January 3, 2015 ·
Tim Cullen
·
Weekly news
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President’s Report
It is such an honour to be involved with so many great people and such a great club.
2014 will go down as one of the great years for The Colleagues with 4 premierships, an outstanding Bingham Cup, a strong balance sheet and trading profit. Such is the standard that those who did not win premierships are gutted and scheming to make sure they get one next year. This Annual Report is rightly full of praise for all of the people who have made it possible from coaches, committee, girl friends and waters runners. All are deserving of praise and it is their selflessness that makes everything happen.
The combined leadership of Henry, Frank, Benny and Howie has been the back bone of the year. They have been tireless in making sure that things happened and that they happened correctly. We all have busy lives and they have managed to make it seem effortless when it is far from that. There is always some issue that needs to be resolved, some bigger than others but with such a large group of people all striving to be successful things happen. These guys made sure that things get dealt with and people move on. The results speak for themselves on the field and off with winning the Div 1 club of the year.
It has intrigued me for the last number of years how all of our coaches have come from our playing ranks except for the one notable exception – Crofty. For some reason I have expected this to be a problem because we would become to insular or stale. This has not proved to be the case as more players transition to holding the clip board (or throwing it). Collectively they are committed to making themselves better coaches and The Colleagues players better rugby players.
The Colleagues and The Convicts combined to run the biggest rugby tournament in the world this year in Bingham Cup 2014. The great shame was that many of The Colleagues players could not enjoy it as it was during the season. There were plenty of challenges to over come and they were over come to deliver an exceptional rugby tournament that gave many people the opportunity to play rugby. A recent survey of players revealed that 85% of those players would not be participating in sport if they did not have a gay friendly organization to support them. The Colleagues mission statement is to provide a decent game of rugby for anyone who wants to play.
While rugby struggles in this country financially we are very lucky to have such dedicated sponsors in The Woollahra Hotel, B Braun, Grays Online, MCS, Hill Rogers Financial Services and Jan Logan who notched up 20 years sponsoring Ladies Days this year. Their support is invaluable as the ARU removes subsidies to the various rugby unions. Thankfully with our sponsors support we can manage the addition costs and get on with providing a game of rugby to over 150 players a week.
A big focus of the year has been an upgrade of our website and revamp of our contact lists. This project has been led by Tim Cullen who has used his skills and tenacity to make a tremendous improvement to our communication to players and past players. The project is not finished as we need to re connect with many more past players and translate that into involvement through networking, sponsorship and attending games.
To the players. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
Richard McGrath
President
Club Captain’s Report
The 2014 season was an incredibly successful one for the Blue Giants. It was always going to be a big year after such a disappointing finish to 2013 and the convicts hosting the Bingham Cup at Blue Giant Stadium. Throw into the mix, a couple of ladies days, colleagues ball, countless nights at the Woollahra Hotel and a number of impromptu sessions at the clubhouse, and it has been a very busy year for colleagues.
On the field, the hunger started on Grand Final day 2013 where 4 colleagues sides tasted defeat and most of those blokes were back this year for another crack. The result was 3 premierships from 4 grand finals, with the Judd boys falling agonisingly short in extra time despite being the standout side all year. Congratulations to the Burke, Whiddon and Sutherland boys and also to the Halligan boys. Colleagues determination on Grand Final day was simply unmatched by the opposition and the support shown by all colleagues on the day was a fantastic demonstration of the strength of the club and the camaraderie we developed across the board this year.
We again finished second on the club championship to St Pats with the key difference between the clubs being the first grade sides where St Pats were very dominant and deservedly took out the competition. It will be interesting to see how many of their players back up in the newly amateur competition next year and for a few other clubs as well. At the NSW Suburban rugby presentation night, colleagues took out the Division 1 Club of the year and Kentwell five eighth and captain was awarded the Kentwell Medal for the most outstanding player in the suburban competition, topped off with the honour cap at the colleagues presentation day, it was a big year for DK. Congratulations mate!
To all coaches thank you on behalf of the players for all your efforts this year. Having such a strong club, it really is a challenge for coaches week in week out to build momentum and team camaraderie while at the same time, promoting players to reach their potential in higher grades. Playing under such great blokes makes colleagues what it is and it is no coincidence that with the coaches we have, we continue to be so successful. A special thanks to Benny Waters firstly for fathering a baby blue giant this year unlike a couple of the other coaches but also for leading the coaches once again you’ve done an awesome job.
