Words by Paul Cook - Images by Paul Seiser

Eastern Suburbs v Gordon

Colin Caird Shield Champions - Eastern Suburbs - www.seiserphotography.comEastern Suburbs finally broke the club’s Premiership drought by outgunning a valiant Gordon side 32-29 to take the Colin Caird Shield back to Woollahra. The final score flattered the Highlanders somewhat as the Beasts put them to the sword after the break following an even first half, building up a 32-15 lead before Gordon crossed with two late tries to restore some pride. It was a magnificent achievement by Easts considering they only finished 4th on the ladder after the regular season, adding the scalp of 2nd placed Gordon to last week’s upset over minor premiers Sydney University.

The game started at a frenetic pace with both sides looking to move the ball wide and attack at every opportunity. Two penalties were converted in the first five minutes, Easts’ Warwick Percival cancelling out the opener from Gordon’s Donny Nepia before the Highlanders crossed for the first 5 pointer of the match. A good line and some ineffective tackling saw Luke Duncan break through and give Nepia the easy extras and Gordon a 10-3 lead.

Dan Robinson - Gordon - www.seiserphotography.comThat was how it stayed for the next 15 minutes before the Beast’s scored slightly against the run of play to draw level. A great bust from fly-half Sam Windsor found the flying Joe Azar with an overlap and a run to the line with Percival adding the 2pts. However, their joy was to be short-lived, as only 2 minutes later an attempted clearing kick from inside their own twenty-two went awry and as the ball sat up, flying Gordon winger Greg Wade showed extraordinary awareness and handling skills to scoop up the errant kick and dive for the line, restoring his side’s lead in the process. The angle proved too much for Nepia and it was a 5pt ball game with just under 10 minutes to go before the break.

Sam Windsor - Easts - www.seiserphotography.comIronically, the try seemed to spur Easts onto greater efforts as their more structured game started to give them control with Gordon playing somewhat off-the-cuff but always looking dangerous from the counter-attack. Just as the siren sounded, the parity between the teams across the 1st half was reflected in the scoreboard as the Highlanders switched off and with their defence napping, the Beast’s took advantage to streak down the left flank with Ben Hopkins eventually crossing in the corner. The angle was too much for Percival this time round and they went to the sheds after an entertaining 35 minutes all tied up at 15-15.

Whatever was said by ex-Waratah backrower and now Eastern Suburbs coach Steve Talbot at half-time to his charges, certainly had the right effect as they came out in the 2nd half and took charge of the game, scoring an unanswered 17pts in the next 25 minutes. Joe Azar – who was having a terrific match – got the ball rolling after 42 minutes with another great break and a perfect offload giving winger James Rowles a run to the line. Percival executed an exemplorary conversion from out wide to open up a 7pt gap.

Three minutes later and a dust-up near the touchline gave Percival a shot from 40 metres but into a swirling breeze. Not many people in the ground would have backed him but not only did his mammoth kick have the legs to reach the posts, it cleared the in-goal area as well. 25-15

With the game now being played for the most part inside the Gordon twenty-two, the Highlanders simply couldn’t get enough ball in hand to make any inroads into an increasingly confident Easts team and with an hour showing on the clock, their position worsened. Sam Windsor – another standout performer on the day – made a break off the back of a scrum, put in a textbook step off the right foot and gassed it to the posts. Percival added the extras and the boys in red, white and blue had at least one hand on the trophy.

With 7 minutes left, Gordon finally seemed to grasp the brevity of the situation, threw off the shackles and played with the attacking verve and dynamism seen throughout the grades at Chatswood Oval this season. Unfortunately, it was to be too little, too late.

Awarded a penalty, skipper Nepia opted for a kick to touch and his forwards vilified his decision with an impressive example of the catch and drive before hooker Dustin McGregor stretched for the line. Nepia hardly had time to think before knocking over the conversion and sprinting back for the restart and even with a 10pt advantage still in their grasp, you could sense a few corks hovering over prematurely opened bottles for the Easts’ supporters.

Matt McGann - Easts - www.seiserphotography.comA nervous closing period of play ensued with Easts seemingly content to hold what they had and Gordon chancing their arm to pull off a miracle. If the rolling maul they got going in the 67th minute had proceeded with the same success as the previous attempt, things would have been very interesting indeed but when it was disrupted 10 metres short of the line, they were too flat in attack to make any impression.

The siren finally sounded with the Highlanders on the attack once more and with Easts’ players minds evidently already on the post-match celebrations, Gordon broke through for what amounted to no more than a consolation try for Josh Whittaker. It was an unusual sight watching the jubilant scenes behind the posts from a team that had just conceded a try compared to the deflation and disappointment now surrounding Nepia as he somehow kept his concentration to convert the kick.

A thrilling curtain raiser to the main event had finished four tries apiece but Easts had done more than enough in the opening 25 minutes of that 2nd half to rightfully claim victory and instigate a night of celebration to remember for both the team and the club’s long suffering supporters.

Eastern Suburbs coach Steve Talbot:

“The boys have put in a lot of work during the year and been fantastic. We’ve been on a bit of a roll the last month or so and this is a huge effort. The club hasn’t had a Premiership for a while now so this is great. The win against Manly (Qualifying Final) was a huge one for us, the boys really dug deep and then to knock over Uni last week was terrific. We’ve had a few eligibility issues, we lost three of our good players so the boys really came together and put in a team effort.”

Gordon lock Jared Barry:

“We stuck it until the end but we just didn’t have it in us and we didn’t have enough passion. We probably played the game in the sheds and Easts blew us off the field with their long kicks and we just didn’t have it on the day. We thought if we came out and played how we did last week against Randwick where we scored 24pts in the first ten minutes we’d be a good chance but we just couldn’t do it today.”

Eastern Suburbs captain Nathan Lowe:

“It’s unbelievable, it’s been a long time between drinks so we’re really going to savour this one. It didn’t start the way we wanted but we really came home in the second half and field position was key – we just kept it down their end and forced errors. I’m sure we’re in for a big couple of days and we’ll have more than a few drinks out of that cup.”

All interviews by Sean Maloney

Eastern Suburbs 32 (Joe Azar, Ben Hopkins, James Rowles, Sam Windsor tries; Warwick Percival 3 cons, 2 pens) d Gordon 29 (Luke Duncan, Greg Wade, Dustin McGregor, Josh Whittaker tries; Donny Nepia 3 cons, pen) at Sydney Football Stadium. Referee: James Leckie. HT: 15-15.

