GPS First XV rugby round 3 report
GPS First XV rugby round 3 report: Churchie upset lights fuse; premiership race ramps up following Brisbane Grammar and Ipswich Grammar School wins.
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Churchie came from behind to light a fuse beneath the competition by unseating Nudgee College after Joe Stoddart and Mac Kelley covered themselves in glory at Churchie late today.
For the first time since 2015, Churchie defeated premiership benchmark Nudgee 33-27 in a schoolboy thriller marred by a knee injury to Nudgee centre ace Rob Toia.
In other matches, TSS pipped TGS 19-17, Ipswich Grammar School beat BBC 15-7, while Brisbane Grammar School had a win over Terrace.
But at Churchie, Stoddart scored the winner with a burrowing effort after his lock Ben Daniels’ desperate charge down of a Nudgee clearing kick gave Churchie set piece ball from which to attack.
Churchie, at one stage down 17-7 and then 24-12 during the peak of Toia’s first half onslaught, had recaptured the lead for only the second time in the match after Kelley had earlier scored a 70m intercept try to elevate Churchie to 26-24.
But a calm penalty kick from Nudgee’s Maddox Maclean put the visitors in front again 27-26, leading to a mad scramble in the final eight minutes.
Daniels’ charge down effort said everything about Churchie’s desperation when they scrambled manfully to quell Nudgee’s attack.
And so, also, did Charlie Johnson’s desperate, leg clinging, try saving cover tackle on Nudgee winger Kai Combarngo in the second half.
It did not matter what jersey number was ahead of them, Nudgee found it hard to escape Churchie’s clutches in the final 15 minutes when the stakes were at their highest.
Nudgee missed the rampaging Toia who looked like a man playing among schoolboys, such was his impact.
There is no doubt his departure, injured in the hurly burly of Kelley’s first half runaway try for Churchie, was the turning point.
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“We were confident in our game plan and even though we were behind 17-7, the opportunities were there,’’ said Churchie coach Ryan Schultz.
“It was good to see the boys convert them in the second half.
“But I want to say all the best to Rob Toia. The game changed when he left the field.
“However, credit to our lads. We wanted to put them under pressure.
“We had done a lot of work on our defence this year and we were disappointed with that first half.
“We knew what they were going to throw at us, but we weren’t good enough to stop it.
“But the bond of this group, we could see that on display in the second half.’’
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Kelley’s thrilling sprint to the line to give his team a 26-24 lead for the first time rewarded a huge effort by Churchie to overcome Nudgee’s rolling maul horse power, Nudgee’s powerful scrum and line out precision.
With Nudgee’s pile driving centre and first half destroyer Toia (injured) off the field, Churchie No.13 Frankie Goldsborough started impacting the game
He thumped Churchie forward in the second, and so big is his frame, one had to do a double take to make sure it was not a lock resting in the centres, that it was indeed No.13 Goldsborough.
Could Churchie have started the second half any better? No.
Simpson’s bustling midfield try off Churchie line out ball, when he resembled a burrowing flanker and not a winger, rewarded his teams vigorous response to Nudgee leading by 12 points.
The highlights package to start the half included a remarkable covering tackle by Churchie’s No.10 Johnson after Nudgee’s winger Combarngo had resembled a GPS track and field finalist with a withering sideline run.
It was a special effort by Johnson to drag Combarngo’s foot over the sideline as he was about to score.
That tackle restricted Nudgee’s lead to 24-19.
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In the first half, for all the speed and dynamic play of Toia’s whirlwind 25 minute surge across the first part of the game, it took some quick between the ears play by Nudgee halfback Inigo Lawrence to ensure his side had a good lead.
His quick tap from a penalty 1m out caught Churchie sleeping, and handed his side the comfort of a 24-12 advantage at the break.
That was needed because with Toia now sidelined, Nudgee would be executing plan B across the second half.
Toia announced himself early with his lethal feet, cutting back on the inside twice, once to make a break, and the other to open the scoring off crisp line out ball.
There was no over complication by Nudgee - just quick line out ball off the top and speedy hands by the halves toward Toia on the burst.
It was a high percentage play because at worst he would get over the advantage line and present forward momentum or, at best, find space back behind the Churchie forwards and score which is what he did.
But Connor Simpson’s try for Churchie and subsequent booming sideline conversion by No.9 Archie Wilson must have given Churchie a good dose of confidence.
However, Toia’s second try from a set piece platform, this time from a scrum cutting back off his right foot, had Nudgee recapturing the lead 12-7.