Socially, we tried to lever off past events as well as adding a refreshing feel and through some hard work from a few individuals, particularly Goochy, Frank, Carl O’Sullivan and his wife Elke, we delivered a great year for colleagues off the playing field. The Ladies days were as good as I’ve seen and with the beer kegs being supplied by endeavour beer on the back of the Bondi 10s, we turned a bumper profit for both days. The Ball was slightly different this year, being a cocktail style at the Bucket List and a special mention should go to Cam Ireland here for a huge amount of work in getting the numbers up and for organising a colleagues first(possibly) Blue Giant’s ice luge. The final Campbelltown posh tour possibly ever, was as dapper as ever and it will be interesting to see next year’s take on the posh tour without the trip to Campbelltown. The social side of colleagues would not be the same without the Woollahra Hotel and so a huge thank you on behalf of the players to John Ryan and Alex Goold for making this great pub a home away from home for the boys. The staff there put up with plenty from the players throughout the year– they were witness to some special behaviour this year – and always do it with a smile, we look forward to many more years at the trusty Woolly.
To the convicts, congratulations on taking out the Bingham Cup, the early season training and commitment right through the year clearly paid off. A tough year in stepping up to the Division 4 competition, finishing at the bottom of the club championship but the Convicts will be better for the experience and no doubt, it won’t be too long before the convicts are reaching the summit of division 4.Playing a curtain raiser to a Waratahs Sunday afternoon match was a great result and the boys turned it on at the SFS, destroying Macquarie Uni 30-12. The scale of the Bingham Cup tournament had to be seen to be believed and despite some trying weather, the tournament was a great success. Well done to all of the committee who helped organise the event, that was a serious feat but most of all to Goochy and his partner Leigh, whose work at this event typified the love and care that they show for colleagues, a huge effort and job well done.
Frank Coorey did a great job as secretary this year, his passion for the club is outstanding. So much of Frankie’s work is done behind the scenes and goes unnoticed by some but there is no way the club could have functioned without Frankie’s efforts this year, we’ll miss ‘the bug’ next year. The rest of the committee were always there to lend a hand, as were a number of colleagues players, it is this type of attitude that makes Colleagues such a great club. It would be great to see a few of the younger generation who show so much ability on the field and off the field inserting some of their obvious flair into the committee as we always are on the hunt for some fresh injections.
With the help of Mike Langford and Tim Cullen, we completely revamped the club website and we now have an interactive and dynamic online portal, not to mention a stronger social media presence @colleaguesrugby on twitter enabling live score updates to those colleagues that have lost touch or can’t be at colleagues weekly fixtures. #hashtags galore.
To the players, congratulations on an outstanding year. With the difficulties we faced through the season, sharing the training paddock between 10 teams, removed from our home ground for a whole month for the Bingham Cup at the most crucial time of the season, a home game at centennial park; to go on and win 4 premierships really is something to be proud of for every player at the club and it is a testament to the quality of blokes that we have playing for colleagues. To the old boys who give up their Saturday’s week in week out to watch the boys play, we thank you for your support and only hope that one day, we can do it as well as you do.
As I draw a close on my time as club captain, I feel confident that in the newly amateur suburban rugby competition, Colleagues will be as strong if not stronger than ever and I look forward to helping the next generation to continue our proud history. Thank you to the president and the rest of the Colleagues community for the opportunity to lead the club, it has been a great honour and I have enjoyed it immensely.
Henry King
Club Captain
Secretary’s Report
2014 off the field was a great success. Revamped events, good subs collection and a good time had by all. On the field was an indifferent year; Kentwell took the early bird special whilst every other grade learned to swim at Dave Phillips. To win three from four grades at TG Milner was amazing, as well as Halligans cantering first past the post and of course the massive success Colleagues had hosting the Bingham Cup.
The committee felt the events had probably gone a little stale so we felt our events needed a shake up. We reintroduced an outside influence with the running of Ladies Day one with Elke, Kate and Ciara. This saw the first ladies day this year being one of our most profitable of all time. We also changed the ball format to a cocktail party which saw this event be profitable again for the club.
The club was able to collect a high percentage of subs this year. Again we are grateful to have such great coaches to drive this, as well helped with the Woollahra Hotels discount cards being closely managed. Whilst it isn’t cheap to play at Colleagues, I can honestly say that the experience you receive as a player and club member is worth every cent. By paying to be a part of this club means you want to be there, this shows with the great spirit present both on and off the field.
I only play a small part of the running of this club so I must take this opportunity to thank some of the great people around me. Henry King, our club captain is the type of guy every rugby club needs. He’s the first and last to leave every week. Kingos spirit and passion for Colleagues can’t be compared with too many guys at the club. As long as I’ve known Henry he’s always been the guy to roll up his sleeves and help not when asked but when he’s seen a job needs to be done. He has always had the best intentions for the club and he will be missed if he decides to step down as Captain. Congratulations Henry on your honour cap award, seeing you and DK win it made it easy to be runner up. Thank you for all of your help, I think we worked well together and have left the club in a good state.
Richard McGrath, thank you again for being a great mentor throughout my time in this role. You are an asset to the club, a level head and just a very good President. You have a great balance of letting the players run the club and knowing when to step in. I hope we remain in touch as I step down from this role.
