Cowboys junior coach Steve Sheppard lifts lid on the St Patrick’s College stars set to shine

They are the Cowboys-contracted quartet spearheading a historic rise for St Patrick’s College. But what is it about these kids that has them on the cusp of state glory? Cowboys pathways guru Steve Sheppard lifts the lid on the St Pat’s secret.

Steve Sheppard may be the North Queensland Cowboys talent pathway coach, but the former Cutters coach is no stranger to Mackay league.

And he likes what he sees from the current St Patrick’s College group, which will line up for their first state final in 23 years on Wednesday.

The Phil Hall Cup decider, between St Pat’s and Palm Beach Currumbin, will be exclusively live streamed on KommunityTV at 2pm, Wednesday.

WATCH THE PHIL HALL CUP GRAND FINAL LIVE

“As a unit, St Pat’s know their strengths and they play to them, they’re not too worried about who they’re playing against,” Sheppard said.

“(Head coach Ian Schifilliti’s) done a really good job and they’re really focused on themselves.

“They’ve got 17, 18, 19 players really buying into their game at the moment and we wish them all the best.”

ST PATRICK’S GEARED UP FOR A SHOT AT SCHOOLBOYS HISTORY

While he’s had his eye on St Pat’s, Sheppard has kept a particularly close eye on the quartet of Cowboys-contracted players spearheading the Mackay school’s captivating surge to the Phil Hall Cup Final: Kayne Smith, Will Shears, Xavier Kerrisk, and Jaxon Purdue.

“They’re all good teammates, they all care about the team, each other, and how the team prepares and plays which is very important,” Sheppard said.

Kayne Smith in action. Picture: Michaela Harlow

He’s been impressed by Smith’s recent evolution with ball in hand.

“Kayne’s a ball-playing lock forward that’s got a really good footy IQ.

“The last half a year I’ve seen Kayne start to carry the ball a lot stronger to the line which has made him even more of a threat.

“He’s heading in the right direction, he’s a hard-worker. Because St Pat’s don’t have the biggest forward pack his passing game really helps them play the way they wanna play.”

Centre Will Shears, who coach Ian Schifilliti described as unsung at times, has also put together a strong schoolboys campaign.

He crossed the line once himself, and was involved in three of five St Pat’s tries against Emmaus last week.

Will Shears. Picture: Michaela Harlow

“He’s the ultimate little professional,” Sheppard said.

“He carries himself well, prepares himself well, he understands his role within the group really well, he’s got a good carry out of yardage, he chimes in well in attack, defensively he’s sound.

“He’s a very good communicator, he’s probably the glue that keeps (St Pat’s) together to be honest.”

While the potent one-two punch of Xavier Kerrisk and Jaxon Purdue orchestrating the St Pat’s spine has also rightfully captured Sheppard’s attention.

Xavier Kerrisk has been paramount to St Pat’s success. Picture: Michaela Harlow

“(Kerrisk’s) a footballer, he’s got plenty of energy, he gets them off the line well, he puts his frame to work, he’s always busy in defence,” Sheppard said.

“In attack, he’s got good vision and a really good understanding and combination with Jaxon.

“He keeps the ruck very tidy for them as well. Kirwan (in the Payne Cup final) had a very good pack, but he took it to them and kept it nice and tight for (St Pat’s) down the middle of the park.

“(Purdue’s) got a lot of talent, great vision, good kicking game, but I like how he’s applying himself at the moment.

“He’s really executing what he sees, he just makes all the people around him better players.”

Jaxon Purdue has formed a potent partnership with Kerrisk. Picture: Michaela Harlow

That Cowboys quartet will prove paramount to St Pat’s hopes of making history and downing juggernaut Palm Beach Currumbin SHS to progress to the NRL National Schoolboys Cup final next month.

The question on everyone’s lips is simple: Can St Pat’s do it? Steve Sheppard thinks so.

“I think if (St Pat’s) can play their game for the 70 minutes they’ll be very hard to beat,” Sheppard said.

“They’ve just got a very controlled game and they complete well. They break down the defence and they seem to execute a lot of their plays which is important.

“Xavier and Jaxon seem to turn the ball over deep in the opposition half and it’s hard for the opposition to work out of there.”

Phil Hall Cup triumph or not, one could argue it’s a prosperous time for the rich region of Mackay in terms of talent production.

Sheppard agrees.

“Mackay’s always had one of the best talent pools in Queensland, if not Australia,” he said.

“The Cutters are doing some good things, St Pat’s are doing some good things, the club standard there is very high.

“(Mackay’s) got three really strong football operations and they seem to be working in together as well as they can, and they seem to be getting results from them.”