Sydney Colts - 2015

[Hugh Jarse]

Round 4 Results

W. McMahon Memorial Shield - Colts 1
Eastern Suburbs 28 Southern Districts 22
Eastwood 83 Warringah 5
Gordon 57 West Harbour 23
Manly 23 Sydney University 33
Penrith 5 Northern Suburbs 110
Randwick 85 Parramatta 14


Shell Trophy - Colts 2
Eastern Suburbs 46 Southern Districts 22
Eastwood 56 Warringah 5
Gordon 55 West Harbour 17
Manly 13 Sydney University 55
Penrith 14 Northern Suburbs 41
Randwick 47 Parramatta 17


Bill Simpson Shield - Colts 3
Eastern Suburbs 15 Southern Districts 33
Eastwood 24 Warringah 0
Gordon 55 West Harbour 11
Manly 0 Sydney University 13
Penrith 10 Northern Suburbs 55
Randwick 55 Parramatta 17


Round 5 Games - 18 April
Gordon v Manly
Northern Suburbs v Eastern Suburbs
Parramatta v Eastwood
Randwick v Penrith
Sydney University v Southern Districts
West Harbour v Warringah

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Round 3 reports from the Beasties

Colt's Report Round 3

The sun shone brightly for all three East’s Colts team on Saturday last in dismal and dreary conditions at Kierle Park against the formidable Manly teams.
The rain tumbled down throughout and the wind was strong and gusty from the south but the East’s boys rose to the occasion magnificently.

Thirds had a gutsy 10 to 5 victory. Running into the wind and rain they scored a try wide out in the early minutes and then a magnificent conversion from touch saw them lead 7 nil and this was the halftime score.
However ill discipline from both sides saw them both reduced to 14 men with a red card and then the horrendous injury toll for Easts kicked in with our 5/8 injured and taking no further part in the game and with no replacements left Easts soldiering on with 13 men.
They defended heroically before Manly scored to make it 7 to 5 and then right at the finish Easts closed it out with a late penalty goal. The fervor of The East’s song at game’s end showed how much it meant to the team.

Seconds was another nail bitter with defence a key in the 18 to 12 victory. The game started poorly for Easts with Manly running in an early try with Easts only points coming in the first half from a lone penalty goal.
However the second half belonged to Easts running in 2 tries , one of which was converted to go to a comfortable 15 to 7 lead before Manly scored another unconverted try before Easts added a final penalty goal for a 18 to 12 victory.
This was a splendid and spirited victory.

Firsts began like a house on fire and with some thrilling running by the inside backs and after 15 minutes Easts were up by 2 converted tries (14 nil ) . However in the slippery conditions the game developed into slug fest with a lot of dropped ball and many stoppages.
Manly reacted better and lifted the tempo and really started to challenge the Easts defence and had our scrum struggling for parity. Two tries for Manly saw them just adrift 14 to 12 at halftime.
Easts turned with the wind at their backs but getting quality ball to the backs was difficult , with the game in the balance Easts scored again after concerted attack from a charge down to skip out to a 9 point cushion(21-12) but Manly were not to be denied.
A penalty goal to the Marlins and there was only 6 points in it and Manly were coming hard and Easts were just hanging on with some really committed defence. Finally it was the educated boot of 5/8 Jack Maddocks that keep Manly at bay and Easts were rewarded with a really gutsy 21-15 victory.
For all teams and the coaching staff under Pauli it was a just reward for all the hard work and effort that has been put in over the last 6 months.
The smile on a waterlogged Pauli said it all at game’s end!!
Nest week we play our first home game at Woollahra against Southern Districts

http://www.graphicmail.com.au/new/en_send_preview_iframe2.aspx?SID=18&SiteID=5924&NewsletterID=74145

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Southern Districts Reports - Round 3