To all the club coaches, thank you for your help in driving the boys to collect subs, but also just working with Henry and I in getting things together. Special mention goes to Benny Waters whose help driving the coaches and the club is amazing. Benny loves his role as club coach and when you hear about other clubs having problems with head coaches all the time, I remind myself how lucky Colleagues is to have such a great guy like Benny keeping this club thriving.
Will MacDiarmid and Tim Waddell, the club registrars, thank you so much for your help with the registration and with everything else you were always on hand to assist with.
To guys like Cam Ireland, Nick Watt and Dan Kelly and anyone else who attended meetings and helped with general duties, thank you all for your help this year. Your experience and passion for the club was evident in the way you were always the first to help, offer opinions or just help with advice.
With my recent move to Cootamundra, I will have to stand down as Colleagues Club Secretary. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in this role, it has taught me so many lessons about people, the running of a business and club, managing people, egos, differences and life. I hope the incoming secretary has the same satisfaction I have had.
Thank you all you Magnificent Men.
Frank Coorey
Honorary Secretary
Club Coach’s Report
The 2014 year was a very successful year for the Blue Giants. All teams through to the finals except Kentwell, 4 out of those 5 teams into the grand final and 3 out of 4 grand final wins was an exceptional result. Add to that a Halligan Cup, Bingham Cups, second in the club championships, a number of awards at the Subbies presentation night and unofficially awarded the best BBQ (thanks Goochie) is a wonderful achievement. I think at times we take for granted how well we do and we should remember that we won more premierships this years than many clubs have won in the last 5 and put more teams into the finals that some other clubs ever will. Those results take a lot of hard work both on and off the field and require us as a player group and coaches and support roles to give up countless hours to make it happen. It is certainly worthwhile when you have years like 2014.
It was also a very strong way to bounce back from the results of 2013 with 4 teams in grand finals and we returned from TG Milner that year without a single trophy. As Meatloaf said, 2 out of 3 isn’t bad so 3 out of 4 must be bloody awesome.
As usual the boys had very strong results throughout the regular season with a win % of over 80% for all regular games played. As mentioned above, we often take these sought of results for granted but few clubs can boast consistent results like that. Add to that when the Blue Giants take the field they score an average of just below 30 points a game and only concede about 11 you can clearly see that the boys can throw the ball around and don’t mind a tackle either. Outscoring the opposition by abut 3 points to 1 shows we are on the right track and the Colleagues are playing the game the way it should be played.
But the year wasn’t without its challenges, we had to accommodate the Bingham Cup which meant ground closures and having to travel to new training grounds and find new home games. The player group handled this well and the results didn’t show the disruption. Fortunately the Convicts repaid the Club for any inconvenience two fold by hosting a very successful Bingham Cup and taking out the main trophy as well.
The Convicts are to be congratulated on their season and the way in which the Bingham Cup was hosted and then demolished. The numbers and the organisation of this group is something behold and the results clearly show that if you put in the hours and are clear about what you want to achieve you will get there. Well done gents, another great year.
The Kentwell Cup season was another good one but not as successful as they group would have hoped. Again the competition was very strong and the years results show that rather than the usual 4 very competitive teams there were 8 teams all in with a shot at making the finals up until the last few rounds. Unfortunately the Kentwell boys found themselves on the wrong side of a few too many results and finished 5th. A good result but one probably below the standard the team sets for itself and definitely below the talent that the team contains. Pleasingly the boys are already into it for next year and already focused on what needs to change.
The Burke Cup team had an outstanding year and took out the competition. A wonderful result for a very gifted team well guided by Pete and Cam. The regular season was very strong although the boogie team was St Pats who inflicted 2 of the 4 losses the team suffered. The boys turned this around in the finals to beat Pats twice and take out the silverware. There was some significant talent unearthed in the Burke Cup squad through both players coming through the grades and new guys to the club. The boys played a great style of footy and were worthy winners of the trophy.
Whiddon Cup had a great year and turned around a few years of second place to bring Horace home to Blue Giant Stadium. Again they were one of the standout teams of the Club and Carl and Marto did a sensational job of bringing the boys together and creating a very strong team. The team played some great footy and as always scored some outlandish tries. They finished top of the table and went on to take out the premiership in usual style. A fantastic year gents and well done.
Judd Cup were one of the strongest teams not only in Colleagues but in the entire suburban rugby competition. They had an enviable win loss record and a differential of 576 points to finish off the regular season. No other team could boast such a dominant performance, however they tripped at the final hurdle. There wasn’t another team that deserved to win more than Judd Cup but it wasn’t to be. Well done to Laurie in keeping the Dome strong and to Monty for keeping connection to the outside world! A great effort by both of you and a heart breaking loss for the boys on grand final day.
