SAAS First XVIII college football round four: Sacred Heart beats Westminster by 92 points

A college footy juggernaut scored another big win during the weekend’s Reconciliation Round. Read the full SAAS First XVIII football match reports here.

Round four of the SAAS First XVIII college footy season is done and dusted, with Adelaide’s top schools putting on a show in Reconciliation Round.

Sacred Heart came out of the bye in style with a big win over Westminster, while Rostrevor made a statement against St Peter’s and Prince Alfred College stayed undefeated.

Here are The Messenger’s reports from the weekend’s division one action:

SACRED HEART 20.8 (128) d

WESTMINSTER 5.6 (36)

Sacred Heart coach Jon Symonds was thrilled with his team’s performance coming out of the bye against Westminster, the home side defeating the visitors by 92 points.

Hearts burst out of the gates but it was Westminster who dominated the back half of the first term and both sides went into the first break level.

The hosts responded after the break however, and booted eight goals to none to gain the ascendancy and set up a big win.

“I think particularly given the conditions it was a really good performance,” Symonds said.

Sacred Heart coach Jon Symonds guided his side to yet another win on Saturday. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“The boys looked very strong and managed to set up behind the ball well and hit the scoreboard which was pleasing.”

Hearts dominated the contested ball from quarter-time onwards and stuck to opposition forwards when Westminster managed to break their defensive lines, nullifying almost every forward 50 entry.

Cooper Bodridge kicked four for the side, while Brodie Ryan dominated across half-back and captain Tyson Coe produced another strong performance on the ball.

Symonds was pleased with the side’s response after the first term.

Sacred Heart captain Tyson Coe was again strong in the middle. Picture: Maya Thompson Instagram: @midfieldphotog

“I think we came out of the break with a lot of intent and used the breeze and the conditions really well,” Symonds said.

“The response was definitely a positive.”

Hearts remain undefeated as they head into the competition-wide bye and will now prepare for a matchup with rivals Immanuel, which will be played at Glenelg Oval.

“It’s always an exciting game for both teams,” Symonds said.

“It’ll be a very tight contest and we’ll be up to the challenge.”

PRINCE ALFRED 19.14 (128) d

SCOTCH 3.3 (21)

Prince Alfred also remained undefeated as it dealt Scotch another significant blow, dominating from start to finish in a 107-point win.

Hughen Wissman was again dominant through the middle as Princes controlled the contest and hit the scoreboard with ease.

Coach Matt Slade was satisfied with his side’s four quarter effort.

“It rained heavily all game so it was a bit of a slog in the conditions but we managed to set some smooth play up and made sure for the most part we weren’t over-handballing in the wet,” Slade said.

“The fact we won a lot of the ball and scored heavily in weather like that is positive.”

PAC coach Matt Slade (left) was satisfied with his side’s performance in tough conditions. Picture: Michael Marschall

While Princes have won every game so far, the display against Scotch was the first four-quarter performance from the side this year.

Slade was happy his team had finally managed to stay consistent throughout a game but said ongoing consistency might be harder to come by this year.

“We’ve really been aiming to start games well and push on from there so I was glad we could do that this week,” he said.

“I don’t know that we’ve really gained a lot of momentum or consistency yet, and it’s hard to when you have guys in and out of the side with state commitments.

“You’ve got multiple guys out most weeks at the moment and now with U16 state games kicking off it’ll make things a bit harder, so it’s a balancing act but it’s going to be a test for us.”

ROSTREVOR 10.10 (70) d

ST PETER’S 4.7 (31)

Rostrevor backed up its impressive win over Immanuel in round three with a statement performance against St Peter’s on Saturday, dictating play from start to finish in a 39-point win.

Coach James Allan was happy with how his team managed to dominate contested possessions and dictate play through their clean usage.

“I thought we got our hands on the ball first and used our disposal to get some really dangerous injuries,” Allan said.

“Guys like Noah Hyde, Will Rollins, Jackson Rollins and Max Dawe played really well for us but there were standouts across the board.

“The way our guys were able to bring the intensity across the park and win the footy was brilliant and it was really positive to see our mids stand up and all play roles for the team.”

Rostrevor coach James Allan believed his side looked better than ever against St Peter’s. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Allan believed Rostrevor had work to do after its win over Immanuel and ensured to put his players through some challenging training sessions through the week.

He said the team responding against Saints was a positive sign.

“It was a complete performance this week,” Allan said.

“We set ourselves the task to work on ball movement and stoppage stuff and trained these things really well.

“It was great to see that come to fruition.”

Rostrevor looks a strong team this season, and remains the only side to challenge last season’s top side in Sacred Heart.

Allan said a change in mindset had been key to the school’s improvement.

“We haven’t focused on opposition at all really, we just want to build each week,” Allan said.

“It’s about taking each contest as it comes and the boys have really taken that on board.”

DIVISION TWO RESULTS:

• Trinity 17.12 (114) d CBC 3.7 (25)
• St Michael’s 15.15 (105) d Mercedes 7.7 (49)
• Pembroke 10.9 (69) d Prince Alfred Two 4.8 (32)
• Sacred Heart Two 14.13 (97) d St Ignatius 8.6 (54)