RD 3 v. PENRITH REPORT:
The trek to Penrith on a cold and very wet day was not a day to fill the rugby heart with excitement.
The 3rd colts started the day on a very wet surface with constant rain. Very early it was evident it was going to be a game of limited ball movement which was a shame, as souths had a very talented back line and bought the much much bigger Penrith forwards into the game.
Souths scored first to take a 5 nil lead and in the conditions that was a winning score, but Penrith hit back and a great conversion made it 7- 5 to Penrith.
The Souths forwards were really standing up in defense against the much bigger Penrith forwards, and were gradually wearing them down which allowed a good attacking raid and a try in the corner and a 10 to 7 score, then it was a case of batten down the hatches and tackle, tackle, tackle, which they did and came away with a very gutsy win, and set the standard for the day in defence.

2nds colts, I felt was going to be the hardest win for the day. Penrith have a very good group of Players who have come through the age rep groups together, and have been very successful so far in 2nd colts - they have had 2 very strong performances - so we knew 2nds had a tough afternoon ahead of them.
The Souths players adapted to the conditions very quickly and used their forwards very well to set a strong platform, and give the backs the extra room needed in these conditions. The inside backs played a lot closer and a lot straighter which really made life easier in the conditions.
2nds played some good rugby against a good side. Liam Bennett on the wing scored 2 tries which indicates the way the team played. Drew Nuttall at 15 was very safe and his positional play was excellent, it gave us great attacking options from the Penrith general kicks.
As with the 3rds it was strong defense and a lot of hustling that frustrated Penrith.
Well done to 2nds on their bonus point 27 to 14 win.

1st colts took to the field on a chopped up field against a team that would out weigh a Super 15 team. In the heavy conditions it was debatable if the slower game was going to help or hinder Penrith as the players feet were sinking into the ground.
The souths forwards started very energetically and were driving through the Penrith forwards. Some great driving mauls gave the souths backs the platform to fire, a strong try to Rahboni followed by a couple of good back line tries, had the game under our control after 15 minutes of play.
Unfortunately, the Penrith team decided to bring in the old adage, " if you can't win the game, win the fight" and the game quickly degenerated where souths were trying to play rugby and Penrith were playing Thuggery. The less said the better and in the end Souths won 50 to Nil. I would like to say that the club will be taking it up with NSWRU about our concerns from Saturday.
Player of the day goes to all the players, officials, medical staff, Lance our strapper , mums, dads and supporters for making to trek to Penrith and putting up with the terrible conditions we had to endure.
I would lastly like to welcome Brandy who is our Colts doctor and she will be with 1st colts for the rest of the season. She will also be able to assist players from 2nds and 3rds when she gets to the ground after she finishes work. The Souths medical setup is the best in club land and a credit to the club for taking the players medical welfare so seriously.
Next week we have Easts at Woollahra. I think Stu and Marc the 3rd colts coaches will be very edgy during the week and looking for a victory over their old club.

https://www.facebook.com/southerndistricts.rugbyunion.colts/posts/864634560239746

 

[wreckless]

.

.................."Unfortunately, the Penrith team decided to bring in the old adage, " if you can't win the game, win the fight" and the game quickly degenerated where souths were trying to play rugby and Penrith were playing Thuggery. The less said the better and in the end Souths won 50 to Nil. I would like to say that the club will be taking it up with NSWRU about our concerns from Saturday."

What's going on with Penrith? Not a peep from fellow contributors to defend them. Even @cattledog appears to have deserted them! And why do they need to be "nurtured"? If they're thugs - kick 'em out - the game can do without them! They'll go back to the mungoes won't they?

 

[Quick Hands]

What's going on with Penrith? Not a peep from fellow contributors to defend them. Even @cattledog appears to have deserted them! And why do they need to be "nurtured"? If they're thugs - kick 'em out - the game can do without them! They'll go back to the mungoes won't they?

Sad to hear this, but as I said on the Shute Shield thread a couple of weeks ago, it's doing no-one any good for Penrith to be playing at this level and being so hopelessly outclassed week after week year after year. This is not a new phenomenon unfortunately.

