From Waverley 1sts coach, Blair Ryan
This week saw the four Waverley AFL teams competing in an AFL NSW/ACT organised Gala Day which included all of the schools competing in this year’s competition.
The main idea of the day was to get the boys onto the field and enjoy some quick fire 20 minute games against different schools and to see where they stand in their preparation for the upcoming season. The teams had some very promising results and on most reports, they seemed to enjoy the quick paced format. Hopefully some of the minor issues that occurred will be ironed out before the start of next season.
The results for the Firsts were:
- Waverley 45 – 12 Shore White
- Waverley 39 – 6 Shore Blue
- Waverley 21 – 6 Shore Mixed
Three wins from three, best on ground Tom Sharpe with Tommy Tyson a close second.
From Waverley 9/10s coach, Emmett Pugh
After a much anticipated first clash of the season, the AFL gala day was set for a cracker. Unfortunately, one of the schools withdrew very late on the Friday afternoon which impacted on the gameplay fixtures. When the boys arrived at the ground, they were outnumbered by the Riverview opposition. Nine Waverley boys against an army of Riverview boys was the situation the young men faced. However, they went into battle outnumbered and outsized and put up a good fight but went home without the win.
The outstanding players of the day included Luke Marshall, Henry Standfield and Nicholas Buckingham.
Looking forward to the next game in term 2.
From Waverley 7/8As coach, Fred Pawle
The 7/8A’s got off to a fantastic start to the preseason as they won games against Barker and Trinity in their season opening gala day. Although poor weather conditions had hindered their chance to train and gel together as a team, the A’s found a way to play great team footy. Great performances from Louis Kitto and Freddy Hunt solidified the midfield and allowed for the whole team to open up the field and use the ball effectively. Overall, the team showed incredible purpose and promise to improve as they get more opportunities to train and play.
From Waverley 7/8Bs coach, William Tyson
This week’s contest was a gala day competition consisting of many Year 7 and Year 8 teams in the growing competition.
ELS Hall was the venue and the new outfit B team took full advantage of the small ground which forced contested possession to be the major factor in the game.
Up first was Shore, who were blown away quite quickly with the boys winning the ball all over the field, with the forwards kicking many goals, midfielders dominating clearances and the brave backline rebounding the ball out as smooth as possible, only letting in one point. The end score was 27-1 which let the rest of the teams in the competition know Waverley’s team is tough all over the ground and has plenty of depth.
Up next was the experienced Riverview team. This game was a battle as the boys were winning the ball easily but unfortunately couldn’t kick straight. Luckily enough a goal was kicked in the dying minutes to seal the victory 15-13.
The last game was against the strong outfit of Knox. This was Knox’s first game of the day and Waverley’s third, so understandably there were some tired legs out on the field and the bar was set high to beat the fired up Knox team. Knox kicked straight and came out hard early, although towards the end the Waverley boys fired back and had one specific play which demonstrated class and composure leading to one of the goals of the day, although it wasn’t enough to beat them in the end.
Best Players: Jude Duckman, Jay Palm, Tobias Malzard, Charley Roberts, Charles Hudson.
