Full SAAS First XVIII college football preview for every division one school
College footy is finally here and an all-new competition structure including finals and grand finals has players, coaches and fans excited for the new season.
Local Sport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Sport. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The SAAS First XVIII college season is finally here, with round 1 starting this Saturday.
The competition has undergone a restructure with finals and grand finals introduced, something that has coaches and players excited.
Division one of the First XVIII competition includes Sacred Heart College – last season’s premier – Prince Alfred College, St Peter’s College, Scotch College, Westminster College, Rostrevor College and Immanuel College, with one team accepting the bye each week.
Division two will see Prince Alfred College 2, Sacred Heart College 2, St Ignatius College, Pembroke School, Mercedes College, Trinity College, Christian Brothers College, and St Michael’s College.
TOP 14 COLLEGE FOOTBALLERS TO WATCH IN 2022
As part of the restructure, August 6 will see semi finals take place during “Blue Round” and August 13 will see the top two division one teams square up in a grand final, as well as a “mid grand final” between fourth and fifth.
This will be the same for division two, but with the mid grand final played between fifth and sixth.
On August 20, the grand final and mid grand final winners of division one will play the grand final and mid grand final winners of division two.
Reconciliation round, blue round, pink round and a final round of Intercol will also be included this season.
With an all-new and exciting season of SA college footy finally here, we’ve got the team-by-team preview for every First XVIII division one school.
SACRED HEART
Last season: First XVIII premier, All Schools Cup premier (defeating Henley)
Coach: Jon Symonds
Captain: Tyson Coe
Coming off an undefeated season in 2021, Sacred Heart coach Jon Symonds said his current group of players could be as talented as the last.
“I’m really excited by the group we’ve got this year,” Symonds said.
“We’ve got a good spread of talent across the board but we also need to remember that talent alone doesn’t win games, it’s also about how we gel and how hard we work.”
The college will be without talented midfielder Lachlan Scannell this season as the 17-year-old requires shoulder surgery, but the team will still have players like half-back Jakob Ryan and talented utility Ash Moir out on the ground.
Symonds said that while the team was strong enough to go deep in the new finals format, the approach would mostly be about development.
“Finals and an actual grand final gives us something to strive for but from my perspective it’s about giving kids a great experience and a chance to enjoy footy,” he said.
“They’re going to have that mateship and brotherhood they can draw on through the process and I think results will come as a by-product of that.”
PRINCE ALFRED
Last season: Second
Coach: Matt Slade
Captain: Kane McAuliffe
Coach Matt Slade believed spirits were high heading into season 2022 after a positive finish to 2021.
The Reds dominated St Peter’s in their historic Intercol matchup to finish last season, perhaps giving supporters a taste of what was to come.
“Intercol was really good for us last year and the boys’ level of commitment in training this year has been fantastic – they’re all keen,” Slade said.
“We’re progressively building to something but we also realise that everyone is going to be tough this year and we’re going to have challenging games more often so hopefully we can find some success.”
Captain Kane McAuliffe headlines the talent for his school this year after a sensational 2021.
The skilful midfielder is set for a big season and Slade is hoping he can lead the team to finals along with key players Luca Slade, Patrick Weckert and Hughen Wissman.
“We’ll miss Kane for the first couple games or so through injury but he’ll slot right back in once he’s fit,” Slade said.
“Finals is definitely something we’re aiming for and I think the competition has been lacking in that regard, so it’s great to have that there at the end of the year.”
SCOTCH
Last season: Third
Coach: Ben Nelson
Captain: Eddie Bok, Kyan Eagleton
Scotch coach Ben Nelson was happy with his team’s preseason preparation heading into round this weekend.
The First XVIII side underwent some big changes after the 2021 season, after most of the team graduated from school.
“We’ve got a very new squad after last year so there are new leaders and opportunities which has been really encouraging,” Nelson said.
“We had a really good team development camp to prepare for the season and the guys have been putting in a lot of work to develop and evolve for the year ahead.”
Star midfielder Kyan Eagleton will co-captain the side with Eddie Bok, while ruck and forward utility Jackson Bishop will also be a key player for the team.
Nelson said he was hoping to continue the strong brand of footy his team played last year while also developing each individual.
“We’re definitely teaching the same principles around defensive pressure and behaviours,” he said.
“Our ability to contribute to team and to put team first will be what we want to live by and then developing each player’s skills and team awareness will as well be important.”
ST PETER’S
Last season: Fourth
Coach: Josh Francou
Captain: Fraser Bone, Billy Dowling
St Peter’s made a big change to the makeup of its football program ahead of season 2022, hiring former Port Adelaide Power champion and AFL coach Josh Francou as coach and new head of football.
