ACT back in Waratah Shield with a bang
August 2, 2012
David Polkinghorne
Marist College players James Kazis and Montana O'Neill tackle Hills Sports High School Sydney player Chris Asmus.
Photo: Jeffrey Chan
It was a case of David versus Goliath and Marist College, playing the role of David, sent an emphatic message to the Waratah Shield that the ACT is back.
Marist won its quarter-final 29-7 against Sydney's Hills Sports High School at home yesterday.
Canberra schools haven't been allowed in the Shield for the last seven years after St Edmund's College won the competition nine years straight.
Marist College's Luke McCreath scores a try.
Photo: Jeffrey Chan
But the result might not be set in stone, with Hills considering whether to lodge a protest about Marist's use of the interchange.
It looked like a massive mismatch, with the Hills players towering over the home side, one of the Sydney visitors even sporting a beard.
But what appeared to be their strength became their Achilles heel as the Marist backline had a field day in front of a packed, brand-new grandstand.
Marist College player Montana O'Neill gets tackled by Hills Sports High School Sydney players Cameron Skelton, left and George Sisifa, right.
Photo: Jeffrey Chan JCC
Marist scrumhalf and captain Joe Powell combined brilliantly with No.10 Jamie Bodman as they switched the play from one wing to the other until they found a crack.
And crack the Hills defence did.
It took just 15 minutes for Bodman to put winger Connor Simpson into a hole to score and then outside centre Dougall McLauchlan showed some individual brilliance.
He appeared to catch the ball between his legs before burning off his Hills opponent to make it 14-0 at half-time.
After the break, Simpson scored his second try before Luke McCreath went over to make it 26-0.
Finally, Hills put its superior size to good use to cross the try line, but it was too little too late against a desperate Marist outfit that had repeatedly put its smaller bodies in front of the Hills man-mountains.
Marist forwards also dominated against the bigger Hills pack and clearly won the scrum.
Coach Paul Mead was proud of the way his team stuck to its game plan.
''It certainly wasn't easy, I think our boys are very sore,'' he said.
''Per player I think we're probably 5-10 kilos lighter than most of those boys.
''The commitment to defence was fantastic, the low-tackle focus, and with the ball in attack it was about building phases and making them work without the ball and hopefully when they had their opportunities they'd be a little more tired for it and I think that played into our [hands].''
Mead said he'd deal with any protest about Marist rotating its props off the interchange bench.
Hills coach Chris Hawkes distanced himself from the protest, saying it was a decision for the school.
He was impressed with the way Marist was able to open up Hills, which has made the last three Waratah Shield grand finals, winning it in 2010.
''I thought their halfback [Powell] was outstanding,'' Hawkes said.
''They moved the ball very nicely, sideline to sideline, how well did they move the ball?''
Mead said he was waiting on a couple of results before he would know Marist's semi-final opponent.
AT A GLANCE
WARATAH SHIELD QUARTER-FINAL
MARIST 29 (Simpson 2, McCreath, McLauchlan tries; Bodman 3 conversions, penalty)
bt HILLS SPORTS 7.
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