Toia can thank the Nudgee scrum for the attacking position after Nudgee’s front eight won a penalty from Churchie’s defensive scrum ball 5m out.
This was after Toia had again provided front foot ball with his fourth effort to buckle the Churchie line.
Then close to halftime, and from more line out precision, Nudgee hooker Will Rogers held grimly to possession to be a rolling maul spearhead and cross for Nudgee’s third try of the half.
With momentum to Nudgee, Churchie simply had to be the next to score and so it was when a roving Kelley injected himself into a left field counter attack to so a clean pair of heels in a race for the corner. The score was 17-7.
Out at Northgate a roaring sea of blue were delighted to watch on as the BGS First XV triumphed 24-20 in a sensational nail biter over GT, securing back-to-back wins to begin their 2022 season and King of the Hill bragging rights.
It was some performance. They showed heart, pride in the crest and tremendous grit to come back from 12-0 down.
For Phil Mooney and his boys, this one was surely one for the books. And indeed it was, just by looking at the faces of onlookers, men of the college, and the passionate, bloody and exhausted First XV.
Even with Phil and First XV regular Ben Mooney out with Covid, the BGS boys turned it on.
It was none other than flanker Charlie Cooke and trusty prop Xavier Stiles that gave GT the upper hand early.
With a strong rolling maul effort and a sneaky plunge from the ruck, the boys in Red and Black were off to a terrific start.
Terrace flanker Noah Clifford was a formidable piece of the Terrace defence that denied BGS easy points in the first half, making it very hard for them to cross the chalk.
On one occasion when BGS was driving the maul close range, Clifford was there to keep it up, earn a turnover and get his boys out of trouble. But, with this young Terrace team, it’s never a solo effort. Where there is one there are three more.
Grammar fly half and captain Ryan Shaw sparked some brilliance to get the home side their first points of the affair, 24 minutes in.
With a decisive dart in between two defenders and a superb offload to centre Will Allen bursting through on his left, BGS made it 12-7.
Allen made it two moments later and deservedly so. With a lovely pop-pass to steaming fullback Angus Tolhurst, BGS was on the charge.
Tolhurst kicked it ahead and soon BGS would be inches away. It was easy pickings for Allen who was put in by Shaw, as the Terrace defence, in panic mode, was open for exploitation.
It wasn’t long before GT hit back, and what better time to regain the lead than before the break. Hooker Toby Weston made it 17-12 when latching to his forward pack and marching over for a textbook rolling maul try.
BGS prop Jack Willson gave BGS their first lead of the game 45 minutes in. Some great body height saw him shrug off a defender and break away to score under the posts.
This one got hundreds of blue and white blazers up and cheering.
GT fullback Nick Dunstan slotted a penalty in front to retake the lead at 20-19 with 20 to play.
But, this lead was erased by a dazzling blind side raid from halfback Will Shaw who was called upon with Ned Madden out with Covid.
Shaw couldn’t help himself with a glimpse of space down the right edge, snapping up the ball from the scrum and jinking his way around two defenders to push BGS in front 24-20.
With two minutes to play, No.8 Lachlan McGregor sealed it. With a belting tackle and cracking counter ruck, the unsung hero sent a dagger through the GT hearts.
In Ipswich, Ipswich Grammar School had a 15-7 win, scoring late through outside centre Israel Leota who scored a fantastic try late to convert a 8-7 lead into a win.
Leota had a big match, and when he wanted to go forward, he went forward with gusto.
IGS led 8-0, with BBC getting back to 8-7.
And while there was no lack of effort, some yellow cards hampered the BBC effort along with some moderate execution under pressure, but full credit to IGS.
IGS’s were close to winning round 1 against an improved TGS and were not far off against Churchie last week, so their response to win is not a shock.
BBC’s Samson Tuqiri was exceptional again for BBC.
On the Gold Coast, The Southport School inched past Toowoomba Grammar School 19-17, with the goal kicking of Spencer Alock the difference in the match.
For the second successive week TGS almost claimed a big scalp after a near miss a week earlier against Nudgee College.
TSS coach Mike Wallace said both teams were physical and really challenged each other.
“They were both really good at executing at their game plans,’’ he said, praising TGS as a “brave’’ and “resilient” group.
Wallace said “both teams probably deserved to win,’’ but Alcock’s kicking proved the difference.
The Headmasters Medal for best players on the field went to Harry Ward (TSS) and Toowoomba’s Chace Oates.
“Both thoroughly deserved the recognition they got on the day,’’ Wallace said.
ROUND 4
BSHS v GT
TSS v Churchie
IGS v BGS
BBC v NUDGEE
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