Eastern Suburbs: 1. Rhys Ward, 2. Daniel Aaron, 3. Adam Hill; 4. Matt McGann, 5. Ed Slater; 6. Ben Hopkins, 7. Will Brock, 8. Alex Munro; 9. James Burroughs, 10. Sam Windsor; 11. Warwick Percival, 12. Nathan Lowe [c], 13. Joe Azar, 14. James Rowles; 15. Lloyd Jones.

Gordon: 1. Tobias Gukibau, 2. Dustin McGregor, 3. Lamarn Ma’a; 4. Mark Johnson, 5. Jared Barry; 6. Vili Napa’a, 7. Lex Fairley, 8. Chris Alcock; 9. Dan Robinson, 10. Donny Nepia; 11. Greg Wade, 12. Luke Duncan, 13. Josh Whittaker, 14. Lachie Mitchell; 15. Joe Metuisela.

 

Words by Paul Cook - Images by Paul Seiser

Gordon v Sydney University

www.seiserphotography.com - Gordon Third Grade Champions 
Gordon have made it back to back wins in 3rd Grade by seeing off Sydney University in a tense low-scoring affair at the SFS. In stark contrast to the open and free-flowing 4th Grade final that preceded it, defence was the name of the game in this match as both sides failed to unlock the door to the tryline. That’s not to say it was any less absorbing however, as a game packed with colossal hits and ferocity at the breakdown turned into a war of attrition that was tight on the scoreboard for the full 60 minutes.
 
It was Gordon that started on the front foot, applying plenty of pressure at the contest, earning them plenty of ball with which to attack the channels. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that the Students outside centre, Dave Burnett, is usually found in the backrow and the Highlanders tried to punish this possible weakness early with their aggressive attack giving them a distinct advantage on the penalty count.
 
However, two shots at goal from skipper and fullback Dan Nieass failed to find their target and Uni – who had barely made it into the opposition twenty-two – somehow still found themselves level on the scoreboard after 20 minutes. They also had an increasingly relevant wind behind them so they would have hoped to use that to press home an advantage before the turnaround but it was their opponents that continued to look the more likely.
 
www.seiserphotography.com - Hayden BushellThe deadlock was finally broken 5 minutes before the interval and it was no surprise that it was the boot of Nieass that did the damage. Another infringement from the Students gave him a relatively straightforward kick, albeit into the breeze and he struck the ball home third time lucky to give the Highlanders the smallest of leads when the half-time siren sounded.
 
The first 10 minutes of the 2nd half were as brutal, if not more so, than we’d seen before the break. Gordon’s impressive scrambling defence was limiting the Students’ options out wide and they resorted to playing for field position and a chance to get their rolling maul going. This tactic started to reap some rewards as they pushed close to the line on a couple of occasions before earning a penalty about 35 metres out.
 
Backing themselves – and we shouldn’t bemoan any side that adopts a positive, attacking mindset - they kicked to touch but in the context of the game and the paucity of gilt edged opportunities, spurning a shot at goal was a surprise. It didn’t pay off as they turned over possession from the ensuing line-out and their profligacy was punished a few minutes later when Nieass stroked a second penalty home to increase the lead to 6-0.
 
www.seiserphotography.com - Beau WilsonThe fullback was having a good game, creating pressure and asking questions with a varied selection of kicks throughout the half. His opposite number, Hayden Bushell, also came into the match later on, returning serve with his own position finders but neither player could find a way to break through the other side’s stubborn resistance.
 
A key decision with 15 minutes to go threatened to change the outlook of the game when referee Callan O’Neill issued a contentious yellow card to Gordon no.8 Brian Perry for a late tackle. On second viewing, a penalty certainly seemed to be a sufficient enough punishment. Bushell gleefully accepted the 3pt gift and momentum seemed to switch to the Students.
 
They persisted with their effective maul but with a one man advantage, were also able to create more space out wide. It was probably this period of play that won the game for the Highlanders as their dogged defence kept out a Uni side that could sniff blood. However, the Students didn’t help themselves with poor ball retention, too much sideways play and not enough straight running.
 
With 3 minutes left on the clock, it looked to be game over when a high-shot from an increasingly frustrated Uni gave Nieass another sight of the posts. Perhaps sensing the importance of the kick a bit too much, he hooked it wide of the uprights leaving the Students with just enough time to steal their thunder.
 
Thankfully for Nieass, his team mates’ bloody minded refusal to concede a 5 pointer remained true to the end and as the siren sounded, it was Gordon who had edged it 6-3 to take the JR Henderson Shield back to Chatswood for the second year in a row.
 
Gordon coach Mark Fargas:
“It’s a great reward for the guys who’ve tried really hard all year. I think we had to really focus, Uni are a very good side and we knew where we wanted to attack them and we just wanted to get it there. It didn’t quite work out that way but in the end we toughed it out.”
 
Gordon captain Dan Nieass:
“In Grand Final’s, a win’s a win and 6 points are as good as 20 – we’ll take that. We were pretty disappointed to only be up by three at half-time, it should have been twelve. We had plenty of opportunities and just didn’t take advantage. You’ve got to muscle up in the forwards against Uni, take their space away and hope they fall apart so 6-3 is a good score against them.”
 
Sydney University flanker Dan Lewinski:
“It just wasn’t to be today. Gordon played very well and they simply played us right out of the game. We’ve had a few tough contests with them during the year and well done to them, they knew our gameplan and we just couldn’t get into the match today. Hindsight is a great thing and we did push a few passes out there but it was probably more down to the way Gordon approached the game, they really put pressure on us and we felt like we had to do something at every play which is difficult to do in a grand final.”
 
Sydney University scrum-half Simon Mieklejohn:
“It was disappointing, I think we saved our best for last week but Gordon really dominated through their kicking game today and we found it hard to get a roll on. We wanted to run with it and take it to them a bit because that’s what their tactic seemed to be but it didn’t work out and they simply outplayed us off the boot.”
 
Gordon prop James Atwill aka ‘the Gordon Jesus’:
“That was bloody hard work from start to finish but we made it in the end and I’m happy for the boys and you can’t do better than that. We tried to take them on through the centre because we knew Uni would try to use their wingers so we drew them in and got it wide ourselves. There was a lot of team work, especially in the rucks and mauls and I think that’s where we won it.”
 