The Sutherland and Halligan teams worked a alarger squad this year and the results we outstanding. There are not many groups of player that get to take out 2 premierships but with Benny A and JP at the helm the boys was a great season to take the Halligan Cup and then go on to beat rivals Iggies in the GF of the Sutherland Cup. Special mention needs to go to Benny A and JP who kept the group together in what was a very difficult year with a number of clubs not providing Sutherland Cup teams and organising Halligan Cup matches is like herding cats. The team played some great footy and the results were very strong. The only hiccup was a loss to Iggies in the major semi in what was probably the wettest game of rugby played in a number of years. Well done to all involved.
Barbour Cup was one that got away on us this year although the boys making the finals is a massive effort. The team was full of talent and they played some outstanding footy in very trying conditions. In particular some of the wins where they were down 2-3 players and obviously without reserves showed true ticker and a bucket load of talent. Well done to Macca, Butto and Hughie for keeping the boys on track.
There are a number of people to thank but that should always start at the committee level. The guys here do such a great job that makes it easy for the club to run the way it does and for the footy results to roll in. Pres, Howie, Franky and Henry have done an amazing job and lead by example. Thanks also to all the people who helped organise functions and other aspects of club life.
To the old boys who are there every week thank you. Your support and encouragement means so much to the players and you are one of the great parts of our club. In particular Goochie and Boothie, the work you do is so important. Thank you both.
To the coaches, no amount of thanks can repay the efforts you guys put in. It is a time consuming task and the club and the players are eternally grateful. To Nick Hensley for all the condition and training you provided thanks mate. The boys were in good nick at the key times and you can take a lot of credit for that.
To the player group. Well done men! An awesome year and it was a pleasure to watch you fellas tear opposing teams apart week in week out. Travelling to far away places like Campbelltown and Beecroft to play blokes that want to rip your head off, you stuck together, you looked after each other and you never shied away from the challenge. Well done, that is being a Colleague.
Finally thank you for the honour of being club coach. Being involved with the club is an absolute pleasure and my most proudest associations. Thank you and go the Giants.
Ben Waters
Club Coach
Kentwell Cup Report
This years Kentwell Cup was a very strong competition. There was a very competitive group of 6 teams with St Pats being the stand out and final positions were up for grabs by a number of teams all the way up to the very last round. It was also the last year of professionalism and no doubt saw a few teams throw everything including the kitchen sink at the competition to see if they could get win before the rules changed. The Colleagues team also welcomed a lot of new talent as well as welcoming back a number of key players from previous years. However, it was the first time since 2009 that the Blue Giants Kentwell side failed to make the finals series and that has to be the benchmark of a strong Kentwell season.
There was some great footy played throughout the year, but a lack of consistency, combinations and discipline cost us badly at crucial times in the season and in crucial games. Most telling was that we were only able to muster a win and a draw against Balmain against the top 4 teams but those two games were probably 2 of the best we played, in particular the game against Balmain at Balmain. The 80 minutes we played that day at Balmain was the true reflection of what our team could achieve and how good we were. There were other good games and some big wins, but the heart shown that day at Leichhardt Oval No 2 was brilliant.
Having said that though, the team didn’t fail to rise to the challenge, it wasn’t though we got bullied out of the contest or weren’t good enough, it was simply that we didn’t execute. Just about in every game we put ourselves in a position to win only to see the game slip away. The fact that we got ourselves into that position shows that we were good enough. Shows we had the talent, the heart, the tenacity but just not the finish. The most important thing is that we learn from the season and we understand what we need to do better and how to do it.
There was a lot of strong perforamces throughout the year, in particular from an individual point of view and pleasingly a lot of that came from the new talent that arrived at the club. In the forward pack we welcomed Elliot, Matty, Ash, Wrighty and Tommy the male model from the colties into the pack. It certainly brought a lot of steel to our set piece in particular our scrum. I have been watching subbies football a long time and haven’t seen teams like Drummoyne and Balmain have their scrum on the back foot. But this year we smashed them. Under the watchful eye of Ash and Crofty, our scrum turned into one of our strongest weapons. We won tight heads, we held out 5 metre scrums and a couple of time walked over the top of much bigger packs. Wrigthy’s effort against Drummoyne was one for the ages. In hospital the night before on a drip he turned up and nearly completed the 80 minutes in a dominant fashion. A very gutsy effort.
The backs also welcomed some new talent with Mitch Red Card Mansfield and Beachie joining what was a relatively established back line. We also welcomed Duncan “BJ” Boyd-Jones who had an outstanding season down at Blue Giant stadium, apart from getting more yellow cards than even Mitch! His performance against Balmain at Balmain was all time and one of the most dominant games I have ever seen.
The team had a strong leadership group again lead by Dan Kelly. Dan had another great season for the Giants and also captained the Subbies team for a second year in a row. He contribution to Subbies rugby and to Blue Giant rugby were rewarded this year when he won the Kentwell medal. A great honour and one very well deserved. It is also worth noting that he won the Colts medal (a few years back) and I doubt there are many that will have taken both those awards out. Well done.
