QLD Premier Rugby 2021

[Bulldog]

The biggest issue for GPS is the number of colts but that can be cyclical.

 

[PhilClinton]

The biggest issue for GPS is the number of colts but that can be cyclical.

Yep for sure, but number of players down at GPS Colts hasn't always translated to Premierships funnily enough.

There were something like an average of 70 players across three teams during the 2012/13/14 seasons and they have nothing to show for it, a lot of those players went onto grades as well but again, not too many premierships at lower grades

 

[Dean Moriarty]

I'm surprised that there hasn't been much chat around the 0 from 5 performance from UQ across the Grand Finals their teams participated in

Just an unlucky co-incidence or something more with cause for review and action to get right ahead of the 2021 season ?

 

[Bulldog]

I'm surprised that there hasn't been much chat around the 0 from 5 performance from UQ across the Grand Finals their teams participated in

Just an unlucky co-incidence or something more with cause for review and action to get right ahead of the 2021 season ?

I didn't want to poke the bear but their scrum was massacred in Premier grade, and from the little I saw of the colts 1 GF I think Uni played with a sense of entitlement.

And an ordinary lineout in Prems didn't help either. First throw of the game was crooked lead to scrum, scrum penalty, lineout, try. Then later in first half two poor lineout throws led to two tries via Aiden Toua cut out passes.

There set piece inadeqacies lead to lack of ball, possession & territory which meant their back 3 which was their strength being taken out of the game. Mid-field combinations were also out played.

I hear there was some late night drunken honesty at St Lucia on the Sunday.

Fair play to Brothers who won Colts 1-3, Uni also lost the colts 4 GF, so it was in fact 0/5.

 

[The Nomad]

^ glad it gave you something to smile about on the day Bulldog .

 

[Dean Moriarty]

I didn't want to poke the bear but their scrum was massacred in Premier grade, and from the little I saw of the colts 1 GF I think Uni played with a sense of entitlement.

And an ordinary lineout in Prems didn't help either. First throw of the game was crooked lead to scrum, scrum penalty, lineout, try. Then later in first half two poor lineout throws led to two tries via Aiden Toua cut out passes.

There set piece inadeqacies lead to lack of ball, possession & territory which meant their back 3 which was their strength being taken out of the game. Mid-field combinations were also out played.

I hear there was some late night drunken honesty at St Lucia on the Sunday.

Fair play to Brothers who won Colts 1-3, Uni also lost the colts 4 GF, so it was in fact 0/5.

Yes , as I said , 0 out of 5

Robust self -examination around late night drunken honesty sounds awesome - but only if what is discovered is in fact true

 

[Dark Shark]

I didn't want to poke the bear but their scrum was massacred in Premier grade, and from the little I saw of the colts 1 GF I think Uni played with a sense of entitlement.

And an ordinary lineout in Prems didn't help either. First throw of the game was crooked lead to scrum, scrum penalty, lineout, try. Then later in first half two poor lineout throws led to two tries via Aiden Toua cut out passes.

There set piece inadeqacies lead to lack of ball, possession & territory which meant their back 3 which was their strength being taken out of the game. Mid-field combinations were also out played.

I hear there was some late night drunken honesty at St Lucia on the Sunday.

Fair play to Brothers who won Colts 1-3, Uni also lost the colts 4 GF, so it was in fact 0/5.

That result in the set pieces had to be expected when the Uni hooker was playing only his third full game in his entire career in that position. I think it was predicted before the GF in the 2020 thread that Nasser would struggle big time after only converting to the position less than a few months earlier and getting scant minutes in Super Rugby.

 

[PhilClinton]

That result in the set pieces had to be expected when the Uni hooker was playing only his third full game in his entire career in that position. I think it was predicted before the GF in the 2020 thread that Nasser would struggle big time after only converting to the position less than a few months earlier and getting scant minutes in Super Rugby.

A couple of Uni supporters puffed their chests out and said Heenan would never select him at hooker unless he thought he would be good enough to play there, and would give a big up yours to the QRU if Thorny wasn't happy about it.

So really no excuse there, Heenan clearly thought he was ready for it or folded to the pressures of the QRU.

 

[Bulldog]

^ glad it gave you something to smile about on the day Bulldog .

I do suffer from a bit of "anyone but Uni" syndrome.

 

[SouthernX]

I do suffer from a bit of "anyone but Uni" syndrome.

Co-signed... always baffle me when everyone screaming F The Filth, but if brothers met Uni in a match I’m going for the Catholics 10 times out of 10.

 

[Bulldog]

I also think it wrong of the Reds to give Nasser opportunities at hooker ahead of blokes who have proven themselves in the position at junior rep and Premier grade level.

Will be interesting to see what opportunities are given to Nasser next year in the hooker position at the Reds. Then what position he plays for Uni in 2021.

All I know is that if he played in 1,2 or 3 for Uni in the GF, Easts would still have had scrum dominance. Which begs the question as to why any of the Easts front row were not identified as better options than Nasser? In particular Rhys van Nek who is capable and proven at Premier Grade level across 1,2 & 3. Rhys is off to the Rebels in 2021 despite having worked his way through the Reds pathways?

George Francis was also recognised at national level (Australia "A") before the Reds could see anything in him.

Yet another two that Cordingley & Corozza may have missed!

One wonders whether they appreciate what an abundance of hidden talent rests in QPR - Tom Banks is probably the most recent significant star that they failed to properly identify.