On his ‘Jesus’ impersonation:
“I was on the wrong end of a losing bet. I came back from a stint overseas where some mates bet me $800 to keep the hair uncut until the end of this year - the beard is my own creation!”
 
All interviews by Sean Maloney and Mark Cashman
 
Gordon 6 (Dan Nieass 2 pens) d Sydney University 3 (Hayden Bushell pen) at Sydney Football Stadium. Referee: Callan O’Neill. HT:  Gordon 6-0
 
Gordon: 1.James Atwill, 2. Blake Williams, 3. Michael Schmidt; 4. Pierre Durrand, 5. Andrew McCarthy; 6. Mark Williams, 7. Jayden Nisbett, 8. Brian Perry; 9. Sikuti Vunipola, 10. Pete Smith; 11. Tim Bowen, 12. Kimon Tellidas, 13. Beau Wilson, 14. Andrew Niles; 15. Dan Nieass.

Sydney University: 1. Alastair King, 2. Tom Coolican, 3. Duncan Hardy; 4. Michael Woodward, 5. Dane Cole-Clarke; 6. Josh Ellice-Flint, 7. Dan Lewinski, 8. Sam Hosking [c]; 9. Simon Mieklejohn, 10. Josh Dillon; 11. Matthew Stewart, 12. James McMahon, 13. Dave Burnett, 14. Tim Broomham; 15. Hayden Bushell.
 

Words by Paul Cook - Images by Paul Seiser

Randwick v West Harbour

www.seiserphotography.com - Fourth Grade Champions RandwickThe Henderson Cup will remain at Coogee as Randwick’s triumphant 4th grade side – who’ve only lost one match in the last 2 years – finally saw off the brave resistance of a fired up West Harbour to retain the trophy for the second year in a row. They certainly didn’t have it all their own way as the Pirates put up a terrific performance and led until 2 minutes from time before the Galloping Greens came home with a wet sail to snatch it by a point.

It was to be an emotional occasion with both sides having experienced tragedy in different circumstances in the last couple of years and both desperate to honour their ex-team mates with a victory. Tom Carr-Boyd and Adam Allcroft had been a part of this successful Randwick side before both passed away in separate tragic circumstances whilst West Harbour were playing for their ex-captain, Mark Tonga, who suffered a severe spinal injury at training and is now confined to a wheelchair.

Mark was actually at the game and his presence in the dressing rooms prior to kick-off certainly spurred on his friends as the Pirates put up a stirring 1st half effort to go in at half-time with a commanding 19-8 lead. Randwick had actually opened the scoring after five minutes when their giant centre Iosua Leasusu burst through to cross for an unconverted try but for the next 25 minutes it was pretty much all Wests.

They controlled field position and forced a lot of turnovers through their aggression at the breakdown and it was only a matter of time before scrum-half Luke Schafer went over in the corner. Dale Lindsay kicked the Wicks ahead again through a penalty before a rolling maul saw backrower Mana Vi across the white line, Schafer added the extras and the Pirates led 12-8.

That looked like being the end of the scoring in the first 30 minutes but Wests blew the game wide open with their third try after the siren. Winger Taani Kaliti profiting from an ill advised grubber within their own half from the Wicks to kick ahead and touch down giving Schafer an easy kick in the process.

www.seiserphotography.com - Sean Little passing for the PiratesRandwick coach Danny Grant – himself a former 1st grader and club captain - ripped into his troops at half-time with the emphasis on improving their ball retention and his side came out looking to redeem themselves in the second stanza. With Wests still content to throw the ball around and chance their arm, it was the Wicks greater discipline that started to pay dividends as the half wore on.

A stalemate on the scoreboard was finally broken when a couple of pick and drives 5 metres out from the Pirates line eventually saw bustling prop Maraki Toa smash through the defence and stretch for the line. Lindsay’s conversion gave us a 5pt ball game with a little more than 5 minutes to play.

The Pirates were visibly wilting in the mid-morning sun and were possibly paying the price for their high-octane start. Randwick had all the ball and continually forced handling errors from their opponents who were trying desperately to hold onto their advantage but with a mere 2 minutes left, their hearts were broken by the crucial score.

www.sesierphotography.com - Iosua Leasusa scores for RandwickA quick bust up the left wing and some good support play saw lock Tim Satiu go over to give the Wicks the lead much to the delight of his team mates who started to prematurely celebrate their come from behind victory. However, there were still to be some heart stopping moments as Lindsay’s conversion attempt fell off the tee and was snaffled by some rampaging Pirates before he could reset the ball. Possession was moved downfield and as the siren sounded, there was still a chance of a famous victory but the Wests’ forwards just didn’t have the legs left to maintain the rage. They gave away a penalty at the next breakdown that was unceremoniously booted into the grandstand and Randwick had pulled off the greatest of comebacks to reclaim their throne from a valiant opponent and honour their fallen comrades in the process.

A tearful try-scorer, Iosua Leasusu, summed up the brevity of the occasion for his side. “It means a lot to the club and for the guys we’ve lost over the last couple of years, this is dedicated to them.”

Darren O’Shea – Randwick prop:

“I can’t really describe it. All the boys just worked so hard for it and to leave it to the last minute was a bit worrying for the crowd and for us but when you get this feeling – there’s nothing better. We always knew they were going to come out strong and they’re a team that’s big on motivation. They get a try, they love it, they keep going so it was very important for us to try and stop that momentum. In the end we knew our fitness was going to hold us in good stead and it did. I’m not sure where we’ll be celebrating, I don’t plan on remembering too much!”

Steve Page – West Harbour fullback:

“It’s shattering because we played such a great 1st half but then we just couldn’t keep the ball.  It came down to the last minute and Randwick have only lost one game in sixty so to take them that close it shows how good we’ve played all year. It’s unfortunate but the boys did their very best and we just fell short on the day.

“We’ve got some talent that could really move up the grades but there’s a core group here who’ve played together all year and I really hope that everyone stays at the club and sticks together because there’s such a great culture at West Harbour. It’s just a great place to be around and I think that showed out on the field in the way that everyone works for each other.”

