AIC First XV rugby Team of the Week from round 1
Who has made our AIC First XV rugby Team of the Week? The side includes a third generation Marist player, a three year Laurie’s First XI cricketer and a Villa all around footy ace.
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He has an eye of the Tiger in cricket and now St Laurence’s College sporting ace Xavier Santos is using his hand eye coordination to shine in the 15-a-man football code.
Santos, Marist winger Jude Knapp, Villanova No. 8 Jackson Moloney and St Edmund’s College’s Tafito Falaniko Ah-Ki were among the first players picked in our Team of the Week following round 1 of AIC First XV rugby.
Santos provided classy touches from the back in his first season in the First XV rugby after playing as an all-rounder in the First XI for the last three seasons.
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This summer playing cricket he scored 185 runs at an average of 30 while claiming eight wickets at 25 which highlights the depth of his sporting talents.
Marist College Ashgrove also unearthed a new face in winger Jude Knapp who troubled Villa with his speed, with his ducking and weaving. Where on earth did Knapp get his speed from?
He is a third generation Marist College Ashgrove First XV player, following in the footsteps of his father, the late Marcus Knapp, and his grandfather, Bernie, who sat on the sideline watching Jude play last Saturday.
But where does his speed come from? Dad Marcus and grandpa Bernie were both forwards, and so was his uncle Christian who played for Queensland, and his great uncle Paddy who also represented the Reds.
However, somewhere in the mix Jude Knapp found a turn of speed and evasive skills that no other member of the Knapp family possessed.
Villanova have had some good No. 8s in their time, and Moloney was as good as any of them.
He had a real bee in his bonnet and was obviously eager to move heaven and earth to ensure Villa started the season with a win at home over an opponent the First XV had not toppled in 13 years.
TEAM OF THE WEEK
Fullback: Xavier Santos (Laurie’s)
In his First XV debut, Santos oozed class from the back.
His kicking game was on another level, finding touch when he had to and kicking it deep and straight to mount pressure with the chase.
Not bad for a First XI cricket star who had been one of Laurie’s best for the last three years.
Winger: Kyan Mitchell (Padua)
He didn’t do anything out of the ordinary but he was everything you want out of your winger.
He stayed on his man, was a great support player and had more than enough speed to burst past defenders for a double.
Outside centre: Brody McLaren (Laurie’s)
McLaren was another classy customer in black and gold, slotting five conversions at a 100 percent clip. This complemented his mistake-free game in the centres where he did everything right.
If the tries weren’t enough to silence the Iona crowd, his precision from as far out as the sideline was.
Inside centre: Cameron Bukowski (Villa)
Villanova captain Bukowski struck the perfect balance in his role in helping Villa beat Ashgrove for the first time in 13 years. Playing inside centre, Bukowski could straighten the attack with crash ball, draw and pass to his fleet-a-foot backs or burn the opposition on the outside from counter attack. His mere presence would have had the Ashgrove defence in two minds.
Winger: Jude Knapp (Ashgrove)
Knapp was Ashgrove’s ignition with his pace and evasive skills. He would not have rated a mention in Villa’s pre-game discussion on the Ash line-up but by the end of the match his name would have started to reverberate across the competition. Take him for granted at your peril.
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Fly half: Larry Clark (Villa)
When Villanova were enjoying an even share of possession in the first half, Clark was lethal with his running game. Having Cameron Cameron Bukowski and Year 11 student Jackson Connor on his outside may have taken some focus off him, but he blitzed Ashgrove on several occasions, with one break indirectly leading to a try. He also offered his backs slick service when the wide shift was on.
Scrumhalf: Tafito Falaniko Ah-Ki (Eddie’s)
He’s back. How fortunate were St Edmund’s to have their wonderful grand final halfback of 2022 back in business again. He is the best No. 9 in the competition who can adapt to all seasons - running, passing or kicking from the base of his forwards.
Lock: Ben Davis (Laurie’s)
Davis was a No. 8 powerhouse in the season opener. Davis, who coach Welmar Du Plesis was excited to have back next year, was the ultimate lineout destructor.
Flanker: Brock Powell (Padua)
As captain, open side flanker Powell led from the front and the 35-0 scoreline over Paddies’ is the proof.
