From the Convenor of Rugby, Mr John McCoy
1st XV Match Report – Waverley College Vs St Ignatius’ College, Riverview
You could not have asked for better conditions to kick off the rugby season at Queens Park. It was glorious. The beautiful sunshine graced the playing fields at Death Valley for the fixtures between Waverley College and St Ignatius’ College, Riverview. The stage was set for another schoolboy classic.
Prior to the match, both sides engaged in an Acknowledgement of Country. This would be the third year that this most important Ceremony had taken place at Queens Park; to recognise and respect Aboriginal culture and the ongoing relationship the traditional owners have with their land.
As both teams faced up, it was clear that the Riverview pack had a weight and size advantage. Riverview kicked off into the sun and within minutes the first scrum was called. Waverley managed to hold solid early and on the back of this found space down the right sideline through Luca Martin. Despite a nice chip and chase, Martin just fell short of the line.
A majority of the first fifteen minutes was played around the halfway mark, as both teams seemed to gain and lose opportunities in quick time. Phoenix Baldwin was the man to change this pattern as he raced away down the left edge. Baldwin’s ‘never say die’ approach ensured he fought to the line for the first try.
It did not take long for the visiting side to hit back, finding a hole in the Waverley defensive line to go over. Another lapse in concentration on the pavilion side of the field had Riverview through for their second try. Worrying times for the Double V.
The Waves did not panic though and continued to play an upbeat attacking style of rugby, which the crowds love watching. Aisea Aholelei, who had made some fantastic contributions early in the game, was rewarded for his efforts with a nice try near the posts which was converted by Daniel Andrews.
While the opening of the match was quiet in the point scoring department, the scoring opened up at end of the first half. Harry Whiteman, who was shifted to Number 8 for the match played incredibly well. Whiteman was untouchable and his nice effort down the right side put Conor Molloy into space to touch down.
Riverview always found a way to keep hitting back and did so again through their speedy right winger, Nick Van Beek. The score was now locked at 19 all. Lathan Hutchinson-Walters, in his first game in the Double V jersey, was able to put Waves in front just before the break with a clever effort on the back of a “trick shot” involving Andrews and Baldwin.
Riverview commenced the second half on the attack. Strong goal line defence kept the home side just in front. However, when Riverview’s big tight head prop took the ball just in front of the posts, the lead soon changed.
The ball continued to flow from end to end, as crowds shuffled closer and closer to the edge of their seats. The difference in score did not seem to exceed a try throughout the contest. St Ignatius looked like going in to score, but a lost ball was collected by Tadgh Murphy who thundered across the Queens Park turf like a thoroughbred in the home straight at Royal Randwick. With metres to run, “Tiger” was pulled down but secured a penalty to put the Blue and Gold back in front.
The pattern of the match continued as once again Riverview found a way to score through flanker, Oliver Johnston, who discovered a hole in Waverley’s defensive line. But that wasn’t it. The game just seemed to continue on and on. The crowd were now all on their feet!
Both teams threw everything at each other as the shadows grew longer and longer on the QP1 pitch. To add to the drama, Riverview were reduced to 14 with just minutes to go. With one final crack, Luca Martin tried to find a way through but the ball found the turf and the fulltime whistle blew. Riverview victorious 33-27 in a highly entertaining game of schoolboy rugby!
Around the Grounds
The 2nd XV displayed an incredible form reversal, defeating Riverview 7-0 in a match for the rugby purists. It was pleasing to see all members of this side work hard from the start to the very end, building phases, tackling hard and putting in a big effort for each other. Al Jensen was the only to cross the line in the match, finding space through the centre of the field. The 3rd XV also enjoyed a tight win. Patrick Kossenberg’s never say die effort when chasing down a kick, led to a penalty try which assisted in the 14-12 win. The 4th XV displayed some signs of improvement but Riverview were just too good on the day, as was the case in the 5th XV match up down on QP6.
The 16s had a terrific day, winning all four grades. A miraculous effort under the high ball from Zach Smith in the left hand corner put Waverley in front 17-14. This was a 50 point turnaround, as the 15As of 2017 had lost to Riverview 49-7. Congratulations to all players and coaches. The 15Bs also showed plenty of entertainment early on Saturday morning winning 59-5. This side welcomed Ronald Volkman who showed some nice touches in his first game for Waverley. The 16Cs had a courageous 20 points to 10 win, as did the 16Ds who tasted a very sweet 51-0 win with Ben Smith and Cooper Sergis having terrific games.