Danny Grant – Randwick coach:

“The game had everything. It had patience, it had skill, it had creativity and some really hard stuff for us to nut out in terms of organization but it’s just unbelievable how the boys got themselves back to win by the 1pt. They (West Harbour) had a really good run into this game while we obviously didn’t and our preparation was short. They traditionally have a bigger set of blokes and the way they work off the fringes of the ruck was going to be instrumental today. We all focused on that and trying to stop their momentum, shut that down as soon as we could and get it out wide.”

“The guys responded well, particularly in the 2nd half after we’d identified some key areas. They all come together and really pick up on it and it’s just fabulous to see a team do that - it’s quite unique to be honest with you. Our run this year has been with a lot of sadness and as a club we’ve suffered quite a lot losing a number of mates. We haven’t really focused on that but we’ve kept it at the back of our mind and used that throughout the whole year as a goal. This is what we wanted to achieve and we’ve done that and I’m so proud of the boys.”

All interviews by Sean Maloney

Randwick 20 (Iosua Leasusa, Maraki Toa, Tim Satiu tries; Dale Lindsay con, pen) d West Harbour 19 (Luke Schafer, Mana Vi, Taani Kaliti tries; Luke Schafer 2 cons) at Sydney Football Stadium. Referee: Guy Grinham. HT: West Harbour 19-8.

Randwick: 1. Sam Lolo, 2. Jeff Ivory, 3. Maraki Toa; 4. Dave Armstrong, 5. Tim Satiu; 6. Ewan Wylie, 7. Gareth Williams, 8. Tom Jenkins; 9. Ricky Dumigan [c], 10. Dale Lindsay; 11. Andrew Paine, 12. Iosua Leasusu, 13. Finau Makamaka, 14. Andrew Wing Kee; 15. Marty Kiernan.

West Harbour: 1. George Fifita, 2. Clint Borle, 3. Sim Tooala; 4. Luke Stewart, 5. Sean Little; 6. Terry Langi [c], 7. Luke Phillips, 8. Mana Vi; 9. Luke Schafer, 10. Se Yeon Lee; 11. Taani Kaliti, 12. John Lemoto, 13. Fatani Finefeuiaki, 14. Vesi Tokakaulevu; 15. Steve Page.
 

By Paul Cook (Woollahra Oval 20/9/09)

And then there were three… With Sydney University grabbing the first Grand Final place the day before, it was left to Randwick and Gordon to fight out for the right to join them in next week’s showcase. In a repeat of last year’s semi-final pairing, both sides had redemption on their minds. The Highlanders were keen to avenge that heartbreaking loss from 2008 and take that one step further that they were only 9 minutes away from last September while the Wicks had Sydney Uni in their sights and a shot at payback for last year’s one-sided final. With both teams keen to throw the ball around given the chance, an exciting, attacking game beckoned and there was plenty of ammunition to be found in both backlines. Who would be left standing after this gunfight?
 
Gordon got the start they wanted with a Dave Harvey penalty putting them ahead in the first 3 minutes. However, their defence - which had performed admirably to keep Warringah out up at Rat Park the previous week – was breached rather too easily a couple of minutes later as Frankie Fainifo came in off his wing, found some space through the middle, and a couple of body-swerves opened up an untouched path to the posts. It was to be a battle of two of the competition’s most prolific kickers and Marshall Milroy matched Harvey’s attempt with a successful conversion to give the Wicks a 7-3 lead.
 
The Galloping Greens were applying a lot of pressure early on, forcing their opposition to rush their decision making and causing them to force passes and cough up turnovers. The Wicks also turned up the heat with good field position giving them a chance to test the Highlanders line-out and the accuracy of prop/cum hooker Tobias Gukibau’s throws.
 
It was a line-out on Gordon’s 10 metre line that led to the next points in the match but not in the way that everyone expected. With the Wicks in possession, Gordon’s defensive line spread themselves across the park in preparation for the imminent assault via Milroy, Ratu Nasiganiyavi or Bernie Orbell but when the ball found the hands of Tim Walsh in front of the posts, he simply straightened up and popped over a field-goal. There were a few mutterings of discontent amongst the watching faithful but it was of little concern to Walsh or his team mates as they jogged back for the restart with a 7pt lead.
 
That was soon reduced to a 3pt lead moments later after a swift counter-attack from Viliame Ratu and Matt McDougall eventually earned a penalty for offside. Harvey swung his magical left foot once more to make it 10-6.
 
Back came the Wicks as they attacked with real intent. Looking very threatening from open play, they threw the ball from one side to the other looking for a gap but Gordon were manning up forcefully. After an impressive set of phases had manoeuvred them to within 15 metres, it looked like it was only a matter of time before they broke through but when the ball found Walsh in front of the posts again – bop – over went another field-goal. The mutterings now turned into a chorus of ironic boos from neutrals, Highlander supporters and, dare I say it, even Randwick fans with one irked enough to shout ‘You’re supposed to play running rugby Randwick!’. 13-6.
 
The game was in danger of developing a rather monotonous pattern of field-goal at one end, penalty at the other when Dave Harvey took another shot at the posts after 20 minutes. It was  from quite a way out and as deadly accurate as the no.12 usually is, distance is not his forte and he came up frustratingly short for those cheering on the boys from Chatswood. They didn’t have to wait long for a lift in their spirits however.
 
With 24 minutes on the clock and the Highlander line under pressure once more, full-back Dane Haylett-Petty put up a clearing kick that didn’t get the length he was hoping for as it looped it’s way towards a waiting Nasiganiyavi on the left flank. If he’d caught it, he only had two men to beat and I wouldn’t have backed against him finding the line but whether he lost it’s flight in the sun or somehow misjudged it, it fell 5 metres behind him and straight into the hands of a charging McDougall who read it perfectly and sprinted away down the open field for Gordon’s first five-pointer. Harvey couldn’t add the extras from the angle but the Highlanders had signalled their intent and weren’t going to go away easily. 13-11
 
Straight from the restart, a high shot on Stephen Hoiles gave Milroy the opportunity to make it 16-11 which he duly did. The pace of the game was high and we were rattling along at a point a minute so far.
 
Just after the half-hour, Randwick showed their far more appealing expansive, attacking football to stretch their lead. Patient play from their forwards kept the ball moving goalwards down the left channel as Sekope Kepu and skipper Atonio Halangahu repeatedly smashed the Gordon defence. After making plenty of metres, the ball was flashed wide right to Walsh who executed a perfect wrap-around return pass to Kepu, onto Orbell and finally the unmarked Fainifo who was able to cross the line and run around to the posts for a better angle for Milroy’s conversion.
 
