SAAS First XVIII football: Sacred Heart beats St Peter’s 129-26 to set up finals meeting with Rostrevor

A college footy powerhouse recorded a 103-point round six win over a top four side to set up a huge matchup this weekend. See the full First XVIII match reports.

Adelaide’s First XVIII college footy competition was back with a bang over the weekend with round six offering up a series of big clashes before finals this weekend.

Prince Alfred College remained top with a strong win, Sacred Heart made a dominant statement and Immanuel booked its spot in the top four semi-finals.

Here are The Messenger’s full match reports for division one:

SACRED HEART 19.15 (129) d

ST PETER’S 4.2 (26)

Sacred Heart coach Jon Symonds said a big win was what his side needed after the mid-year break.

Hearts dominated from the outset in their 103-point victory over St Peter’s College, the side sending a message to the rest of the competition that they were still the team to beat.

“We’re very happy with the result,” Symonds said.

“There was a bit of unknown coming out of the break and with quite a few changes because state guys were back in but I was really pleased – we hit the ground running and went from there.”

Sacred Heart coach Jon Symonds was pleased by his side’s big win heading into finals. Picture: Brenton Edwards

Symonds’ troops controlled the game in the contest, suffocating Saints without the ball and breaking away with fast movement once possession had been won.

Captain Tyson Coe was a standout in the middle while also adding three goals and Jakob Ryan was dominant across half-back.

Will McCabe had three goals up front, while Ash Moir also added three.

“I was really pleased with our approach both offensively and defensively,” Symonds said.

Ash Moir was again a standout for Sacred Heart. Picture Dean Martin

“We didn’t give them any space and we managed to share the ball super well out of stoppage.

“It was a complete team effort which is what you want to see each week.”

Sacred Heart kept its spot in second place with the win and will now face third spot Rostrevor at home in the semi-finals this Saturday.

“It’s very exciting for us. We had a really tight contest with them earlier in the year and we’re expecting it to be every bit as difficult,” Symonds said.

“The group has had a bit of exposure to finals in the knockout schools format previously, so we’ve got a fair bit of experience with this type of occasion, which gives us confidence.”

PRINCE ALFRED COLLEGE 15.11 (101) d

ROSTREVOR 8.6 (54)

PAC captain Kane McAuliffe returned from injury to dominate in his first game of the year as his side topped Rostrevor by 47 points and kept top spot heading into finals.

The Reds star caused major issues for the visitors inside and off of half-back, damaging with his ability to win the contested ball and distribute with efficiency.

The hosts got off to a fast start and maintained their lead through the entire four quarters.

Prince Alfred College captain Kane McAuliffe dominated on return from injury. Picture: Prince Alfred College

Patrick Weckert was back to his best up front, presenting on strong leads for PAC and helping the side to create on the edge of the 50 while also slotting home three goals.

Breakout star Hughen Wissman was another standout, hitting the contest hard and also booting two majors.

Other goalkickers for Princes included Harper Montgomery (two), Louie Montgomery (two) and Jayden Ward (two).

Princes remain undefeated and will see fourth placed Immanuel in its semi-final on Saturday.

IMMANUEL 13.11 (89) d

WESTMINSTER 9.11 (65)

Immanuel capitalised on St Peter’s’ loss to Sacred Heart and won its way into the top four with a hard-fought 24-point victory over Westminster.

Coach Mark Bickley’s side took control in the first half, winning the majority of the clearances and allowing their forwards to get first look at the ball and hit the scoreboard.

Isaiah Wilksch led his Immanuel side to an important win over Westminster on Saturday. Picture: Dean Martin

Westminster responded in the second half through star Anthony Munkara up front and in-form midfielder Anders McShane, but the hosts could not get within less than two goals as Immanuel held firm.

Immanuel captain Isaiah Wilksch and utility Phoenix Foster were dominant in the final quarter as their side saw out the four-goal win and booked a spot against Prince Alfred College in the div one top four semi-finals.

PAC won by just 10 points in the round one meeting between the two schools.

DIVISION TWO RESULTS:

• Prince Alfred College Two 12.18 (90) d Mercedes 7.10 (52)
• Pembroke 10.12 (72) d Trinity 6.14 (50)
• Sacred Heart Two 13.13 (151) d CBC 1.5 (11)
• St Michael’s 12.15 (87) d St Ignatius 10.8 (68)