Waratah Shield 2010

[Lee Grant]

Api Malu is 19 next year.

So much for the info of other parents. Have edited my post. Thanks.

 

[Lindommer]

...Cummins did not play but should be available for the final.

Steve rolled his ankle playing for the Pirates against Parra on Saturday. Didn't seem too bad (but there again I'm not a medico), he reckoned he'd be right in a few days. At the moment his Oz Schoolboys commitments are the most important thing for him.

 

[Lee Grant]

I'm told that Hills were absolutely dominant in the first half and led by a huge score at half time. They got slack and lazy in the second half and they won't be able to do that against Auggies in the final. Well done to Stannies for not lying down.

Lee, did you see Jacob Loko play? I would be interested to know what you thought of him. I understand Seage and Cummins did not play but should be available for the final.

Having arrived just before half-time and hearing the score then I figured as much about the 2nd half slack and lazy comment but I was too polite to put it in those terms. Quite a few were walking in the 2nd half, literally.

Loko - was he a nuggety crash baller? The guy I'm thinking of wasn't a starter as he had a high number,18 I think. If that's they guy he was very hard to stop but that's all I remember of him.

Did you write earlier that McCallum is definitely contracted to league? It's a pity because I think he has the attributes to be a fine union flyhalf and one doesn't always say that about promising league five-eighths.

Liked your comments about the other players going to union after getting experience in the game at Hills. I think Cummins will be a better union player than a league player. I couldn't have seen Big Willie surviving the get back 10s of league and he is in the right stable to bring the best out of him at Uni. Havea still looks like a league player. He's a good ball runner at good enough tackler but he'll have to work a bit more on using the ball and specific union skills.

 

[Lee Grant]

PS - Some parents said that St. Augustines were playing in the Sanix tournament in Japan next year.

According to my info the following are in Yr.11.

1. Apineru Malu
4. Rhys Dombkins
5. Mitch Hanigan
7. Tim Conlon
11. Luke Vescio
12. Jack Purcell
14. Connor Firth

Plus Dyer, Toumazus, Osborne and Raffo from reserves.

They should have a reasonable team, though lily said Api is turning 19 next year; so he probably won't be allowed to play.

 

[lily]

Api started at Bally Boys in 2008. Due to mass school absences he was placed in year 9 not in year 10. Because of this he is ineligible next year. I'm not sure about ISA rules but I coached a team at a CHS zone carnival and the fijian knights winger played and he was 19. He was unbelievable and one guy rugby should target.

 

[Lee Grant]

Thanks for that - have you nabbed him for Manly Colts lilly? Good player - TPN type LHP. Cross train as a hooker??

Despite the bad info from the parent he didn't play like a 16 y.o. so I should have known better.

 

[lily]

He hopefully has settled down. The word thug used to suit him. He's doing good considering this would have been his first year in the front row. And yes Lee he played colts last year at Manly in the Centres and backrow.

 

[lily]

When will someone involved in rugby look at the schedule and not double book players. Hingano to miss Waratah Shield Final. You would have thought they would have learnt their lesson a couple of years ago when Westfields Sports had to forfeit the final against Matraville. Also last year in another scheduling masterstroke the Australia vs Tonga game was on the same day as the Colts GF denying Souths of Heather and Frizzell who had been their all year. What a joke.
Each organisation rates itself higher than the other which means we dont get the best out of the game. Imagine being the players, I'd go to league as well if treated that way. It shows they dont really care about junior development in my opinion.

 

[observer]

Loko - was he a nuggety crash baller? The guy I'm thinking of wasn't a starter as he had a high number,18 I think. If that's they guy he was very hard to stop but that's all I remember of him.

Did you write earlier that McCallum is definitely contracted to league? It's a pity because I think he has the attributes to be a fine union flyhalf and one doesn't always say that about promising league five-eighths.

No Loko is tall and lean and would have come off the bench. Here is a pic of him http://www.ourfootyteam.com/images/...parramatta_v_balmain_sgBall_rnd8_02_s600L.jpg

McCallum is definately under contract with the Bulldogs. Not sure for how long. Perhaps The Berries would know more. He spent a season with Eastwood colts either last year or the year before. As far as I know he likes rugby but the Dogs offer was too good.

 

[the berries]

Cummins not available, Seage probably not due to his hammy. Both will be missed but more importantly the fly half says they miss the organisational skills of their regular scrum half. Hills did muck around in the second half and lost their focus. This is a real problem with discipline and must be addressed in the following years. The league side suffered a similar work ethic with all boys appearing to play trials footy, not playing as a team and for the man outside of them. All wanted to show case their individual wears. Mark Horro bashed it out of them and taught them how to play for a team. The results speak for them selves. The Union program is currently attempting to do the same.

 

[the berries]

Info on McCallum. He is contracted to the Doggies until the end of 2011. The Doggies wanted a three year deal with him but his management argued for a two year deal telling the kid to back himself and not to sell out short. So far the advice appears to be working. I can tell you that also the leaguies ( Canterbury ) had an interest in the Seage as a half I am told that they liked the combo between McCallum and Jason. They have watched them since 2009. In saying this McCallum was offered a deal by the Two blues three years ago. Nothing flash just school fees at HSHS. Garry Ella identified him when he played for Baulkham Hills under 15s. I believe that Gerard would of stayed in union had he been offered an apprenticship in plumbing. The Doggies have ticked all the boxes so far.

 

[Lee Grant]

He hopefully has settled down. The word thug used to suit him. He's doing good considering this would have been his first year in the front row. And yes Lee he played colts last year at Manly in the Centres and backrow.

