ROUND 9 BSHS vs NUDGEE COLLEGE 01/08/2009

Written Sunday 02/08/2009

BSHS 43 df NC 12

GT 38 df BBC 7

IGS 41 df BGS 17

TSS 47 df TGS 5

OK people,  we are going to chew through a few things today.  We will talk about the State High Nudgee match up,  for sure,  it was two fitting schools in the fastest,  most physical match up of 2009 that I attended for sure.  We are going to discuss some great men of rugby,  but more importantly life,  there will be some of my personal brand of philosophy in there as well,  no doubt.

First of all,  some housekeeping.  I have never hidden from the fact that State High rugby is a wonderful style to watch.  It is a special brand of footy,  played by a great group of young men,  and coached by two of the game's finest men.  I am grateful to everyone at State High that always makes me feel welcome at Fursden Road.  Same at Nudgee,  always welcomed there,  and have lunched with the coaches at times.

I found it a wonderful privilege to speak with both coaches,  Todd Dammers and David Eagle on Friday and Saturday before the game,  about the game,  about the occasion,  and I will reveal a little of one of those conversations later.

I continue to hear "rubbish" about schools,  and let's put one of the big myths,  maybe more than one,  to bed now.  Speaking with the coaches,  this is not only a talented group of boys on the sporting field,  but also in the classroom,  a number of high OP students in the BSHS outfit,  so academia complimenting athleticism.  I am not 100% sure about Nudgee,  but I get the feeling that academia is also high on the list over there.  And the one that has been annoying me a bit lately,  with the uncouth and the uneducated continually telling me that BSHS is full of 18 year olds,  boys and girls it is an Under 18 competition,  and the school system makes it so.  There would be 18 year olds in all First XV's,  and there will be more and more of that as the prep year system delivers the extra year.  Look at the system and write to the government people.

OK,  on to the footy. It was a great day,  no one could deny that.  It was always going to be a big day,  but the emotion of the occasion,  the full emotion,  would have been missed by many.  Aside from the premiership decider,  one of State High's favourite rugby sons was coming home to present the jerseys.  Charlie Fetoai recently suffering a C2 (very serious) spinal fracture was coming to Fursden Road,  from hospital,  to present the jerseys to the boys.  Charlie may have played four years but definitely 3 in a State High side not many years back.

Charlie sat in the State High tent,  and when I breezed in to speak to the boys I knew,  he was with current captain Jordie Tuapou.  When I spoke to Jordie,  I asked him how he was,  he said he was just worried about him (Charlie).  Jordie has gone on to play one of the best games I have seen him play in three years and lead his side to victory.  The guys were looking very relaxed,  even the very young,  Curtis Browning and Chris Sautia.

The Nudgee boys also looked relaxed as they walked in,  and as always I shook Dan Tweedy's hand and wished he and his side luck.  This was shaping to be an epic clash.

As per my usual routine,  I headed down to the BSHS warm up.  Boy it was sharp.  That is not necessarily any indication though,  but they were switched on.  It did appear that Curtis Browning was suffering from a groin injury,  and received some solid treatment during the warm up,  and again at half time.  That could be a worry I thought to myself.  I shook the ref's hand,  and spoke to him briefly as he made his way to and from the State High huddle.  Geoff Acton,  Brisbane accountant and the number one referee available in Brisbane appointed to this clash.  He was in high spirits,  quite a bit cheeky actually.

I made my way to the coaches pen,  I was lucky enough to be afforded a spot in a roped off area so wouldn't have to fight the big crowd to see.  This was good.  Have I mentioned,  two of the biggest security guards I have ever seen,  one from Serbia or somewhere,  about 7 feet 6 and 155 kilos,  looked like the big guy out of James Bond,  and another about the same size,  an African American style,  but big men.

The game,  for the outright premiership to State High or a shared one,  and for the Paul Morgan cup,  got underway.  What a spectacle it,  and particularly the first half turned out to be.  It was described by one of the State High coaches as almost the perfect half of football.  The first try scored by State High was classic State High,  and one of the better tries you would see.  These guys just whack you from a long way out,  and it is very hard to reset your defence given the pace these guys turnover and come at you with.

At 29 to nil at half time,  it looked like it was all BSHS,  but there were a couple of sustained periods where Nudgee ground away at the BSHS line,  to be continually thwarted by energetic and competent defensive systems.  In between all that,  State High just kept scoring the tries.

The second half was a little more scrappy,  but still some scintillating touches,  some pace and power from both sides.  Kimame and Hymel Hunt for Nudgee both demonstrating what powerful,  potent and dangerous ball carriers they are.  The lift in pace and physicality was obvious to all.  Some of the hits out there yesterday certainly the biggest I have seen in schoolboy rugby,  Kimame,  Hymel Hunt,  Ben Malley just a few to deal out some savage hits for young men.

Both sides probably blew two or three scoring opportunities each in the second half,  but there was some scintillating play from both sides,  Kimame,  Hunt and Milne were extraordinarily good.  Waita Setu was off his best,  but played the game with sever knee damage,  so on one leg,  which makes his performance very,  very special too.

The referee had a great game,  and we hardly saw him,  which is just how you want an accountant to be,  in his own little dark room,  shut him in at 8am and release him at 5pm.  He had a good game,  my feelings on accountants aside.

For State High,  1 to 15 and anyone else that came on lifted to the occasion and played up many levels.  There were many good players on both sides,  but for mine,  Jordie Tuapou was the best on field,  for a number of reasons,  attitude,  ability,  toughness.  Jordie was ready yesterday for the match up,  and played the house down.  There are a couple of groups in this State High side,  the stars like Jordie,  and Joel,  and the very much under rated and understated,  Liam Eagle,  Jayden Scheck,  Dom Rakei,  Sam Caslick.  I thought Caslick yesterday at half back was huge.