A number of years ago, when Penrith were in what was then known as Sydney 2nd Dvision, I can recall vividly refereeing Penrith v Liverpool colts on the back field at Nepean. I had to send 2 or 3 off from each team and stop the game early.

 

[GPSrow]

Ahhh fellas. It's been too long. The Gordon Highlanders ay, who would've thought Gordon could field 4 teams this year? S**T I certainly didn't!

Being apart of the Gordon Colts for the 2nd year has been a huge eye opener with talent, depth and a good culture emerging from great group of boys that have decided to put in this year for the club.

 

[wreckless]

Ahhh fellas. It's been too long. The Gordon Highlanders ay, who would've thought Gordon could field 4 teams this year? S**T I certainly didn't!

Being apart of the Gordon Colts for the 2nd year has been a huge eye opener with talent, depth and a good culture emerging from great group of boys that have decided to put in this year for the club.

Welcome back GPSrow!

 

[Quick Hands]

Ahhh fellas. It's been too long. The Gordon Highlanders ay, who would've thought Gordon could field 4 teams this year? S**T I certainly didn't!

Being apart of the Gordon Colts for the 2nd year has been a huge eye opener with talent, depth and a good culture emerging from great group of boys that have decided to put in this year for the club.

As I've been saying for a few years, if you're well organised and you get your recruiting right, you're well on the way to going well on the field.

 

[GPSrow]

As I've been saying for a few years, if you're well organised and you get your recruiting right, you're well on the way to going well on the field.

Exactly right.

 

[Quick Hands]

Exactly right.

And you guys recruited some good players, who are also quality characters and that's how you build a club.

BTW, shouldn't you be changing your Eastwood icon to something with antlers?

 

[GPSrow]

And you guys recruited some good players, who are also quality characters and that's how you build a club.

BTW, shouldn't you be changing your Eastwood icon to something with antlers?

Ahh I've always loved the woodies. Only live a few streets away from TG Milner!

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Colts Club Championship Watch:
Still early days yet but the usual suspects have already established a spot in the top 1/2 of the 2015 table.
There are a maximum of 55 points available to a club each week, based on all 3 colts teams winning with a 4 try BP.

Randwick, 220 points
Northern Suburbs, 209 points
Sydney University, 208 points
Gordon, 174 points
Southern Districts, 154 points
Manly, 111 points
Eastwood, 91 points
Eastern Suburbs, 50 points
West Harbour, 23 points
Parramatta, 15 points
Penrith, 13 points
Warringah, 3 points


How the Colts Club Championship table is calculated.
The competition points from the individual competitions are multiplied by the following factors and then added together.
Colts 1 - 6
Colts 2 - 3
Colts 3 - 2

 

[the baz]

does anyone know if the player points on rugby link are correct? Not many have points up at all, and Gordon seem to have played 42 points in ones.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

@The Baz, The player points as recorded on Rugby link are a joke. One hopes that the interns at SRU are looking at the Player Points on the official Team Sheets that I assume the Managers are still submitting to them, and doing the calculations to endure that things are above board and compliant. Teams most at risk of being non-compliant are those with the most 2013/2014 Aust and State Schoolboys. These are Gordon, Randwick, BuildCorp, and Norths. These clubs tend to have fairly astute administrative staff who are acutely aware of the points cap and typically manage to stay just on the right side of the limit.

It appears as if Rugby Link is a bit of a tricky system, and more than a little user unfriendly. There are plenty of games where the Clubs seem to have just given up on doing any data entry.

The player points calculations (0 points for non-fresh reserves) seem to be a little too hard for Rugby Link to calculate automatically, but we should rejoice that some teams have even managed to enter team lists and scoring detail, even if the jumper numbers seem a little haphazard.

I can see where Rugby Link has potential to provide better information in a whole variety of different formats than the old clunker of a system that SRU used to operate, but ARU in their infinite wisdom have replaced a system that was working with one that isn't.