It didn’t work as the prolific full-back dragged his shot wide and with no more scores before the break, the Wicks went in at half-time with a 10pt lead.
 
HT 21-11
 
If Gordon were hoping to strike back early in the 2nd half and get back into the game, the first 10 minutes definitely didn’t go the way they intended. Five minutes in, a garryowen into the Highlanders half wasn’t fielded and Hoiles capitalised on the mistake to snatch the loose ball and carry it 15 metres further into enemy territory. With plenty of support helping out at the next breakdown, Shaun Foley recycled it wide where quick hands created an overlap for Milroy to cross in the corner. He converted his own good work to take it to 28-11.
 
There was a constant stream of replacements to bolster both sides chances going into the final half hour. Drew Mitchell – who’d only arrived back in Sydney that morning following his part in the Wellington capitulation against the All Blacks the previous night -  replaced an out of sorts Ratu, with the big man looking like he’s yet to fully recover from the knee injury that’s kept him out for the last month.
 
It was also great to see Waratah and Wallaby hooker Adam Freier make his come back in 1st grade after a lengthy injury spell. The only surprise was that he replaced Seilala Lam at no.7 leaving Halangahu in the front row. Gordon also made their usual change of the last few weeks, taking off the industrious Paulie Toala and bringing on young gun and potential future star Chris Alcock in the backrow.
 
The changes didn’t affect the flow on the scoreboard and with Gordon really needing to score next, coach Lachlan Fear must have been tearing his hair out as indiscipline cost them a further 3pts from a Milroy penalty. 31-11
 
However, with the game starting to look lost, the Highlanders finally clicked in the final third and constructed an atypical try to keep them in the contest. Haylett-Petty attacked the right flank at speed before a series of phases saw Terry Preston go close. Possession then changed hands a couple of times before Gordon took control once more and the ball was recycled to newcomer Alcock. He attacked straight down the middle before finding Mark Preston who exchanged passes with prop Marty Plokstys, burst through a gap and dived for the line, carrying a valiant effort from Freier with him. Harvey took the easy extras but there was still a lot of work to do. 31-18
 
More replacements on the hour saw Frankie Fainifo come off to rapturous applause for his two try effort with Western Force recruit Nick Cummins taking his place. The substitution coincided with another Milroy penalty but thankfully for those in tartan colours, it fell short.
 
Five minutes later and it really did look all over for Gordon. With a Randwick attack looking stymied, Henry Vanderglas suddenly emerged from a ruck with the pill and broke through two or three very half-hearted tackles to find the line. Milroy was successful and that unusually porous defence was costing the Highlanders the game. 38-18
 
In yet another indication of the uneven balance of power between the two teams, Randwick took off Brumby half-back Patrick Phibbs and brought on Brumby and Wallaby half-back Josh Valentine to see out the last 10 minutes. It was at this point that things went a little crazy, the idea of defending went out the window and those last 10 minutes heralded 29 points. Strap yourself in for the thrilling denouement…
 
Gordon had now decided to chance their arm and they certainly weren't going to die wondering. They peppered the Randwick line looking for a way back into the match but when the imperious Kepu forced a turnover, a potential lifeline looked to have been lost. However, with an 18pt lead the Wicks started to throw the ball around with some ‘off-the-cuff’ rugby and paid the penalty for their relaxed approach when Halangahu inexplicably coughed the ball up into the arms of Haylett-Petty who said thankyou very much and streaked away for the 5pts. Harvey stepped up to the challenge once more but it still looked too little too late for his side. 38-25
 
The Wicks did themselves no favours with the crowd by taking the opportunity to try and kill the game with Walsh’s third drop goal from the next attack. Certainly, anyone who didn’t have myrtle green associations were now rooting for Gordon as – flying in the face of Randwick’s proud tradition - they looked to be the one side attempting to run the ball and use width. 41-25
 
That feeling was compounded when Gordon crossed again within a minute. Hooker Gukibau, who put in a sterling effort across the park all game, hammered the line once more before a quick-tap and short pass found Alcock. The impressive youngster shuffled, stepped, dropped a shoulder and somehow ghosted through some ineffectual defending to make it four tries all with a kick to come. Harvey did the business, it was now 41-32 and most definitely game on!
 
Thoughts drifted back to last year’s semi between these two teams when Gordon led by 13pts with 9 minutes remaining only to lose at the death. Now 9pts behind with 7 minutes remaining, were they about to execute the sweetest of all revenge missions?
 
The Highlanders were now carving up out wide and as has been the case so often in their run to the finals, their superior fitness was showing through but with a mere 5 minutes left on the clock, the telling play was made that finally sealed their fate. Moving the ball through the hands again they fashioned another chance on the flank but with McDougall lying in wait on the touchline the final pass went astray and Mitchell swooped to intercept and ran 50 metres before being dragged down. Three phases later and with Gordon back-pedalling, Walsh put up a clever chip-kick into the corner and Foley emerged from nowhere to pluck it out of the air and touch down to break opposition hearts. Milroy couldn’t add the extras but Gordon shoulders had notably drooped. 46-32
 
Two minutes later and with the game already safe, Randwick effectively landed a knockout punch after the bell to put a slightly uneven look on the scoreboard. With their tails suitably up, the Galloping Green forwards muscled up in the ruck, Kepu blasted through a hole, sidestepped a tackle and fed Hoiles who had 10 metres to make before he added try number six to his teams tally. Milroy piled on the misery and it was the Wicks who had earned their shot at redemption the following weekend with a place in the grand final.
 
FT 53-32
 
A terrific spectacle for both sets of supporters and particularly the neutrals, Randwick deserved their victory and were never headed after their first try. They controlled large parts of the game, had the power in their forwards to lay a platform, the quality strike players to punish mistakes but probably more significantly, the experience to see out a match of such importance when under extreme pressure. They certainly look capable of  putting up some much stiffer resistance against Uni this time around.
 
Gordon can hold their heads up high after yet another season where they’ve punched significantly above their weight. Can they make it third time lucky next year? If they can keep this squad together under the tutelage of Lachlan Fear, there’s no reason why they can’t go close but without the added talent and experience of two or three quality rep players, they’re going to find it hard to cross that final hurdle.
 
