Any doctor worth his salt will tell you that a thorough warm-up is crucial to playing good rugby, and the same goes for watching. In last week’s Tri-Nations game I came in cold, and as a result it took me a good half hour before I could start to make cogent observations to my mates on the couch. So considering the enormity of the task faced by the Wallabies tonight, I thought the least I could do was venture over to Saint Ignatius to watch the clash of the blue-and-white stripes- Riverview and Kings.
Riverview were flying high after a good win against Grammar, and with 3 wins under their belt were leading the comp. Kings were widely favoured to take out the title after an impressive pre-season which landed them 8 boys in the Australian Schoolboy squads, yet were reeling after a shock home loss to Joeys last week. However in the end Kings proved too good, too fit and too strong for the home side, running out 29-14 winners.
The first half was a tight affair, and although it was not wet the ground was quite muddy- particularly the legendary Iggies cricket pitch smack bang in the centre of the ground. Riverview started strongly, with an early try to hooker Will Weeks after some soft Kings defence close to the line. The home side had their tails up early, with a smart territorial kicking game and strong running in the backs, particularly from outside centre John Barry who was one of Riverviews best. Kings struggled in the conditions in the first half, their kicking was wayward and their option-taking poor, especially in their own half. However, a break-out from halfway saw Kings level the scores with a try to winger Tom Horne.
The score remained 7-7 at the half, but already the cracks in the Riverview defence were starting to appear. They were a much bigger side than Kings in the forwards, but lacked the mobility and mongrel of their Parramatta foes. The Kings backrow was everywhere, and flankers Boyd Killingworth and Tom Connor impressed with their workrate in attack and defence. For Riverview I was impressed by blindside Harry Byrnes, a powerful unit, and fullback Ben Lenehan who looked poised under pressure.
Much like the 3rd 100 of a 400m race, the first 20 minutes of the second half is where the game is won and lost more often than not, and it washere Kings stamped their authority all over the game. It started with an early try to outside centre Chris Ingate, who broke about 5 tackles before powering over next to the upright. It didn’t end there though, with good close-range tries to second rower Jack Leslie and prop Jed Gillespie following quickly. All of a sudden it was 24-7 and the fat lady was beginning her warm up. From there Kings visibly dropped their intensity and Riverview did well to fight back with a try to flyhalf Jack O’Connor, however they were let down by their option-taking throughout. A late try to Kings flyhalf Josh McCormack, who controlled the game well in the closing third, and that was that. Riverview had lost a valuable chance to virtually clinch the title, while Kings were now back in the hunt.
Overall I thought the Australian Schoolboy reps stamped their class all over the game. The Kings props Gillespie and Guy Millar are big boys but are so dynamic and the Kings scrum dominated all game. The battle of the backrow was also telling and Killingworth was my man of the match- he was everywhere. Openside Connor is also one to watch- very small for a flanker but had phenomenal leg drive and power over the ball. Outside centre Ingate also showed why he was picked to wear the gold (albeit of Australia A) and dominated the second half with strong running and bruising defence.
For Riverview Tim Donlan (their lone Australian rep) was good without taking the game by the horns, and I thought he needed to up his involvement slightly. He is clearly a good player but I thought overall Riverview lacked direction, and he is partially at fault for that. I also was impressed by Weeks and Byrnes, who both ran well, and rangy winger Mitch Whiteley, who converted late in the game to blinside after an injury.
Overall though an impressive game in less than ideal conditions, with the fitter, faster and more composed Kings side taking it out after a tight first 35. In the other matches, Shore and Scots played out a 15-15 thriller at Northbridge, while Newington put Grammar to the sword 57-7. That leaves Newington at the top of the table, with Kings, Joeys and Riverview level with one loss apiece. Next week Joeys play Riverview in the traditional clash of the Catholics, Kings take on Newington in another crucial game and Shore host Grammar for the spoon. Should be another intriguing round of GPS footy.