The coaching ranks were bolstered this year with the addition of Ash Reilly. It was unfortunate that he ended up coaching as a result of a knee injury as he started the season very strongly and was a big part in changing our scrum performance up. However, a testament to the bloke, when many would have sat on the couch and felt sorry for themselves he got down and provided much advice and coaching in the dark art of scrummaging. The boys were very appreciative to have some technical advice other than “push harder” and it certainly showed.
We were also very lucky to have Crofty back again. His dedication and guidance is second to none. The enthusiasm and passion he brings to the club is a testament to the bloke and for a fella who has achieved it all in the game, to be still giving back is something the Colleagues are very grateful for. Thanks mate and congrats on becoming a new dad and still finding time to guide the boys around the park.
We also say goodbye to Franky who is heading off to the country. Franky was there when we started the Kentwell turn around in 2009. Captain of the first Kentwell Cup premiership since 1996 and all round good bloke. He service to the club and the Kentwell is something to be admired. He will be missed but we have all seen enough of the “bug” to last a lifetime. Good luck with the move mate.
In closing I think there are a few key areas of focus for next year. The Sandhill warrior showed us were aren’t strong enough, the score lines showed we didn’t finish games like we should and 5th position showed that we need to do better. The good thing is that we have the player base to do it, it is now about personal efforts. Each Kentwell Cup player needs to be not accountable to himself but accountable to those guys around him. He needs to be strong and fit but most importantly he needs to be hungry and ruthless in pursuit of the next Kentwell Cup premiership.
Thanks again to the club for the honour of being involved in Kentwell cup team and to the endless support from the old boys, the committee and importantly the Burke Cup coaches in helping the team succeed.
Benny Waters
Kentwell Coach
Burke Cup Report
Burke Cup 2014 – Premiers
We got that Burke Cup in our hands. And doesn’t Noicey love it.
For decades, it was the Colleagues Cup. For whatever reason, it became the only Cup we could not get our hands on. The dry spell from 1989 was broken in 2002 and that success repeated in 2005. Now in recent years it’s been fantastic to be a part of a period where it’s back as Colleagues’ Cup.
Four straight GFs including two premierships – it’s been the core group of players that have made it a great team to be around. Cam Ireland, Pooley, Blackie, Hubes, Arnott, Fents, Issi and Gus Graham would have mostly played 50+ Burkies games each over these seasons, taking turns skippering the side as required. It’s easy to build a team around those sorts of blokes.
New lads to grade filtered in. From colts, we got eager young bucks like Travers, Jack Hale, Mull and Clarkie. From around the traps we got welcome additions like Dingo, Tommy Brown, Archie, Cliffo and Toothie. Richie Inglis also turned up.
At various points of the season, other Colleagues ended up with their efforts applied to the Burke cause. Guys like Melon, DB, J-Kell, Tonks, Gilly, Sav and Davies: all blokes who make any Colleagues team better. Finally, our GF skipper, Jono Willis, who did plenty of good work in Kentwell as well as leading the Burkies boys to glory.
That roster is a classic example of what subbies footy should be. The journey taken to premiership was equally emblematic. Plenty of wins, sprinkled with enough reminding losses, but there was never doubt in the group that we would be right there fighting out that Grand Final to the bell. Having three straight GFs come down to the last play builds that sense of inevitability.
In contrast to that feeling, the make up of the team was not exactly a given. We started with Dingo as captain, but when he went up to Queensland Cliffo stepped in to playmaker. We had plenty of cameo captains and Fents had another extended stint leading the side as he has plenty of times in past years. I wasn’t in a hurry to let Cliffo go anywhere and he ended up our B&F. (*Cheers Marto.) So it was when Mull went back home that the spot reopened for Dingo to return (via Kentwell). Finally, when the Kentwell boys stopped being injured/suspended, Issi was (thankfully) dropped to complete our picture. Strangely, that playmaking combo of 10 Dingo, 12 Cliffo, 15 Issi barely got to spend any time together before the finals. Yet the rugby IQ of all three, with a dedication to training sharp and staying true to the game plan (belying their casual attitudes) resulted in the Grand Final dominance of the backline being about as enjoyable as subbies rugby can be. The running and work rate of their fellow backs off these playmakers was a pleasure to watch.
It was one of those great, rare, games where everything worked, right down to Issi calling and running the inside decoy off Dingo with about six minutes to go that pulled away the B-defender, giving Dingo the one-on-one with a tight-5er. He went straight past him, around the fullback, and scored the winning try in the corner. I describe this, firstly because it was the winning play of the Grand Final, but also because it was something the boys added and worked on – between the major semi and the GF. The boys made that play because of their ability to think and communicate at training and back themselves in doing it.