 

[Blackers13]

Some Thommo literary magic...

First Grade Colts - It was a beautiful day at Coogee as the sun streamed down around the ground. That’s the good part about getting old, it looks good as first grade colts run out onto the field. The Colts were running north to Sydney and Randwick had the kick off. Now I am not going to blame the Colts for our disastrous day but they will have to take some blame. If you need counselling you should ring “Beyond Blue.” Randwick’s Colts first try came from a Parramatta line out where Randwick hoisted their player into the air and suspended him there. Surely before we throw, we wait until the player is going down or we throw to the front of our line out. No, we throw to the suspended Randwick player who wins the ball two handed, passes the ball down and Randwick score in the left hand corner running south. Randwick 5 Parra 0 after 5 minutes. What a coach killer? It is not long before Randwick is in again running down the edges on the beach side of the field. Randwick 12, Parra 0. I know you make your own luck but Parra turns the ball over and the ball coughs up into the Randwick winger’s arms. He races into the beach corner for a try. Randwick misses the conversion. Randwick 17 Parra 0. The clock ticks over as Randwick pile on the points, 22-0, 27-0, 36-0, Half –time score 43-0.

The restart sees Randwick click into gear again. Parra are not moving up they are giving Randwick too much time to think. Randwick 50-0, 55-0, 57-0. Finally a try to Parra as Prop Sione Fonua barges over after some good lead up work by the Parra forwards. Randwick 57 Parra 7 Then we go back to sleep as Randwick run at us. 62-7, 69-7 71-7, 78 -7, 85-7. Boys if Randwick are going to score make certain they remember it. You are allowed to crush them in a tackle. Finally with 10 minutes to go our forward pack wakes up and we score from a pick and drive beside the posts. Randwick 85 Parra 14 after the conversion.

Too their credit the boys finished strongly. I know guys Gary let you have it after the game. Think about what he said. Randwick embarrassed all of us, not just you. The culture we are trying to forge as a club is that we all work together and we stand up for each other. No one is more important than the team. Every missed tackle, every line break you let through hurts the team. If we do lose the opposition should know they have played us. Like all of us Gary wants the best for you. He still loves you.

Losing is not an option. Everybody knows how Randwick plays the game no matter what team you are in from 18’s to 1st Grade. They always spread wide that is why they are called the galloping greens. You have to be up in their faces. You don’t let them come to you. You go to them together and you cut them off at the advantage line. You force their pretty boy fly half back into our forwards and crush him. No Parra backs should not be allowed to have the ball unless our forwards are dominating up front. Every tackle you rattle the opposition. Let them know you are there and you will always have them looking for you. They will become hesitant and make mistakes just as it happened to you today. Become fitter stronger faster. In the words of the great league coach, Jack Gibson, “Fatigue makes cowards of us all”.

 

[The Butts]

@The Baz, The player points as recorded on Rugby link are a joke.

The player points calculations (0 points for non-fresh reserves) seem to be a little too hard for Rugby Link to calculate automatically . . .

Spot on again 'Rather Large Posterior'. The problem is that the rule (0 points for non-fresh reserves) is skewing the Gordon points total.

If you look at the list you can see that there are a number of players who had played in the 2nd Colts match, and yet their points were added to the total.

If this was fixed Gordon would be way under the limit

 

[Garza]

Well while some are congratulating clubs with rep players for their wonderful recruiting campaign rather than lament the inequality of the colt teams in the competition lets think about The Scots College. Remember last June the Sydney Morning Herald published complaints by Farr Jones about Scots beating Newington 101to nil. He suggested that the college had offered inducements to get rep players in the school team and that led to mismatches and that schools should have a level playing field. Now guess what Syd Uni has been exposed as offering admission to Scots pupils on a program that avoids the HSC and favours them over Hsc students who have to get high scores. A free guess who those pupils were. Yes you are right they are Scots rugby players. Oh so Sydney uni then gets rep players, they get into university avoid testing everyone else had to do and the rugby team gets players on scholarships. Farr Jones - what about a level playing field for Colts clubs. !!!!!

