2nd Grade (Colin Caird Shield)
By Ray Hudd (Coach)
After two weeks of handing victories over to our opposition 2nd Grade had to make a stand.
We now faced the tough task of taking on the competition leaders Eastwood.
Our previous encounter saw us win right on the bell 43-36
So we drew on the fact that we would have to fight for 80mins
This was also our last home game for the season
We wanted to repay the support from our families, SUFC and its Sponsors by playing some good Rugby
Our performance spoke volumes about how well we can play and how much more improvement we still have in us.
Sydney Uni 58 def. Eastwood 23
3rd Grade (Henderson Shield)
By Tom Willson (Player)
3rd Grade always knew it was going to be a tough matchup against the minor premiership contenders Eastwood. The match started with a point scoring frenzy with Eastwood scoring a try out wide due to compounded errors from university defence. Uni were quick to strike through Calum Buckling off the back of some strong ball carrying by Ben Carolin. Solid defence by the University team lead to a number of Eastwood errors allowing Dylan Viera in for a try out wide to put university out in front 10-5.
An almost perfect exit and kick chase off the kickoff allowed Will Ridley to charge down an Eastwood clearance with Matthew Narracott running through to pick up the loose ball and score under the posts.
Strong defensive work kept Eastwood at bay however a number of uni infringements late in the half allowed Eastwood to run in 3 late tries to take the score to 19-22. Uni were able to score a quick penalty through Conor Lowndes before the half to level scores as the boys took to the sheds at the half.
Eastwood came out firing, scoring a try through a well-placed kick. Uni bounced back matching Eastwood’s intensity leading to some great end to end rugby with neither side wanting to give the other an inch. A breakthrough eventually came for Uni with Jack Stanford crossing off some excellent scrummaging by the third grade forwards. However once again Uni allowed Eastwood back into the game through a series of penalties resulting in an Eastwood try taking the score to 29 all. The final minutes remained scoreless resulting in a draw 29-29.
Sydney Uni 29 draw with Eastwood 29
4th Grade (Henderson Cup)
Sydney Uni 8 def. Eastwood 5
1st Colts (W.McMahon Memorial Shield)
By Rob Taylor (Coach)
With the victory against 3rd place Eastwood at the weekend, we secured the Minor Premiership for 1st Colts, going back to back from 2016. It may not be the primary focus but we talk lot about milestones and making sure we celebrate when achieved, as there are eleven other teams of players, coaches and support staff that put in a lot of time and energy to win these trophies. We are very pleased to achieve this while also promoting many Colts to Grade this year, no fewer than 10 Colts playing in Grade this weekend.
The scrum once again set a very strong platform to attack and defend from, playing a major part in the six tries we scored. We scored three tries from 2 turnovers, 2 scrums, 1 lineout and one quick tap penalty. Though we were not happy with letting in three tries through the middle part of the game. We have inherent high standards and I would say we were below them on Saturday, we are still searching for ‘that performance’ that matches our potential.
Notable performances were by:
Miti Tuinakauvadra won the 3 points for player of the day. He was a constant threat with the ball in hand, he set up the first two tries of the game with some individual brilliance. Miti has become a constant influencer in the game and been a real please to observe his growth as a player and mighty Student. We certainly have some tough selections for our backrow with a number of top performers fighting over the three spots, the future for the Club looks strong in this area.
James Armstrong is awarded two points. He scored a fine double, one being created by Miti but James need to use all his speed to finish it with a 40m dash against a couple of opposition outside backs. His second was a well worked set piece play with our playmaker Dan Poletto, who put a beautifully well weighted pass, James added exceptional footwork to go out to in and slice through the Eastwood defence. On defence he had another weekend of 100% tackle success.
Harry Johnson-Holmes gets the one point as the tight head in a strong scrummaging performance and workrate in attack and defence, 12 carries, 1 try and 1 dominant tackle and turnover tackle in defence.
For the Colts group, that makes 12 rounds of wins in a row. Going into this weekend v Gordon, one more effort for another clean sweep will secure the Colts Club Championship for this year. This is the trophy we talk most about as a a Colts Group, given it recognises the group effort throughout the competition. It is also the best way we can contribute to the Club Championship as well, if we win the Colts Club Championship we know we have done our best from the Colts section towards the Club effort.
Sydney Uni 38 def. Eastwood 20
2nd Colts (Shell Trophy)
Sydney Uni 45 def. Eastwood 34
3rd Colts (Bill Simpson Shield)
By Gabriel Enright (Coach)
In a “Top of the Table” clash between 1st and 3rd on the 3rd Colts Leader board the Students hosted Eastwood on St Johns as part of a BLOCKBUSTER Super Saturday.
The young Students were well aware of the significance of the fixture and had trained the house down all week so they could deliver on their end of the bargain in the race for both the Colts and overall Club Championships.
It was evident from the early stanza of the match that both teams had come to play expansive and entertaining rugby and with Eastwood declaring the scrum to be uncontested for the entire match it was a fairly even affair until the Woodies crossed the paint to strike the first blow. Without the team being able to play off a dominant scrum platform they had to adapt and find other ways to create momentum and scoring opportunities.
With a good steady breakdown and capability to retain and recycle possession a glut of quality ball was distributed to the wings where some of our most talented “Show Ponies” did their best work. Connor Farnell, Bati Koroisau, Strath Yeo, Toby Dickinson and Andrew Knight put on a masterclass to romp in the next 6 tries before Eastwood crossed for the last try of the match.
Aidan Moore was captain fantastic at Hooker with a huge tally of ball carries, tackles, cleanouts and repeat efforts – all without a single pass required just like his big bro Declan – 3 Points. Bati Koroisau, who has grown enormously as a Rugby player in his debut season, tore them to shreds in the mid field for 2 points while the cool, calm and collected swagger of Connor Farnell guided the team to victory from the back for the point.
Sydney Uni 34 def. Eastwood 12