Similarly, in the forwards, the make up that won the Grand Final was awesome, but strangely not applied once until the GF itself. Blackie’s Shakespearean move to the front row gave us a premiership-winning prop rotation with Cammie and Melon. It meant the old head Will Davies and Tommy Brown could both play full games, giving us the best line out possible, while TB and Archie dominated from lock – on and off the field. Where tight-5 had traditionally been the strong point of foes like Pats and Drummoyne, we knew it was our competitive advantage. Meanwhile, this freed up the combo of Pooley, Richie, Toothie and Gussy Graham to provide all sorts of menace at flanker, instead of having to chuck their own heads into the row.
All in all, we’ve had a great era of Burkies and the 2014 GF squad was the most complete team we have had during that time. It was fitting that we came up against Pats in the GF. They had been the other dominant team during this time and to have them go 17 wins, 1 loss during this year to set the benchmark made the finals even sweeter.
The last aim was to get that Cup out of the case and drink from it, the way Mr. Burke surely intended. Tick.
Great season lads. Thanks and congrats to you all.
Pete Minucos and Cam Ireland
Burke Coach
Whiddon Cup Report
Over the past few seasons, the Whiddon Cup team has been a very successful one for Woollahra Colleagues. Since 1933, Colleagues have won the Whiddon Cup 10 times leading into the 2014 season, 7 of these premierships coming since 2004, the most recent in 2011. However in the past two seasons, Colleagues have lost in the Grand Final, taking home the runners up trophy instead of Horace.
There was an air of unfinished business right from the start of the season with a number of players returning from these past two grand final defeats as well as the addition of some new players to the club. Results went well early on with the boys winning the first 4 rounds against Beecroft (67-0), Old Iggies (19-5), Balmain (34-6) and Knox (36-12).
However the boys hit a stumbling block in rounds 5&6. In round 5, when Campbelltown arrived at blue giant stadium, not even some clear and direct coaching feedback at half time could change the game and the giants went down 25-12. The following week against Old Iggies, in a game that even the purist would have preferred end early, colleagues were outplayed to go down 0-5.
This marked a turning point in the season. The boys’ attitude towards training and playing shifted noticeably and the results followed. Over the next 12 rounds, the boys didn’t lose a single game beating Petersham (43-0), Mosman (10-9), Old Iggies (34-17), Beecroft (28-0), Balmain (15-5), Knox (36-3), Campbelltown (20-14), St Pats (18-5), Petersham (26-0), Drummoyne (24-7), Mosman (17-10) and Drummoyne (14-0). Colleagues took out the minor premiership on 74 point, scoring at an average of 25 points per game and only allowing opposition team to score an average of 6.83 points per game throughout the season. An excellent achievement and a deserving result for the hard work all year.
Into the finals series and those Magnificent Men continued their dominance with a hard fought win against St Pats in the swimming pool at UNSW. The forward play was outstanding, lead nobly by Tim Mundy (who looked very much at home in the conditions) and Colleagues swam out winners 7-3 without anyone drowning which was an achievement in itself.
The Grand Final was next. Balmain was the last team to stand in our way. Right from the kickoff, it was clear the intensity of this game would exceed all seen so far this season. However the boys were up to the task. The forwards dominated the larger Balmain pack and our backs tackling themselves to a standstill. Inthe end, colleagues won the game and the premiership, beating Balmain 15-8.
Special thanks to Chris Meharg who was Captain all year, then robbed of his grand final victory through injury. Also thanks to Tim Mundy for stepping up as Captain for the remainder of the season. Thanks to Will Martin for his coaching, dedication and antics off the field.
Final thanks to all the players who ran on for the WhiddonCupside this year, all 67 of you!! Without your efforts, not only would we not be successful in rugby terms, but we wouldn’t have had a year as fun and enjoyable as we did. Well done boys, see you in 2015!
Carlos
Carl O’Sullivan & Will Martin
Whiddon Coaches
Judd Cup Report
After a disappointing end to the 2013 being bundled out in week 2 of the finals and with the boys unable to bring home a 4th consecutive premiership there were plenty of familiar faces back and chomping at the bit for the 2014 campaign. These were joined by plenty of new faces who made the Juddanaughts playing roster the envy of many a giant.
First thanks must go to Laurence Campbell the Colleagues coaching stalwart. The amount of time he dedicates to the club is a credit to his commitment and love of the club. Every club needs guys like Loz dedicating their time to keep functioning and we are lucky to have him.
Congratulations to the Burke, Whiddon and Sutherland cup teams for getting the result on grand final day and a big thankyou to all the grades and their coaches for cooperating with us during the year to ensure each week all grades were proudly representing the men in sky blue.
The 2014 Judd season was very successful on and off the field. The boys wrapped up the minor premiership with 2 rounds to go and went on to complete an unbeaten regular season. Our season false started with Beecroft forfeiting our first round game just moments before kickoff.This started a bit of a trend during the season with us having to find some make up games in the Halligan Cup and even a run against Randwick when no Judd opposition as available.
Our biggest challengers in 2014, as has been for the last few seasons, were Pats. After a solid win away (17-10) and a particularly impressive win at home (36-12) in a game cut short due to an injury on field all signs were looking as though the Judd Cup would be returning to Woollahra. The boys thoroughly deserved the minor premiership finishing the season with a whopping 648 points for and only 76 against.