 

[I like to watch]

Except you don't have to go to Uni to play for Uni.
Anyone can play for them.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Well while some are congratulating clubs with rep players for their wonderful recruiting campaign rather than lament the inequality of the colt teams in the competition lets think about The Scots College. Remember last June the Sydney Morning Herald published complaints by Farr Jones about Scots beating Newington 101to nil. He suggested that the college had offered inducements to get rep players in the school team and that led to mismatches and that schools should have a level playing field. Now guess what Syd Uni has been exposed as offering admission to Scots pupils on a program that avoids the HSC and favours them over Hsc students who have to get high scores. A free guess who those pupils were. Yes you are right they are Scots rugby players. Oh so Sydney uni then gets rep players, they get into university avoid testing everyone else had to do and the rugby team gets players on scholarships. Farr Jones - what about a level playing field for Colts clubs. !!!!!

Don't let the facts get in the way of a good rant @Garza, and thank you for turning me into a Scots and Uni apologist.

^^^ I like the Tin Foil Hat theory @Not in straight but. . . Looking at The Corporation Colts Team lists on the Shute Shield Web Site for their Round 2 game vs the Beasts, I can only see 3 former Scots boys from the Class of 2014, and two of those lads were in Colts 2 and one in Colts 3 Bench. None of the three were at National Schoolboy Under 18 Championships last year.

<snip>

As much as I like to see hypocrisy and rorts exposed, the facts don't seem to support the theory this time. However, it may well be that one or more of the 4 former Scots pupils that has obtained entry to Sydney University using this Diploma, may be a rugby player. If so, it is entirely plausible that they may be one of the many students enrolled at Sydney University that play for a club other than The Corporation, or even at a Subbies club. If they are one of the three Scots boys in Colts 2 or 3 with The Corporation, then they have pulled a decent sort of swifty over the usually canny recruiters at BuildCorp.

Last year 4 Scots boys made it to National U18 Schoolboy Championships. This year one of those four is now playing U20 Loig. One is playing rugby with Norths. One hasn't turned up on any Team list yet so no further comment on his club allegiance. The last one is most likely playing with Randwick. Even though his name hasn't appeared on any team lists this year, he played several Colts 1 games for them last year while moonlighting from School footy, and he played all his junior rep rugby with the Wicks.

It would be a rather long bow, but a better Tin Foil Hat Conspiracy theory, to suggest that these State Schoolboy Rugby players may be the very 4 lads that have ended up using the Diploma loophole to get preferential enrolment into Sydney University. At best the Sniper on the Hill can take out one of the two favourite rugby targets but not both. Sydney Uni Footy don't appear to be guilty this time. Scots World Rugby Domination Inc may be guilty but not likely. Sydney University Inc found a nice way to make about $100k last year by running a rather questionable back door enrolment scheme. Dr Mattrass Lambert seems to have taken legitimate advantage of the scheme. Only bad guy appears to have been the business arm of Sydney University which sought to make an easy $100k.

I would also note that in 2013 Randwick Colts 1 were knocked out of the Finals by The Corporation by more than 100 points.
In 2014 with quite a number of lads from the 100 point loss, Randwick beat The Corporation to win the 2014 Colts 1 Premiership. I can't recall any moaning about how unfair it was that they lost by 100 points. The Wicks just got on with doing things better, to get better, which they did and they won.

 

[I like to watch]

That's a very noble version Big Arse.
A more cynical and I think more accurate version is that the Wicks beat Uni at their own game.
Was it five or six Oz Schoolboys they crowed about recruiting for the 2014 season?
Yeah,their boys worked hard & they have a good program.
But who thinks they would have won without the rockstars?