Let’s take nothing away from a fantastic Randwick side that I thoroughly enjoy watching but as good as they were, the ability to bring on four Super 14 players off the bench - including three Wallabies – is undeniably a significant advantage and something that I hope NSWRU or the ARU can look at in the future for the good of the Australian game. There’s more than enough talented players out there, wouldn’t it be great to see them evenly spread throughout the competition?
 
Randwick captain Atonio Halangahu:
“Gordon are a great team at kicking the footy and putting the pressure on you so to beat them at the breakdown is probably the key and I think we were at least equal with them there which took us a long way towards beating them. They’re a really well drilled side so if you can stop their counter-attack and their defensive effort from being so good then I think you’re a real chance against them.
 
“You do start to get a bit nervous when they get a bit of momentum because they’re playing for their season but we stuck at what we had and we’ve got some really good, experienced players which can help you out in a clinch. When you’ve got Drew Mitchell, Josh Valentine and Adam Freier out there guiding you around to finish the game, it always helps. They’ve played footy at the highest level and they understand what it takes to win those tight ones so it’s a big advantage for us.”
 
On the crowd’s negative response to the field-goals:
“We’re not playing for bonus points here anymore. Yes, there was a bit of stick from the crowd but that’s fine, we’ll take the game and win it by a point if we have to, I don’t care how we win at this time of year.”
 
Gordon captain Ed Gower:
“It’s never easy to lose a semi-final and the fact that they’ve got us two years in a row doesn’t make it any easier. We were really hoping to make up for last year but it wasn’t the way it went unfortunately. We didn’t die wondering, we gave it our all but we made a few mistakes at crucial times and they’re a good side. We tried to smash them in defence, we tried to smash them at the breakdown, we just couldn’t do any better than we were doing.
 
“We’ve just got to keep building, every time we lose like this it’s an experience, the team gets a year older and each loss makes you drive a bit harder next time. We always focus on our game and we just go out as hard as we can and if we can keep hold of the same players again, you never know what can happen next year.”
 
Gordon coach Lachlan Fear:
“Their (Randwick’s) last three weeks hasn’t been very productive in terms of game time so we definitely thought that if we started hard, it would be tough for them to hit the required intensity level early enough and we could blow them away. Unfortunately that didn’t come around and a couple of intelligent field-goals actually put them on the front foot, kept the points ticking over and made us drop our heads when we didn’t need to.
 
“We just didn’t get in to any rhythm in the 1st half. We made some fundamental errors and it came down to the line-out being a really telling area and it hurt us. We’re down three hookers in the club so we had to manufacture one out of a prop. He’s a wonderful player whose game around the field is awesome but it’s not a natural skill for him to throw yet and that didn’t help.
 
“We had the right plan but we just couldn’t execute it today unfortunately and that’s the way it goes. Even deep into that 2nd half, we isolated ourselves by going individually rather than playing footy as a group. When we did play as a group we scored easily. We knew that we could create numbers on the flanks, we knew that we would get opportunities on either side, we just needed to make sure we could get there and we didn’t do it well enough.
 
“I don’t think the final score is a true indication of the game, it wasn’t a 19pt ball game but having said that we gifted some bad tries. I guess they could say that we got an intercept try and a lucky bounce for a runaway try as well so that’s the way it goes – they got some, we got some, they got more.”
 
Randwick coach Gary Ella:
“It was a mixed sort of game but I think overall we played pretty well. They’re a very good side Gordon and you can’t take your eye off the game. In the end, we probably went a little bit too conservative midway through the 2nd half and then we decided to attack and open up the game again. It called for tactical changes and I think both teams were adapting to different conditions and trying different things as the game went on.
 
"We brought Adam Freier on at no.7 at half-time and he’s a class player. He needs game time and we want to use him next week - the more game time he gets, the better he’s going to be for us. He’s been on at me constantly trying to get out onto the pitch. The last time I spoke to him, he just said ’80, 60, 40, 20, 10 – I don’t care, just get me out there!’."
 
On next week’s Grand Final:
“Sydney Uni are tough but I don’t think we need to change our plan too much. We’ve got to cut-out errors, we can’t afford to make too many against them. We had a few today where we gave away quite a few penalties and free-kicks at the breakdown and we’ve got to have a look at that and find out why that was the case. We’ve got to win our ball at the breakdown, if you don’t do that against Uni, you’re in trouble. It’s all about your set plays and getting your hands on the pill and holding it. We’ll just attack because that’s the way we play and see what happens.”
 
Randwick 53 (Francis Fainifo 2, Marshall Milroy, Henry Vanderglas, Shaun Foley, Stephen Hoiles tries; Marshall Milroy 3 cons, 2 pens, Tim Walsh 3 drop, con) d Gordon 32 (Matt McDougall, Mark Preston, Dane Haylett-Petty, Chris Alcock tries; Dave Harvey 3 cons, 2 pens) at Woollahra Oval. Referee: Stuart Dickinson. HT: Randwick 21-11.
 
Randwick: 1. Sekope Kepu, 2. Atonio Halangahu [c], 3. Lotu Taukeiaho; 4. Tim Maxwell, 5. Steve Brennan; 6. Henry Vanderglas, 7. Seilala Lam, 8. Stephen Hoiles; 9. Patrick Phibbs, 10. Tim Walsh; 11. Ratu Nasiganiyavi, 12. Shaun Foley, 13. Bernie Orbell, 14. Francis Fainifo; 15. Marshall Milroy.

Gordon: 1.Ofa Fainga’anuku, 2. Tobias Gukibau, 3. Marty Plokstys; 4. Nifo Nifo, 5. Ed Gower [c]; 6. Paulie Tuala, 7. Craig Thomas, 8. Viliame Ratu; 9. Vinnie Byrne, 10. Josh Kiel; 11. Terry Preston, 12. Dave Harvey, 13. Mark Preston, 14. Matt McDougall; 15. Dane Haylett-Petty.

Words by Paul Cook

Yesterday we looked at the coaching life of Lachlan Fear, the youngest coach in the competition. Today we look at a guy on the opposite side of the ledger, not necessarily in terms of physical years (although there is a 17 year gap) but more so in terms of playing and coaching experience and the levels of the game to which they have been exposed to so far.

The Ella surname is synonymous with Australian rugby and one which is held in the highest regard. Twins Mark and Glen and younger brother Gary all represented Randwick, NSW and the Wallabies with distinction in the early 80’s and were responsible for a sea-change in the possibilities and execution of attacking rugby in this country.