The pathway to the Reds is more so GPS School Rugby to Reds rather than School -> Club -> Reds.

Despite Wests inability to be a consistent top 4 club I still find that QPR (& school rugby) provides me with the greatest level of enjoyment in watching rugby in Australia.

 

[PhilClinton]

To be fair re the Easts from row recruitment, specifically Van Nek and Francis (Asiata already contracted) the Reds have traditionally been very strong up front. Prior to all the movement at the end of this year, there was

Tupou
Hoopert
JP Smith
R Smith
Fotuaika
Zander
Nongorr
Felemi

I agree that Van Nek and Francis were totally dominant this year - but you have to cut the recruitment guys some slack here. The Reds scrum was probably the best in Super Rugby and all the guys listed above would likely do well against Easts front row (maybe not Nongorr who got minced!).

 

[The Nomad]

With regards to Nasser’s opportunity at the Reds this year think it was more making something work out of what the COVID bubble and hooker injuries left them with rather than him being chosen over proven club players.

Once they went into the bubble they couldn’t shoehorn another player in , nor could they pay one .

In a pre-COVID year , I’m sure both Ritchie and Rhys would have been in the picture as injury replacements .

Guess you could question why Nasser was ever in the squad as a prop in the first place , but that has very little to do with UQ.

I’ll go into bat here for the Heavies by saying that in recent memory their Reds’ players have been selected for the Reds after playing club rugby, not sent to St Lucia after signing for the Reds. Biggest misses being Banks and Kuridrani.

 

[SouthernX]

How is kuridrani a miss?

The same Kuridrani that played for GPS that went onto play for the reds? If your talking about Kuridrani at the brumbies then forgive me for not knowing that he was a qlder.

 

[RugbyReg]

How is kuridrani a miss?

The same Kuridrani that played for GPS that went onto play for the reds? If your talking about Kuridrani at the brumbies then forgive me for not knowing that he was a qlder.

Yep - Tevita. A good Corinda State School boy.

 

[The Nomad]

How is kuridrani a miss?

The same Kuridrani that played for GPS that went onto play for the reds? If your talking about Kuridrani at the brumbies then forgive me for not knowing that he was a qlder.

Sorry for not clarifying, Tevita played for UQ , not Chris .

 

[Dark Shark]

With regards to Nasser’s opportunity at the Reds this year think it was more making something work out of what the COVID bubble and hooker injuries left them with rather than him being chosen over proven club players.

Once they went into the bubble they couldn’t shoehorn another player in , nor could they pay one.

The third hooker was Sean Farrell. However, for reasons unknown the Reds coaching group did everything in their power not to select Farrell across the season including changing Nasser from a prop to hooker.

 

[The Nomad]

The third hooker was Sean Farrell. However, for reasons unknown the Reds coaching group did everything in their power not to select Farrell across the season including changing Nasser from a prop to hooker.

Yep , to the point he has been cut from the squad for 2021. Would imagine Thorn would have his reasons .

 

[SouthernX]

Sean Farrell did line up as a flanker for souths this year upon coming out of super rugby quarantine.

You’d think the magpies would of selected their hooker from the reds to play hooker and not flanker.

 

[D'Lite Full]

Bulldog, yes, Ashgrove won 2019 & 2020 (albeit GF not played) and 2018 and 2017 too. Fairly dominant - maybe lost one comp game in 4 years.

Professor Moriarty, University do shit to recruit? They send letters to several players across schools is my intel. Unfortunately a team of champions rolling through the club rounds couldn't beat a champion team when it mattered. You see that at club and school level frequently. And after a 35-5 flogging of Brothers in the semi, maybe they thought they just needed to turn up? I think someone said entitled? More like complacency but to be honest, anyone could have won that game. The filth just looked hungrier. Maybe you're right that 0-5 was just a coincidence and clubs like GPS would love to be bemoaning that finals record. Instead they were 1 out of 2 but when I was at Uni, that was a percentage that got you a pass.

I do agree that GPS is losing its identity. Since their Prems win in 2018, there is a lot of bitching about what they need. I agree that the complacency is palpable. But it is not exactly true they haven't had the best Marist players go there. Rebels bound, Emosi Tuquiri and Ben Geraghty (MCA rugby captains in 2017 and 2018), Isaac DeFlavis, Ben Bucknell, Ben Byrne, Shaquille McLeod, Matt & Tom Dangerfield and John Downes played in recent years. Some of these guys played QLD Schools. Not many First XV players from 2019 but that might be because of the proportion of year 11 players in that team (5), Colts jumping to Under 20 in 2020, covid uncertainty and yes, quite a few RL advocates. But they might come back. I know of only one from that team who went to UQ and he wasn't playing First Grade, Colts 1 or 2.

As for GPS not being competitive (The Nomad), they pushed Brothers at home (asked the Brothers coach), flogged Norths 40-0, narrowly lost to Souths and Wests and pushed many of the other teams, but didn't have the depth to win more games. However, they have many of their team back in 2021 who will be complemented by others on the circuit to find a Colts 1 spot next year.

All they have to do is find a good coach and find their identity. Yes, over to you Mr Meehan. Welcoming back Shane Arnold for Premier Grade is a good start.

No doubt Uni have already sent their letters. But why would you go there to play Colts 2 or to Brothers to play Colts 2/3?