Unfortunately for the major semi final we were outdone in some of the wettest conditions ever to host a rugby game by a Pats side who were able to adapt to the conditions quicker than us, after some promising rugby in the later stages we went down 17-7. On a dryer pitch we able to account for Mosman 20-3in the prelim final and set ourselves up for another show down with Pats. After a hard fought final at the end regular time the scores were level at 5 all. Pats were able to lift that little bit further and took the game 12 – 5. One better to go next year.
Lastly and most importantly a big thanks must got to the boys, we had a great bunch of guys who played a great style of running rugby. Lead by SP Mcgoldrick who had an amazing season, he was our best and fairest, the clubs top point scorer and is one of the lynch pins of the lower grades. SP was not alone all the boys who put on the Judd jersey stepped up and did everything they were asked and more. This was highlighted when the fastest bloke in the club who thought his propping days were over was thrown in the front row with his brother.
Hopefully Joe Toohey and Will Davies haven’t had their last season at the club. Their experience with other Colleagues loyalists SP, James Hall, Angus Winterflood, Will Millward, Dai Williamsand Tom Mulligan was invaluable. This combined with so new Colleagues, primarily Kiwis, show that the Blue Giants will continue to be a force in years to come.
Thanks for 2014 and here’s to one better in 2015
Jason Monteath and Laurence Campbell-Avenell
Judd Coaches
Sutherland Cup Report
Sutherland Cup Minor Premiers and Premiers 2014.
With the loss of last year’s GF to Iggies still in the mind of some the old heads returning to another year of Sutherland Cup, along with the new faces we were ready to have another go at the Sutherland Cup.
With a shock to all of us involved in the Sutho cup for 2014 there was only 6 teams in the competition which meant 12 games for the year not including finals. So win all your games and you’re in the finals. So the season started with forfeit win and then a close lose to iggies 6-5 so we knew they were the team to beat, but there was also the dark horse the dirty reds who we didn’t play until the last 3 rounds.
With the lack of games we had some commitment issues once we had these sorted and got down to business and played Halligan Games to keep fit and focused on the job ahead to win the Sutherland Cup.
So with half the team going on uni holidays we combined with the Halligan boys to make sure we continued to build towards the finals, with a close win against Mosman and then disposing of Iggies 19- 7 at home thanks to some great running rugby we knew we could get the job done this season. With about 4 rounds remaining we were clear leaders on the board then bring on the Dirty Reds 2 times in the last 3 weeks with 2 bonus points wins we took out the Minor Premiership.
As the finals came around so did the weather for the first time this season and having no wear to train also cause of Bingham Cup we knew our youth and fitness would help come the finals, the first week rolled in while it was little overcast and raining then the heavens opened and Dave Phillips oval became a lake that made Warragamba Dam look small, we went down to old lazy men of Old Iggies. Rnd 2 of the finals saw us take on the Dirty Reds coming home with the bacon 14-0 thanks to two great intercept tries.
Bring on GF week the boys were focused and knew what we had to do, we had a couple of great training sessions and also got a hand from Crofty just to tighten up our defence as we knew iggies had nothing wide of 12. So game day rolled on the Iggies got the upper hand with some big scrum work but we stuck to our guns got the intercept for Rylie as usual then some penalties also going our way to lead at half time. We knew we had to dig in and defend and that we did.
Coming up with the win 20-15 over Old Iggies, let’s hope the lads return to go back to back.
Cheers
#duelpremiershipwinningcoaches
#twocupsinoneyear.
Ben Abraham and JP Chaina
Sutherland Coach
Barbour Cup Report
The 2014 Colleagues Colties season was a classic season for the sport lover. There was agony and ectacy, power and passion, victory and defeat.
Although at times we struggled with consistency the coaches were very proud of the boys ability to lift itself on big occasions. This was evident in the back end of the season when the boys strung together some crucial wins to comfortably place ourselves into the minor semi- final.
The minor semi- final vs KNOBS was played in atrocious conditions with a quarter of the field under water. The team knew it was going to be a game of trench warfare and the colties attacked this challenge aggressively. Unfortunately the team went down to a much larger Knobs outfit. The team was in the hunt for most of the game only to lose in the final moments of the game. Unfortunately we weren’t able to convert our limited opportunities into scores.
Congratulations to the boys on a successful season! The squad was full of great characters and every member earned the title of being a magnificent man from Colleagues.
The coaches are very much looking forward to the 2015 season with a core group of players back in the colts for one more crack at premiership glory!
Barbour Coaches – Andrew Mckillop, Richard Buttenshaw, Hugh Campbell
Halligan Cup Report
Halliagan Cup Premiers 2014.