Revered worldwide for their game breaking talents and ability to catch and pass at speed effortlessly while re-inventing the art of support play through the pioneering ‘flat attack’, they played a large part in the domination of Randwick in Sydney club rugby for over a decade.

All three brothers have dabbled in the coaching realm but it is Gary who has been the most consistent in terms of longevity and arguably the most consistent achiever as well. As astute a thinker of the game now as he was on the field in his playing days, Gary returned ‘home’ to Coogee Oval at the start of this season with a mission to turn the Galloping Greens back into a title-winning side and to attempt to wrest the dominance of the club scene back from arch-rivals Sydney University who have had it pretty much their own way for the last 5 years.
 
Ella’s playing career spanned 134 1st grade games for the Wicks, 25 appearances for the Waratahs and 6 Wallaby caps. Since his retirement in the late 90’s he’s held a variety of coaching positions at different levels in the national and international game including two spells as an assistant coach (backs) at NSW alongside Chris Hawkins in the initial Super 12 competition in 1996 and later under the great Bob Dwyer in the 2001 Super 14. He took charge of the Australian Under-19’s for four years culminating in a loss to France in the 2000 World Cup Final, led Australia A through the 2002-03 season before heading offshore for a year’s experience as a foreign coach at Leinster in Ireland. He returned to the Sydney club rugby scene in 2004 taking up the challenge of restoring the reputation of a once great Parramatta before the lure of his famous old stomping ground proved too hard to resist.

I consider myself very fortunate to have been afforded some time with Gary recently to talk about his club rugby coaching history, some of the changes we’ve seen in the game since his playing days and his thoughts on his future…
 
Clubrugby.com.au: Was it always your intention to go on and become a coach after your playing career ended?

Gary Ella: “No, with playing it’s funny, you just get on the field and play but I guess towards the end of my career and being a senior player, I was doing as much coaching on the field as I probably would have off of it and I think because we had some success at that time, I began to think about coaching. Kevin Phibbs – who’s now the General Manager of the Randwick club – wanted me to assist him with 2nd grade which I did and we went onto win the comp the following year. I then coached with Jeff Sayle and we won the 1st grade Premiership and I guess, without it ever actually being a plan, I got into coaching on a fairly continuous basis and in 2000, Bob Dwyer called and asked if I would like to coach on a full-time basis and I’ve been doing it ever since.”

CR: You played in the centres, along with brothers Mark (fly-half) and Glen (full-back) you were revered for the ‘Ella’ tradition of attacking with speed and flair. Now that you are on the other side of the white line, do you feel pressured to try and replicate that style as a coach?
 
GE: “Not necessarily, I’m happy to win a game with a good score but I’m just as happy to win a game 3-0. My philosophy is, you’ve got to win the battle in the midfield first and if you win that then you can go wide. You’ve almost got to win the right to play attractive football so you’ve got to do the hard work up the middle. I guess what I’m saying is that the forwards have to give you good possession before you can actually take on the opposition.”

CR: But, do the ideals of attacking play exhibited by you and your brothers influence the way that you coach your backline or has the evolution of the game since then made that difficult to reproduce?

GE: “No, it hasn’t, we still like to play touch footy, we still like to be creative and we still like the players to have input into training and put in their two-bob’s worth because I think that if you’re going to be successful as a team, you’ve got to have input from your players. You can’t just dictate to them, if they’ve got ideas you’ve got to listen to them and incorporate them into your game plan. I think that’s extremely important in that sense. We were always encouraged when we were playing under Bob Dwyer and Jeff Sayle to offer our own input so it’s the way I played the game. I had some great coaches and I tend to take a little bit of their philosophies along with me.”

CR: Has the era of professionalism suppressed some of that ‘gung ho’ style of footy? Teams are a lot more pragmatic and defence orientated these days.

GE: “Yes, teams are a lot more professional these days and defences are very well organised. When I played, we spent very little time on defence compared to today’s game. The opposition analyse the way you play and they analyse your moves so you’ve got to keep changing, you can’t stay static and you can’t keep playing the same style of football. For example, at the start of the year we were playing expansive football, then we changed it a bit and started using the short side more and if you have a look at the games we played against Easts and Gordon, we kicked a little bit more than we have in the past. Who knows, against a Sydney Uni we might keep ball in hand. You play to the opposition and you study them. I’d love to throw the ball around week in, week out but No.1 - You’ve got to have the personnel to do it and No.2 - You’ve got to play the most effective way that you can to beat the team you’re up against on the day.”

CR: What made you decide to go to Parramatta – was it a chance to challenge yourself in a different way?

GE: “It was probably a case of a few different things. Back in 2004, I actually coached for 5 games at Penrith. I’d just come back from Europe and they had just lost their two coaches. I was doing nothing so I just suggested if you need a hand, give us a yell, and they did so I went over and did the last 5 games for them. I felt that the West weren’t as strong as they could be and I don’t think they were getting as much support as was required because there’s certainly a lot of talent out there. There’s always going to be a lot of talent in Western Sydney, it’s just that we’ve got to get some good coaches out there and we’ve got to get a few more experienced players playing in the area and if we can do that then I think both of those teams can be very strong.

“The opportunity came up via Greg Mitchell, who was actually the operations manager for the Parramatta Eels back then. They were sponsoring the Two Blues at that stage and he contacted me and just said ‘Look. We need a coach, are you interested?’ I said yes, but if I’m going to do it, I want to do it full-time because we really have to invest a lot of hours in bringing those guys forward and I don’t think it’s a part-time job anymore and that was the opportunity that was presented to me.”

CR: Looking back, do you feel like you did a good job? You certainly improved their win/loss ratio and got them a few places up the ladder.

GE: “Yes, I do. We got to mid-table a few times and the only team that ever beat us convincingly or got to 50pts against us was Sydney Uni at Uni Oval and we picked up a bonus point on that day because we scored 4 tries against them. That was the only time that we were ever beaten what I would call badly.”

CR: Were you always going to leave at the end of last year – did you have any idea of you what was going to happen regarding the collapse of the Leagues club?

GE: “For me, I think that four years is probably enough for anyone at any one club. I was looking to move on anyway and the fact is that when I made up my mind to leave, I was still under the impression that the Leagues club was going to run for another two years. I was already talking to a lot of the officials at that stage about who was going to be brought in the following year to replace me.”