While State High was dominant across the park,  two clear areas for mine won them the game.  Their backrow of Ika,  Scheck and Tuapou were superb,  the physicality at the breakdown not seen by me at this level,  and their scrum,  it was a dominant and complete performance up front by Paulie,  Joe and Dom,  just giving Nudgee nothing to go forward with,  and snavelling a tight head and scoring a try off it.

In the backs,  again they were dominant everywhere,  Saifoloi controlled the game well,  I am a huge fan of Malley,  and he starts to remind me a lot of Tim Horan (rugby could do well to have a look at guys like this),  has a long pass,  short pass,  plays very well at the line,  and his timing in defence is outstanding.

Joel Faulkner yesterday should have earned a call up to the next Aussie Schools selection,  absolutely outstanding in attack and defence.  I don't think I have seen a better performance from Joel,  and up against a wonderful performer yesterday himself in Kimame.

Joe Lalagavesi,  freakish again yesterday,  if he wasn't smacking kicks 70 metres,  he was taking pills from kicks above his head AFL style.  He plays into space with such pace,  and as the Nudgee coach said to me after the game,  he is very confronting,  he attacks with such pace you have to make a decision early in defence.

Matt Garland on the left wing is another part of the confronting pace and skill in the backline.  He made some very special tackles yesterday and had some wonderful touches of the footy.

Last mention for the State High side,  goes to the two youngsters,  Curtis Browning and Chris Sautia.  One a forward,  and at 15 already an imposing figure,  one a winger and also I believe not yet 16,  also imposing,  but for a different reason.  I am yet to see Curtis have a bad game in the middle,  some of his restart work has let him down at times,  but two of his turnovers and carries yesterday were exceptionally mature and with Nudgee hard on attack and building momentum,  also critical.  Sautia,  well there are many words that come to mind.  It has been written I believe on a forum that he is a pretender and I am the only one that rates him.  Happy to tell you yesterday that I could give you two premier grade coaches and some first XV coaches that pointed out to me just how good he is,  and at 15 is doing things that you only see at NRL level and rugby test match level,  pointed out to me by much smarter men than me.  His work off the ball and where he pops up and what he does when he pops up is what is turning the heads of the experienced.

The last thing I ever want to do is to put pressure on these talented young men,  or have them think that they don't have to do any more to make it.  As the Hollies song says,  the road is long,  with many a winding trail.  There is lots of work,  lots of sacrifice and lots of discipline involved in "making it",  whatever that is.  Personally,  given the manners and respect I see from these boys,  they have already "made it" as participants in life.  I have to admit,  I was concerned when I saw Curtis had shortened the golden locks,  I am just big on routine and leading in to such a big game....  It sure didn't matter.  Doesn't look as good in the photos though.

On the Nudgee side,  Ted Postal would be one of my favourite schoolboy rugby players,  a tough,  talented respectful young man that plays the game as it is supposed to be,  hard.  He is a tower in the lineout,  a respected leader and these are important traits.  Ted could have gone home last night and looked at the man in the mirror,  and been duly proud of the judgement passed,  he could have done no more yesterday.  Zac Franks,  also huge,  Waita as good as he could be with one wheel shot.  Kimame was as good as I have seen him for Nudgee,  showing pace,  power,  finesse,  against other schools he probably would have bagged three or four tries,  but just got dragged down by fast scrambling defence.  Hymel Hunt,  another lad like Browning and Sautia,  I think not 16 until 31 December,  he was good yesterday,  better than good.  Milne at 10 also only 16 was superb.

After the game,  the State High boys all gathered around Charlie Fetoai,  in a private moment with the man.  Not sure what was said,  not my business,  no one's business except those in the huddle,  I just know I felt the emotion from where I was standing.

I hung around,  I wanted to taste Mrs G's and Mrs AO's hangy,  and boy these girls can cook,  absolutely magnificent stuff.  More importantly though,  Ted Postal and Jordie Tuapou spoke,  and again spoke very maturely on behalf of their teams and schools.  When you hear young men speak like that,  you feel pretty good.  A clear message of life from both young men,  well done to them both.

On to the coaches,  and David Eagle and Graham Noon. These two magnificent men I know will take no credit at all,  that is just the way they are,  humble.  If they had lost yesterday,  they would have quickly acknowledged the other side being better than them,  they were humble and honoured in victory yesterday.

They are men that are quick to point you to the rich State High academic achievements and many achievements in other fields,  they are quite proud to be involved in the development of young men,  much more than just rugby coaches these two men.  I have watched now for many years the two way respect between David,  Graham and the boys they are involved with,  they are empathetic,   compassionate men of humility.  Take what  I say with a grain of salt,  but in a conversation with the Nudgee Coach,  Todd Dammers on Friday afternoon,  and I hope Toddy it is OK to share this,  he said I don't really know Graham,  but State High have a great man in David Eagle.  I can't say alot more than that,  that really sums it up.  In fact I spoke to another State High man yesterday,  that said when he was at school,  David and Noonie turned his life around from a path of destruction.  These are strong things indeed.

I know I feel incredibly privileged to have spoken to both coaches on Friday on the phone,  and on Saturday before the game.  It is quite an honour for me to be able to speak to both men or all the men prior to such an important clash.  I also spoke to Toddy after the game,  and he said "they were just too good",  again simple words,  but plenty of meaning.  Todd was full of praise for boys on both sides,  again a strong value set.

Not sure if everyone knows but Dave Eagle also coaches the front running Premier colts side over at the East Tigers.