The 15s had some mixed results on Saturday. The 15As had a tough day in the office against a very strong Riverview side. While a few injuries did not help the side, the 15As will have to regroup ahead of another difficult assignment against St Augustine’s. I am confident they can bounce back! Conor Boyd-Boland, who was called up for the 15Cs late, was a star in the 15Bs 12-0 win. Due to a number of players being ruled out late, the 15Cs and 15Ds came together to play in two games. Thanks to all those boys who backed up for both games. Your efforts are noted and appreciated.
The mighty 14As took to the small Riverview oval like ducks to water. The forwards hunted like a tight wolf pack cutting down any Riverview attack in their tracks. With the first three touches of the ball Dane Towns crossed the Riverview line with ease. His pace and change of angle proving too much for the opposition. This set up the strong 50-14 win. 14Bs was another hard fought game which could have gone either way. Hugo Sewell came up with the “Tackle of the Season!” The 14Cs had a close loss, 29-10. At times Waverley looked like they were going to cross the line but some simple mistakes allowed the Riverview side back in the game. Finbar Moss was one of the stand out players. James Everleigh’s motivating speech at half time in the 14Ds was just not enough to get his team over the line in a thriller. Owen Punch and Zac Wilde fought hard for the 14Es but could not shut down the scoring of a very well drilled Riverview side.
The 13As came up against an impressive Ignatius side, with a particularly strong backline. Toby Unsworth did a good job stepping up to assist the 13Bs to their 21-7 victory. James Jones for the standout for the 13Cs in their dominant 69-0 win. The 13Ds scored a solid win as well which included an exciting long range try to Moyo Adewusi. The 13Es did particularly well in their 77 – 7 point win. Harry Hill was forced off the field late with a knee injury, but fortunately has made a quick recovery through the week and is ready for another big win this weekend!
Queens Park Canteen & BBQ Assistance – Thank You!
It was brilliant to see so many new faces assisting in the Canteen and on the BBQ last Saturday. The support in making our visitors feel welcome was excellent. On behalf of Waverley College a big thank you to all those who helped out last weekend.
We are again looking for support on the BBQ and Canteen this coming Saturday 12th May, as we are expecting big numbers at Queens Park. Parents and friends can simply click here to register your interest:
Thanks in advance for all those who volunteer their support throughout the season and make all visitors to Queens Park feel so welcome.
CAS/ISA/GPS Trial Round Vs St Augustine’s College/St Pius X College/Kinross Wolaroi
This weekend Waverley College faces up against three different Independent Sporting Association (ISA) schools in St Augustine’s from Brookvale, St Pius X from Chatswood and Kinross Wolaroi School from Orange. It is important that all those teams playing away from home leave plenty of time to get to venues – particularly those teams playing at Narrabeen.
It has been a number of years since Waverley College had played against St Augustine’s, St Pius X and Kinross, so this weekend it will be a new experience for many of our boys. All opponents this weekend should provide solid challenges for all our teams, and with cold weather predicted, it should present a different playing environment to what we have been used to. Players need to ensure they arrive early to matches for a thorough warm up.
Mentoring
Over the last two weeks, some of our Year 12 students have started to connect with our junior teams as part of our 2018 Rugby Mentoring Program. This has been a successful program in recent years, with Year 12 students gaining coaching experience as well as our younger players having the opportunity of interacting with some of their 1st XV heroes. This week our 1st XV team members in Luca Moretti, Tadgh Murphy and Daniel Andrews all assisted out 13Ds and 13Es with some skill work. Thanks to all senior players who have volunteered to assist.
The Importance of Mouthguards
A reminder that it is extremely important for all players to ensure that they wear a mouthguard to training as well as during every minute of every game played. In the case where a student may have lost or forgotten to bring along a mouthguard to training or to a game, players need to alert coaching staff and will need to sit out.
Mother’s Day
On behalf of the Waverley College Rugby Community, I would like to send a very happy Mother’s Day to all our Mums for Sunday! Thanks for always being so supportive and caring to our boys. We hope you get spoiled on Sunday morning with breakfast in bed and plenty of gifts. I know our Food Technology teachers have been working closely with the boys this week to ensure the toast does not burn! Have a great day!
Good luck to all teams this weekend!
WAVERLEY TO WIN!
