Thanks to everyone who participated in any way in this year’s competition. Unfortunately I was not able to get to as many games as I would have liked this year, but still enjoyed the season immensely, as I hope you all did. It was again unfortunate that there were a number of forfeits towards the end of the year, and I know the powers-that-be are going to look at the impact of school football as potentially one of those forfeits could have decided the semi-finalists (although fortunately it did not).
Below is a brief summary of how I saw each team’s performances for the year (and what odds I had them at at the start of the year so you can see how poor a judge I am!!). I have also named a few of the players I thought stood out when I saw them play (obviously more some than others):
ARANA (7/2). Started the season well with a devastating performance against Logan Brothers but in the end this turned out to be probably their best performance of what was a disappointing year for the 2002 Premiers. Rugby commitments decimated the team mid-season, but despite this some outstanding performances during this time by the players that remained saw the team still in with a chance to make the finals when most players returned. The team never clicked however and ended the season in fifth place but well out of semi-final contention. Matt Handcock was my choice as Arana’s best and was justly rewarded with Brisbane selection. Josh Bruce does not get the plaudits he deserves and was unlucky to break his collarbone at a critical part of the season. I was also very impressed by Dean Bannerman’s efforts at fullback this year, with some spectacular takes and last ditch defence.
CENTENARY (4/1): Looked good on paper at the start of the year, but injury again hit hard and they were struggling to field a team at the end of the year. Despite this they managed to knock off the eventual premiers Norths late in the season, but were not a realistic chance of making the semis from about the midway point.and finished in 6th spot. Jamiie Williams made a difference to the side at halfback and hooker and Joe Chudleigh was always a danger from fullback.
EASTS (15/1): Troubled the more fancied sides all year despite not having any “name” players and were rewarded with 2 victories over Arana during the year. Finished 7th but would have been higher up the table if matches went 45 minutes as they were often in front only to be run down in the closing stages. No real individual standouts in the games I saw for Easts however everyone gave 100%.
LOGAN BROTHERS (2/1fav): Were many peoples tip to win the Premiership at the start of the year, but never quite lived up to expectations. Really struggled to put the same team on the paddock week to week for a variety of reasons, and it was this inconsistency that eventually cost them. Finished fourth on the table and were knocked out in the first week of the finals by Redcliffe. Kruize went from strength to strength as the season progressed and Sepelini was always damaging.
NORTHS (5/1): Not a lot of people tipped them to do so well, and thought their good start to the season might fizzle out. If anything the team got better and better as the season progressed and proved this with a tremendous grand final performance to easily account for Springwood. Worthy winners of the Chairman’s Trophy, Minor Premiership and Premiership. The halves were the real dangermen of this side, with both Jacob and Josh clearly very talented players. I was most impressed by Luke Samoa who got over the top of every other centre I saw him play during the year.
REDCLIFFE (5/1): Coming off a couple of disappointing seasons, hopes were probably not too high for a good season, but along with Norths, Redcliffe were the real improvers this year. Played a faitly simple style of football and coach Trigger got the most out of everyone in the side, and with a little better execution in the second half of the preliminary final could very easily have ended up grand-finalists, falling to a late charge by Springwood. Angus Cameron led the team around the paddock well, and Matt Gillett had a strong year. All Redcliffe’s forwards were impressive and shared the workload around.
SOUTHS (25/1): Didn’t manage to win a game all year, but went desperately close on a number of occasions. Didn’t travel too well but were always a threat at home where many teams struggled with the windswept Brandon Park field. A souple of their players were rewarded with Brisbane selection, which reflected their good performances given the position of the side.
SPRINGWOOD (3/1): Survived a rather disorganised start to the season with all the conjecture over where this team would play, and were essentially made up of last year’s Premiers Redlands. Started the season at home being hammered by Norths, and ironically finished the same way at Suncorp Stadium with a comprehensive defeat by the Devils. In between they played some good football, however never quite seemed to reach the standard of previous years. Certainly they hold the title of the best team overall in the last 4 years, having won 2 premierships and being runners-up twice since the Northside and Southside Competitions combined. Daniel Isaac had some great games and proved unstoppable at times, but like Redcliffe the forwards really shared the work around and provided the basis for the team’s performance. Nathan Strudwick had a very good year, and I continue to be amazed by Ashley Karklis who despite his diminutive size was a thorn in the side of most teams and scored some spectacular tries.
It will certainly be interesting to see what happens next year – what clubs continue, what clubs fold, who goes year, and even who goes up and plays Colts, but hope to see you all around the fields again next season.
THE WEBMASTER
21/10/04