Well, he has settled down if that is the case lily. He was bowling lads over last Thursday and yesterday and tackled hard and not a whiff of dirty play. I'll keep my eye on him. Looks like he'll be a natural senior hooker, though he could be a good scrummager at LHP as a senior - it's hard to tell under the scrum laws the youngsters play under.

As for the double booking of players: I spoke to the bloke who was doing the ground announcing and he had a Tahs polo shirt on. I was whingeing to him that there was no info on the net about the Waratah Shield games and the tragics out there wanted some. He said he was just doing a job for the Tahs to help out at the ground but they didn't really do any organising which he thought came from CHS.

If that is the case it is no wonder that players are double booked. Nobody is talking to each other and it's falling between the cracks. It's not the Tahs fault as they are just providing someone to help out on game day. There is obviously nobody in overall charge, or at least nobody in charge who thinks it is important to liaise with Australian Schools rugby to find out their schedule.

I doubt if it is impossible to fit everything in. On paper it sounds easy. You would have the Waratah Shield final before the Oz Schools players go into camp for their games. This could have been yesterday not next Monday. Then you work back from that. If the comp has to be shortened to fit things in, give some of the ranked WS teams, such as the 8 finalists from the year before, a bye in the 1st round to shorten the competition.

Oz Schools may not care about the Waratah Shield, if they ever thought about it at all, but they do have overseas visitors coming over and their deadlines should be complied with. The trick is to find someone of the stature of Mark Ella, who has gone through the schools rugby system, who can get the two parties talking to each other. Maybe he can be appointed to do it by the ARU to give him a bit more clout. I hear that the ARU provides Oz Schools with tour funding so they would have pull with Oz Schools, but the Waratah Shield folks may not care that there are calendar conflicts.

The conflict between the Colts and Oz Schools is another matter. The Colts may have no interest about younger boys not being available to play in finals. If the Colts organisers have no interest in changing their schedules to comply with the timing of overseas schools visitors there's not a lot to be done. The trick here I think is for some body (not somebody) to arrange a meeting well before the schedule is made.

 

[rugbyfan]

Watched him play for Auggies - should be a tight head instead of loose, and should really work on his scrummaging skills - aswell as workrate

 

[Lee Grant]

He's a LHP through and through IMO. He's a converted backrower and THP might be a big ask, in fact I'd cross train him as a hooker. You want an athlete like him getting out of the scrum quickly especially from a scrum on the right hand side of the field and play is on the openside. You don't want him trapped in the scrum on the tight head side with a bloke on each shoulder.

If he stays as a prop after he leaves school and plays under different scrum laws eventually, it may change for him. The scrummaging will get more serious and his strengths and weakness wil dictate on which side he plays.

 

[the berries]

Look I have got to say. Props, frnt rowers , forwards, Who cares time wasters all of them. Get it to the backs.
love yah

 

[the berries]

Look I don't really know if there is a conflict betwen COLTS ans school footy. COLTS Don't really nothing to write home aboutb either.
I have watched so many boys play CHS level and not rate at colts, Then, Colts don't rate either.

 

[Lee Grant]

Yeah maybe we worry too much about it but from a schoolboy's point of view, and this is the WS thread, they would like the chance to play for both their school in the WS final and their country, because the opportunity usually comes around just once.

I'm not so fussed about a lad missing out on Colts finals because he can get another bite at that unless he is a star and gets graded early.

And we do rabbit on about schools players going onto great things after they leave school; at least I do, but Colts, let alone grade can bring them back to cruel reality. Not only can we assess them too highly at school, but also their schoolboy contemporaries can develop a year of two later than them, both in a physical sense and a rugby sense.

It was always so.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Yeah maybe we worry too much about it but from a schoolboy's point of view, and this is the WS thread, they would like the chance to play for both their school in the WS final and their country, because the opportunity usually comes around just once.

I'm not so fussed about a lad missing out on Colts finals because he can get another bite at that unless he is a star and gets graded early.

And we do rabbit on about schools players going onto great things after they leave school; at least I do, but Colts, let alone grade can bring them back to cruel reality. Not only can we assess them too highly at school, but also their schoolboy contemporaries can develop a year of two later than them, both in a physical sense and a rugby sense.

It was always so.

and always will be...

There are all sorts of distractions which can influence the choices a young man makes once he leaves school.

Many of these choices and external influences serve to keep these young men off the Rugby field.

The final years of School can be quite carefree for schoolboy rugby players. In many respects, everything is laid on for the show ponies and their lives are quite uncomplicated, and they can focus on rugby.
After school, Colts and Grade is a business and they do not have time to pander to show ponies.
The pressures of Jobs, education, relationships, no free taxi service, travel, other recreational pursuits, freedom from Parental tyranny, establishing a home/flat, self discipline, finances, etc can all result in School boy stars not kicking on or delivering to their full potential.

 

[the berries]

Big afternoon of footy at TG today. Hills Sports in both Buchan and Waratah shield finals. Hills will turn up but how many in the team will stack up and give their all for the team. HSHS have a history of going missing in action when they fail to intimidate other sides. Augies will not be intimidated today or any day. So a big win is probably on the cards for the beach side team. Interesting to see the different coaching methods used today (will Morley and Hawkes of the HSHS) leave Papa guesing what went wrong or ??? I certainly will be heading to the game and hope to see a hard fought contest. Good luck to both sides and have a injury free day. God Bless.

 

[Informer]

What time is the game?