CR: With the unfortunate problems they’ve experienced on and off the field, do you see a positive future for Parramatta?

GE: “It’s always going to be difficult for them isn’t it as they struggle to get people through the gates. They’re out there looking for strong sponsors and when a club pulls out half a million dollars a year in sponsorship, it does leave you in a bit of a hole and it’s not something that you’re going to replace immediately. It’s particularly tough with the economic environment that we have at the moment but if they receive some assistance just to keep them afloat and get through this hard period, they’ll come back. They’ve had too many good players and they’ve got too many strong supporters who will come in and help for them not to succeed. If you actually look at it their junior numbers are still very good, they just need a little bit of help over this bump. It’s a really strong Sydney competition and it’s not going to be as strong if we start losing clubs and particularly out West because that area is simply exploding population wise.”

CR: What about the Super 15 franchise that Brett Papworth was trying to get over there – were you behind that idea?

GE: “Yes, I thought it would have been fantastic and I certainly supported a Western Sydney bid. There’s so many untapped resources out there at the moment, basing a Super 15 rugby side out there would have been good for the game.”

CR: You’re now back ‘home’ at Randwick where, in comparison to your time at Parramatta, you have access to a host of rep players and in some cases – Wallabies. As a coach, do you prefer the challenge of working with a team of lesser ability that you can try to improve upon or the chance to work with a group of top class players that are able to grasp your ideas immediately and implement them accordingly out on the field?

GE: “I think it presents two different sets of challenges. At Parramatta we did reasonably well with the talent that we had and it’s funny – my record against Randwick when I was coaching the Two Blues was excellent, I had more wins than losses and I’m pretty chuffed about that. At Parramatta I felt that I was really coaching and we worked pretty hard to improve things. Here, I still feel that I’m coaching but there’s a lot more management involved as well as purely management of the resources. Both roles presented a different set of challenges and I had great support in both positions. There’s maybe a little bit more experience here than we had at Parramatta but that’s certainly not saying anything about the coaching potential at either club.”

CR: Which one’s more difficult because there’s obviously different levels of expectation involved? To lift Parramatta out of the bottom reaches of the ladder to a mid-table position was a success whereas here at Randwick, with their history of achievement - they expect trophies?

GE: “The expectations at this club are very high and you’re always on edge. There’s no such thing as a close loss, every defeat is a disaster and every time you don’t play well it’s a disaster. There are different expectations, we had some great wins at Parramatta and they were well celebrated whereas here they’re perhaps taken a little bit for granted.”

CR: Let’s talk about a couple of my favourite players here at Randwick. Firstly Ratu Nasiganiyavi; There are not many more exhilarating sights in Australian rugby than seeing this guy with ball in hand, at pace and with the line in sight. He’s got so much potential and he’s still only 21 but there’s undoubtedly a few rough edges that need smoothing out. Do you think you can get the best out of him and help to push him to the levels that have been anticipated since he burst onto the Sydney club scene last year?

GE: “Ratu’s got an awful lot of expectations surrounding him and sometimes that weighs him down. He’s a guy that you’ve just got to encourage along and you’ve got to look after him physically and manage his training load as well as you can. You’ve got to keep him on a mental high as often as you can as well. When he’s coming to the game feeling good and enjoying himself, he is unstoppable but if he comes to the game and he’s down a little bit and he’s worried about what’s happening with his game it tends to affect him a little bit and we’re working really hard to keep him on a high and keep him confident.”

CR: So, there’s an important degree of man-management on your part involved?

GE: “For sure. And that’s part of the role of a professional coach. We have 15 guys who present themselves differently each week and as coaching staff, we need to be aware of that. We talk to each other on a fairly regular basis and we work as a team to get 15 players up and ready each week.”

CR: I’m also a big fan of ‘Keps’, Sekope Kepu. He’s been in outstanding form of late and really seems to be back to his best, if not even better than he was pre-injury. Do you think he’s getting closer to that Wallaby recall?

GE: “Well, I hope so. He struggled for a while physically because of the injuries that he’s had and it took him some time to recover his fitness levels but he’s certainly playing with a lot of confidence at the moment and I’m sure that he’s only going to get a lot better than where he is currently at. He’s got bags of potential and I don’t think we’ve seen anywhere near the best of him yet.”

CR: Finally, what are you hoping to achieve here at Randwick - are you going to be here for another 2-3 years or would you like the time to try to build another dynasty to rival the club’s domination in the late 70’s-early 80’s when they won 14 Premierships in 18 years?

GE: “Mate, if you would have asked me who we’re playing in 2 weeks time I’d have trouble answering! I know that people hate it but I don’t even look at tables, I just look at who we’re playing the following week and start preparing the side. We look at dvd’s from our last game, not necessarily to watch what we did well but to focus on areas that we can improve on and that’s vitally important to us. If we can get better each week, we’ll be harder to beat. As I said before, I thought four years was long enough at Parramatta, I don’t think I’ll be going much further than that here.”

CR: Beyond that then, do you have aspirations to coach at a higher level again?

GE: “If you’re having a look at professional coaches, you want to do well. You want to do well for your team and for your club but you also want to do well for yourself. You’ve got to look at the opportunities. It’s a very pointy end coaching and if good opportunities present themselves then you’ve got to take them, you can’t just let them go past and not grab hold of them. If I do well here, those opportunities may present themselves again, they may not, so we’ll just have to wait and see. If an opportunity came up to coach at a higher level or overseas somewhere, you’d be mad not to look at it.”


So there you have it, Lachlan Fear and Gary Ella. Two very different guys, two different coaching styles and two different ways of approaching their professions. The one thing they do have in common is a desire to succeed and, wherever possible, in a manner that’s pleasing to the eye of all purist rugby fans. Last year’s semi-final between their two sides was a classic. With Randwick narrowly up 6-3 at half-time, Gordon turned on the flair in the 2nd half with three quick tries leaving them with a 22-13 lead and only 9 minutes on the clock. Alas, for the Highlanders, you can’t keep a good man down and two late tries to the Wicks saw them through to the Grand Final 25-22.

Can the boys from Chatswood Oval gain their revenge and go one better this year or will the Galloping Greens triumph once more and possibly set-up their own chance at redemption for last year’s final if they get another shot at Sydney University? clubrugby.com.au will be there to bring you a comprehensive match report and all the post-match interviews from the winners and sinners. May the best team win.