectly horrible, and were only just relegated, but it clearly was a bit too much to handle.

We had a good year in 2010 culminating in winning the 1st grade final. We had an older first grade side, and of the 15 blokes who played in that final only 2 came back the following year. Winning tends to be a double-edged sword, as people like to ‘go out on a high’ so you generally get a few retirements. As it was we were cleaned out.

So 2011 became a rebuilding year, and we struggled. After that season we lost our president, treasurer, registrar, and first grade coach (they all moved overseas). So 2012 has again been a bit of a clean slate, and even though we were grappling with relegation there were some positive signs, and it looks like we will be stronger next season.

In the end success breeds success and failure breeds failure. It can be tough to break a losing cycle, just ask Hornsby. But when you are winning you have to turn blokes away. We were flirting with failure in 2011 and a bit in 2012, but kept it together, and most of our players are staying for 2013.

PS. We are back on the coach search for 2013, anyone have any leads feel free to drop me a message

Good luck barbarian, it is always tough to attract coaches!!!

 

[Nutta]

It comes down to Club momentum. When you are winning, it's there and folk will flock to join - look at Balmain & even Blue Mountains. When you are losing, the same folk who joined late will leave early. After a couple of years winning you become Strong - and that brings it's own momentum & rewards (look at Colleagues and Drummoyne especially in their lower grades).

Alternatively, talking with some blokes at Blueys (2yrs ago) and even Hunters (this year) who went "up", they found it hard to keep up the flow of players to replace the injured and buggered when playing harder/faster footy consistently every weekend.

What I have learnt over the years is that come July you need to start sand-bagging your gun/senior players to identify holes and begin to fill for next year (either promote those untested and/or begin the search for replacement). If you leave it later then that you rely on whatever random shows up in pre-season which is too "hit & miss".

How do you search and recruit replacements? Mostly word of mouth, there's a couple of websites and having a benefactor or three who can help with a short term job, cheap rent/spare room or signature on a visa whilst a guy finds his feet is what is most valuable. I've played for a few clubs who have solid contacts with country clubs (steady feed of players who can work and also workers who can play) but also good relations with some foreign clubs so back-packers & even some professionals know where they can find a friend/bed/job in Sydney/Limmerick/Swansea/Glasgow is sound. I've trod that path and it was fantastic. That connection gets built over time but is well worth it.

 

[Ozzie Bob]

Guys if you have access there are some great discussions taking place on the subbies facebook page! Took a look and get involved!

 

[Ozzie Bob]

Season is over, congrats to all the premiers!

 

[Prodigy]

Subbies presentation is on tonight. They will be tweeting all the winners. Stay tuned I will try to update as they come through.