Head coach Andrew Clyne said he did all the little things right and his teammates followed suit to start their season in fine fashion.
Flanker: Jack Chandler (Eddie’s)
Chandler was an industrious figure as he led the Eddies forwards from breakdown to breakdown. Against spritely opponents who were prepared to use the ball, Chandler was on his toes to either make the tackle, or be effective in challenging for ball at the breakdown.
Lock: Jackson Moloney (Villa)
The Villanova College vice-captain was a beast of a performer on the big stage playing No. 8 at the weekend. To get our best 15 named, he has been moved to lock but we can’t stress enough how good he was at No.8. Obviously very fit for a big man, he offered hitting power in defence, subtle clean outs at the breakdown and took a ton of pulling down when he carried the ball.
Lock: Tommy Nichelson (Iona)
It wasn’t all doom and gloom for Iona, with Nicholson earning the praise of coach Paul Davey, who said he had a “wow of a game.”
Indeed he did, matching Laurie’s lock Cooper Buckley with force.
Prop: Byron Murphy (Laurie’s)
What a game this guy had. A big bopper who is returning for another year of First XV action, Murphy made a ton of carries and on almost every occasion he broke the line.
Beside Murphy was returning prop Rylan Lock and first year hooker Luka Smith who both had amazing starts to their season.
Hooker: Alex Manteit (Iona)
It wasn’t the start Iona had hoped for at home but their captain Manteit was an inspirational leader. Spearheading an injury-ridden team, Manteit stood tall in the face of a firing Iona front row.
Prop: Callum Rooney and Aidan Rooney (Padua)
How fun it must be for hooker George Noone to have Year 12 Aidan and his younger brother Callum next to him in the scrum.
A brotherly duo, the Rooney’s won the front-row battle allowing an exciting Padua backline to run free.
Reserves
Manaaki Bateman and Riley Horn (St Patrick’s)
St Patrick’s best were found upfront at hooker (Bateman) and at the back (fullback Horn). It was a difficult day for Paddies but both boys manned the pumps.
Atticus Armstrong (Marist Ashgrove)
It was on for young and old against Villanova and Armstrong makes our side for effort, not class. He lost his partner in crime Riley Canavan early through injury and had a talented, but inexperienced No. 8 Jasper Barry alongside him, but he did splendidly across the match.
Dayton Bowman (St Peters)
Bowman is the baby of the competition but the Year 10 student showed he was ready to mix it with the big boys. The future is in good hands with Bowman in the St Peter’s system.
Connor Moloney (Villanova)
Moloney twice saved tries with his pace and his aggressive kick-chase put pressure on the retrieving Ashgrove receiver. The raw talent is there for the coaching staff to work on.
Brock Taylor (St Edmund’s)
The rookie winger made a splendid debut for last season’s grand finalists, including scoring a try.
Dom Morton (St Peters)
St Peters were quick on the counter attack and Morton was very much a spark.
Levi Hawea (Iona)
Hawea had some good touches from fullback and was unlucky with his kicking game which is guaranteed to go better next week.
There was a couple which went out on the full but there’s a lot to like about him. One thing is his fancy footwork.
No. 8 Ned Dore (Iona)
Praised by head coach Paul Davey after the game, Dore was a shining light in a losing side.
His lineout efforts were terrific and you couldn’t fault his effort.
No. 6 Bailey Cotelli (Laurie’s)
Laurie’s seriously could have had ten blokes in the Team of the Week, that’s how sharp everyone was in their respective positions.
Santos at the back and Tuite and McLaren in the centres were on the same page, as were front rowers Rylan Lock, Luka Smith and Byron Murphy who won the scrum battle.
Behind them was Cooper Buckley, Davis, and Cotelli who dominated the lineouts.
Cotelli, delivering perfect throws to the towering Davis.
Johnny Nona (St Peters)
St Peters ran Eddies’ close and breakaway Nona played a large part in Peters challenge.
Footnote: Replays and live coverage of match will be available courtesy of the QRU and available via the website: https://qld.rugby/aic
ROUND 2
Villanova v St Patrick’s College
St Edmund’s College v Iona
Padua v Marist
St Laurence’s v St Peters
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