The first full round is complete, and the following is a brief summary of each team's performance. Unfortunately Holy Spirit and Brighton, after a series of thrashings, withdrew from the A Competition, leaving 8 teams to complete the round. This meant some teams played 7, some teams 8 and some teams 9 games which has cause the for and against to be a little "wonky" with the teams that did not play Spirit and Brighton being awarded 20-0 results - the average winning margin for teams that did play them was 55 for Spirit and 59 for Brighton. Teams to benefit most from this were Souths and Redlands who played both of them, and teams to suffer most were Logan Bros and Easts who played neither. Fortunately the second spot was decided on for and against between Redlands and Souths who had both played both teams!!
The closeness of the competition is indicated by the fact that 6 games were decided by 2 points or less (there were only 7 in the entire season last year!), and in the last round both top teams were beaten by the teams running 5th and 6th. Their is little doubt that any of the top six teams has the ability to win this competition, and Easts and Slacks Ck are both showing steady improvement, with Easts in particular looking capable of springing an upset in the near future.
Below is a brief analysis of how I saw each team's first round performance:
ARANA: 16 Pts, 1st Position
Arana would be delighted by their performance in the first round, despite losing narrowly to Recliffe in the final game. Despite being hit before the season started with a long term injury to Brisbane centre Mitchell Carr, the loss of representative Rugby player Rob Southwood after one round, and the subsequent knee injury to Brisbane 2nd-rower Rohan Ahern, the team has managed to eke out a succession of victories, including narrow but critical wins over Redlands 15-14, and Logan Bros 30-28, after trailling 22-4. The seven new players this season have blended in extremely well to the team, with this being best demonstrated in the "Selection Day'" victory over Souths, arguably Arana's best performance of the season. The team is looking forward to their first Chairman's Flag appearance, made more critical by the fact that it will now also carry competion points. The second round of matches will be important as the teams they beat in the first round will certainly be keen to gain revenge.
REDLANDS: 14 Pts, 2nd Position
Started the season favourites to retain the crown, and are still many people's pick for the title, despite recording narrow losses to Arana early on, and Logan Bros in the last round. Have dominated Brisbane selection with 7 players and are probably disappointed not to be on top of the ladder. They have a difficult lead-in to the rep season with games coming up againt Arana (twice) and Souths in the next 3 weeks, and will be looking to move to the competition lead with victories in these matches.
SOUTHS: 14 Pts, 3rd Position
Like Redlands have only lost 2 games, one in a high scoring shoot-out with the Parakeets, and the other to a "white-hot" Arana on Selection Day. Ended the round with 4 straight victories including thrashings of Redcliffe and Centenary. Arguably the "form" team of the competition at the end of the first round, and are certainly in a much better position than at the end of the first round last year, when they had won only one game!! Have demonstrated the ability to pile on points quickly, but occasionally beset with lapses in concentration allowing the opposition to rally - certainly a team to watch in the second round.
CENTENARY: 12 Pts, 4th Position
Built a new team for this year's competition and started like a house on fire leading the competition after 4 rounds, but were hamstrung by lack of numbers and an injury to Brisbane centre Tim McIlwain, their lack of depth proving costly. Lost 3 straight to the top 3 teams, before registering a hard fought 22-20 win over Redcliffe and a last round victory over Slacks Ck. With 6 players selected in the Brisbane team they certainly have the talent available, and with the extra experience gained by the other players, particularly in the Arana and Redcliffe games, they will be a tougher side in the second round.
REDCLIFFE: 12 Pts, 5th Position
A disappointing season to date from last year's runners-up reflected in their only having only one player in the Brisbane side, although they will certainly be buoyed by their last round win over the competition leaders. Were probably not helped by the draw as they started the season with a succession of "easier" games and struggled to lift when they faced the higher teams. Position could have been worse if not for the last minute wins over Easts and Arana, so in the end may well be happy to be on 12 points and in the top 5. They certainly have the ability and experience to move higher up the ladder.
LOGAN BROS: 10 Pts, 6th Position
Started the season with the hardest draw, losing narrowly to Souths, Centenary and Redcliffe in their first 3 games. Unfortunately this nearly resulted in their removal from the A comp, but eventually a more palatable alternative was found, this approach being vindicated by their win over Redlands in the last game of the round. Will be kicking themselves for letting Arana "off the hook" and will be looking for a place in the top 5 by the end of the next round.
EASTS: 6 Pts, 7th Position
Have been unable to crack it for a win over the top six teams, although unlucky to lose to Redcliffe to a controversial try in the final minute. Have shown flashes of form but have been unable to sustain it for the full 60 minutes - in fact led all the top 3 teams at times during their games, including a half-time lead against Redlands and a mid second-half lead against Souths. Will continue to improve as the players get used to the pace of the A competition and will be looking to spring a few upsets n the second round.
SLACKS CK: 4 Pts, 8th Position
Have struggled with loss of players before and since the start of the season, and despite some injury problems are becoming more and more competitive, certainly staying in games for longer periods. Both Souths and Centenary struggled to overcome them in the last 2 rounds and the Creek boys will be looking to sustain this improvement as the season progresses.
It certainly should be a great second round, punctuated by the state carnival in Townsville, where it is hoped the Brisbane boys can again bring home the trophy.
See you around the grounds!!
Brad T
21/5/2002
