Round 6 vs Petersham

After a mix day of results a Mosman last weekend, the Blue Giants head back to Woollahra Oval tomorrow to take on Petersham. The Petersham Shammies who are coming 3rd on the Division 1 Club Championships will be tough opposition throughout the grades.

In fact Colleagues and Petersham are equal first in Whiddon Cup, both undefeated on 24 competition points after five rounds.

Forwards coach Jason Monteath is confident his boys are ready for what should be their most challenging game thus far. “Our boys are primed for a tough top of the table clash against Petersham.” Monteath said. “They’ve been very consistant so far this season so we’ll be looking to use our home ground advantage to cement our spot at the top of table.”

Whiddos will be boosting a strong forward pack with new the Colleagues pairing of Will Yeo (pictured) and Ben Griffiths in the second row and Rupert Ballenger and James Dan in the front row. They’ll be joined by the strong and experienced backrow of Bibby, Hunt and Evans. And although Nick Valentine has a number 3 on his back, he acts as a fourth backrower around the park.

For Burke and Kentwell it will be another tough round with further forced changes to the two starting sides. Kentwell suffered another hamstring injury to their starting five eight, with Toby L’Estrange coming from the field midway through the second half against Mosman. His replacement, the very experience Isaac Carey, will start in the 10 jersey this Saturday.

For Burke it will be a new but familiar midfield combination of Holmes, Mullany and outside centre Jack Hale. This midfield should have plenty of chances of success from the set piece, with towering second rowers Michael Woodward and Will Milward returning to the field after two weeks away.

Out of the seven matches against Mosman last Saturday, Colleagues came away with four wins but losses in Halligan, Burke and Kentwell Cup.

With a couple of sperm whales in the second row, the Mosman first grade scrum was a force for the home team, causing the Blue Giants headaches throughout the match. That dominant scrum coupled with strong defence in and around the breakdown, never allowed Colleagues to get into the game.

The Burke Cup match was tight from start to finish but the visitors were fighting an uphill battle after two dubious yellow cards left the Blue Giants playing half the match a man down.

It was another tremendous defensive effort in the lower grades with Colleagues only conceding one try from third through to fifth grade. For the fifth game in a row our Whiddon Cup boys have kept their opponents tryless.

Man of Match Performances

• Duncan Boyd Jones (9) – Kentwell
• Jono Willis (2) & Joe Sangster (9) Burke
• Finn Hunt (7) – Whiddon (pictured)
• Mike Bentley (8) – Judd
• Angus Wilson (6) – Sutherland
• Elliot Hanna (2) – Halligan
• Harvey Duncan (12) – Barbour

Scores
• Kentwell 15 – 30 Mosman
• Burke 7 – 18 Mosman
• Barbour 55 – 24 Mosman
• Widddon 17 – 3 Mosman
• Judd 7 – 6 Mosman
• Sutherland 33 – 5 Mosman
• Halligan 0 – 26 Mosman

Players can also access match videos on the Colleagues Player Portal. Details at the bottom of the newsletter.

Round 1 vs Knox

Charlie Henley – 2, Kentwell

Round 2 vs Drummoyne

Tom Lomax – 11, Whiddon

Round 3 vs St Pats

Tom Harbson – 9, Whiddon (pictured)

Round 4 vs Balmain

Lachlan Strachan – 3, Halligan

 

Giants!

Well the dream run has come to an end! After 3 blue rinses our Halligan, Burke and Kentwell sides were defeated by a well drilled Mosman outfit who were packing a bit of size across the grades. The loss was a good wake up call for the club, we are not going to stroll through this competition and need to aim up every week.

This Saturday we have Petersham at home which will also be a tough game. For the grades coming off a loss it’s time to rip in and show the rest of the competition that we deserve to be on top of the table.

In other news this week… special mention to James “Dog Nuts” Kennelly who debuted at Fashion Week on Wednesday.. congrats mate!!

Manatee Out

2016 Events

28th May – WAGs Cocktail class & dinner at the Woollahra Hotel $90 per head (4 cocktails, two course dinner with wines). Email DB for a spot for your WAG daveburnett.aus@gmail.com 

4th June – Old Colleagues Day v Drummoyne

16th July – Colleagues Black Tie Ball and fundraiser for the Australian Women’s Olympic 7s Team

30th July – Ladies Day 2 v Mosman

The Colleagues Black Tie Ball will be back again this season. The date is the 16th July after our away match with Petersham. Stay tuned for more details.

Check out last years photos here