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Peter Fenwicke (45)
Cannot see how the gps team can be picked when selectors have only seen one game out of the players. As said by many reputation does count. The move by the bosses in the top to move rugby to term three to cater for afl which has had no support by players was simply stupid. Most schools will now have the burden of not having supplementary games with AIC schools cause their season would be over. The list predicted is the same as predicted before. Cannot wait till they verse AIC.
Mate this is wrong for a number of reasons. It was not moved to term 3 to cater for AFL, the GPS calendar has always been questioned and for years schools have wanted sports to only carry on for one term. Previously Rugby and Football both started mid-term 2 and finished in mid-term 3, the mid term break was a real problem with scheduling and collided with other term 3 and 2 sports which managed to squeeze their fixtures into one term. When the headmasters were given the choice of which sport to move to winter, they chose Rugby, most people seemed happy with that and rightfully so. It had nothing to do with AFL and if any sport is to blame it would be Football which rallied to not be played in winter and as a result of the switch has seen many rugby players have a go at the 11-man code, which in my opinion there is nothing wrong with.
You say the GPS schools will be burdened by not being able to trial against AIC teams? GPS schools have never taken trial matches seriously and results in the past indicate this. The switch to term 3 has just seen trial fixtures scheduled against other GPS schools, and that's the way it should be. There was never any point in the trial matches against AIC schools which GPS schools only sent their 2nd/3rd XV's to anyway. As for your last sentence, I think you are fooling yourself if you think AIC I will come close to GPS I, there is a remarkable difference in quality and the majority of GPS boys play club rugby anyway so will be match fit come the QLD trials.
You may think I am bias, but I attended both GPS and AIC schools and its really not rocket science.