LANGER TROPHY ROUND TWO: St Mary’s takes on Palm Beach Currumbin

St Mary’s embrace the underdog tag as they take on Palm Beach Currumbin in the second round of the Langer Cup. WATCH THE REPLAY

RUGBY LEAGUE: St Mary’s College has no problems being written off as Langer Cup underdogs.

It just makes the playing group more determined to prove their doubters wrong.

That’s the mentality St Mary’s is taking into its second round encounter with Palm Beach Currumbin today at 3.45pm, with a new face running the show.

Declan Ryan made a strong First XIII debut in last week’s defeat of Wavell SHS, and the talented halfback said they’re determined to prove it was no fluke.

“We have to prove to the rest of the Langer Cup that the game against Wavell wasn’t a one off,” Ryan said.

“We want to come out with another strong performance, because we know we’ll be judged by other teams.

“That drives us. We’re the underdogs and there are a lot of people doubting us, and we want to prove them wrong and show that we have what it takes to go all the way.”

The 17-year-old played a strong hand as St Mary’s caused an upset over Wavell, overcoming pre-match nerves to lead the team around the park.

“It was my debut for the first side along with many others, and that win was great to get a bit of confidence up,” he said.

“They were the state champs a few weeks ago, and to have a lot of the teachers there spectating and cheering us on really helped.

“It was a pretty nerve-racking experience. Before the game I felt very nervous and a bit sick in the stomach.

“But once I got a few touches of the ball I grew in confidence after that. As the game went on we all felt more confident knowing that we were in the fight.”

Ryan currently plays his club football at Highfields in the TRL U18s, having joined the club when he was just eight.

While he’d love the opportunity to take his game to higher levels in the future, he said his immediate focus is helping his school reach Langer Cup glory.

“At the moment I’m focusing on the little things in my game,” he said.

“I’m always making sure I’m getting a lot of touches early and trying to get into open space.

“I try to provide more opportunities for my players and make sure everything is perfect before the game itself.

“We’re going pretty well in the TRL at the moment. I’ve made a few rep sides through the South West Mustangs and Darling Downs.

“I’d love to be on an Intrust Super Cup or NRL team in the future if any opportunities became available. It comes down to hard work and dedication.”

St Mary’s Langer Cup matches will be among 24 games a week livestreamed on News Corp websites, including The Chronicle.

That includes the addition of Langer Cup Reserve Grade and Walters Cup (year 10) competitions.

The Langer Cup fixture between St Mary’s and Palm Beach Currumbin appears exclusively live on Tuesday afternoon on thechronicle.com.au for The Chronicle subscribers.