The school finished the 2021 season on a disappointing note, losing its Intercol game to Prince Alfred in a one-sided affair, but Francou said the team was ready to improve in 2022.
“We’re a bit of an unknown entity at the moment but we’ve got guys who are keen to develop in terms of how footy is played so that’s super exciting,” Francou said.
“Results will come but we want to make sure we’re continuing to progress guys individually and then with a team focus as well.”
Fraser Bone and Billy Dowling step into the captain roles for Saints after the departure of graduates Matty Roberts and Morgan Ferres.
Francou believed there was a lot of talent for him and the coaching group to work with.
“We’ve got some really talented young men who have been part of the senior program and also part of SANFL programs,” he said.
“The challenge will of course be to balance the boys who are in and out of SANFL with the rest of the guys but I think if we can do that there’s a lot of promise for the year.”
ROSTREVOR
Last season: Fifth
Coach: James Allan
Captain: Beau Baldwin
Rostrevor can challenge any school at its best in 2022, according to coach James Allan.
The school experienced an inconsistent 2021 but managed to develop some of SA’s best young talent, including Alastair Lord (drafted to Essendon), Hugh Jackson (drafted to Port Adelaide) and Max Michalanney (Crows father-son eligible).
Allan said the school again had high potential for the coming season.
“We’ve got some really talented guys including Jack Hodges who plays as a ruck and down back, and Harvey Pedler who can play up front and is developing really nicely as a midfielder as well,” Allan said.
“We’re shaping up nicely and ready to go – I think our best is definitely good enough to compete with anyone this year.”
While Rostrevor finished fifth last season, Allan believed the continuity of the squad could see the school land a top four spot and compete in finals.
“We’ve got six or seven guys who have played since Year 10 so we’re really looking for some leadership and continuity through them,” he said.
“Finals is super exciting for the competition and I think we have the talent to get there but it’s important to take each game as it comes and just focus on playing four quarters each week.”
WESTMINSTER
Last season: Sixth
Coach: Tim Weatherald
Captain: Gus Solomon
The arrival of boarder Clay Shadforth to pair with promising talent Anthony Munkara has Westminster poised for success up front, according to coach Tim Weatherald.
Shadforth, who played alongside Eddie Betts last year at Palmerston in Darwin, will provide another explosive option in the forwardline next to Munkara, who last year showed his potential to play in the ruck and around the ground.
“We’re not going to have any trouble putting scores on the board I don’t think,” Weatherald said.
“If we can continue to improve on team defence I think we can definitely take it to anyone.”
Westminster struggled to get results against the more powerful colleges in Sacred Heart, Prince Alfred and St Peter’s last season but Weatherald said an opportunity against St Peter’s this weekend was just what the doctor ordered.
“It’s definitely a great test first up – we hit the front against them last year and then they ran over us,” he said.
“It’s a completely different year though and we’re full of confidence.
“We should start off with our best 18 together so I think we’re a good chance.”
IMMANUEL
Last season: Eighth
Coach: Mark Bickley
Captain: Isaiah Wilksch
Immanuel is ready to build on the foundation it set last year, according to coach Mark Bickley.
The school experienced a multitude of injuries in 2021 but is fully fit and ready to go, and Bickley said some big names are starting to hit another level.
“Isaiah Wilksch our captain had a really good last year for us and he’s looking ready to go for this season,” Bickley said.
“Guys like Phoenix Foster – our no. 1 ruck – and Riley Davy who’s a really good young player look like they might be in for a big one too.
“It’s just going to be about building on what we did last year and we’ve been very consistent through preseason which is great.”
Bickley also added the new finals and grand final structure would work as motivation for his team.
“Whenever you introduce something like that, it’s hard not to think about,” he said.
“The school hasn’t had heaps of success but really if we can play at our best as often as we can, then I think we can take it to the bigger schools and continue to improve.”
Round one fixtures for First XVIII division one this Saturday are as follows:
- Immanuel vs Prince Alfred
- Sacred Heart vs Scotch
- St Peters vs Westminster
- Rostrevor bye
REPLAYS: SANFL Girls Intrastate Carnival, Day 2
One club remains undefeated heading into the final day of the SANFL Girls Intrastate Carnival after another show of strength. Watch the replays and catch more action LIVE from 10.30am Thursday.
Revealed: Top SACA Premier Cricket players to watch in 2024/2025
From new recruits to rising stars and champions of the competition – we’ve picked the men’s and women’s players to watch this SACA Premier Cricket season. See who made the cut.