With the new season upon us and also a lot of new faces the Halligan Cup squad for 2014 was looking quite strong. With some of the old heads returning again to make it there year to retain the cup after coming so close last year, only to be locked out of the final by JP arranging to many round games.
We started the season with a bang with 2 games as the Sutherland cup game had been called off and both teams got off to an absolute cracker with big wins against Maccabi and Merrylands; we knew just with those 2 games that we would be hard to beat.
The thing that took us all by surprise was the lack of competition in the Halligan Cup to the years gone past so we knew it would be between us and the old arch enemy Mosman. With Colleagues dominating the competition it soon would became clear that the team that could get a game on any weekend would end up winning the comp.
As the year went on games become harder and harder to find then either before it wasn’t easy for myself and JP to get games sorted, so a big thanks to Mitch Keating who stuck his hand up to give us hand to get the games arranged for the lads.
With a lack of games it became tough to keep the boys motivated we played Mosman at home and came away with a hard fought win getting up 8-5 to a last minute try, this took us to about the halfway mark for the season and we had only played about 6 games, so with games being played every other week the boys stuck to their guns.
When the rest of club headed to Campbelltown we decided to invite Mosman back to Colleagues as we knew that with the win we could get the job done, yet again with no ref showing up JP stepped up and we got stuck into the big fat old whales from the north shore. Leading 7- nil at halftime a speech of the ages to the forwards get stuck in so the backs could do their thing we went out and ran in 40 points to 7 in the second half to come way winners 47-7 the biggest win against Mosman for a long time.
With about 4 rounds remaining all we had to do was play 2 more games and the cup was ours we managed to that, which meant the following.
Cheers
Benny Abrahams & JP Chaina
Halligan Cup Coaches
Trophy Winners 2014
Team Captains
Halligan Cup Jean-Pierre Chaina
Sutherland Cup Jon Dart & Sam Orders
Judd Cup Sean Paul McGoldrick
Whiddon Cup Chris Meharg & Tim Mundy
Barbour Cup Tom Weston
Burke Cup Chris Fenton & Jono Willis
Kentwell Cup Dan Kelly
Team Coaches
Halligan Cup Jean-Pierre Chaina & Ben Abrahams
Sutherland Cup Jean-Pierre Chaina & Ben Abrahams
Judd Cup Laurence Campbell & Jason Monteath
Whiddon Cup Carl O’Sullivan & Will Martin
Barbour Cup Andrew McKillop, Richard Buttenshaw & Hugh Campbell
Burke Cup Pete Minucos & Cam Ireland
Kentwell Cup Ben Waters & David Croft
Club Coach Ben Waters
Best & Fairest
Halligan Cup Brett Stockings
Barbour Cup Jono McMenamin
Sutherland Cup James Wheaton
Judd Cup Sean Paul McGoldrick
Whiddon Cup Tim Mundy
Burke Cup Al Clifton
Kentwell Cup Duncan Boyd Jones
Club Damon Holmes
Club Awards
Colleagues Honour Cap Henry King & Dan Kelly
The Pappas Award Ben Abrahams
Player’s Player Nick Watt
Rookie of the year Cameron Beach
Most Improved Player Winston Bradley
Leading Try Scorer Declan Hoare
Leading Point Scorer Sean Paul McGoldrick
Oldest and Boldest Cameron Ireland
100 games Tim Mundy, Nick Watt, Frank Coorey, Angus Graham, Rob Rush
200 games Michael Kelly, Michael Wydeman
Office Bearers 2014
PATRON: His Worship the Mayor of Woollahra
PRESIDENT: Richard McGrath
VICE PRESIDENTS:
John Anderson, Tim Booth, Michael Caspers, John Corlis, Ron Harriden, David Gooch, John Hitchen, Doug Kirkwood, Hans Lamens, John Noice, Eddie Radford, Sandy Ross, Brian Wood, Charles Vandervord
CLUB CAPTAIN: Henry King
SECRETARY: Frank Coorey
TREASURER: Paul Howard
COMMITTEE:
Nick Watt, Daniel Kelly, Cameron Ireland, Will MacDiarmid, Ben Waters, Jono Willis.
HONORARY LIFE MEMBERS: (*deceased)
John Barraclough*, John Herman, David Higgins, Ken Mclean*,Harry Barraclough, Aubrey Ball*, Charles Messenger*, John Corlis, Clarrie Noice*, George Osborne*, Eddie Radford, Cyril Diggle*, Charles Vandervord, Ron Harriden, Fred Storch*, Geoff Hughes, John Noice, Robert Caldwell, Geoff Robbins, Bruce Diggle, Iain Edwards, John Hitchen, Sandy Ross, Doug Kirkwood, John Anderson, Alan Murchison*, David Gooch, Hans Lamens, Michael Clifford, Tim Booth, Brian Wood, Richard McGrath, David Crawford, Justin Crawford, Jerome Murphy, Harvey Welman, Bruce Donald, Vance Lowry
HONORARY AUDITOR: Michael Clifford
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