Head Master's BulletinPrep NewsJunior School News PDF Version SPORT MIC Rugby News vs Cranbrook Pearls of wisdom are often contained within clichéd expressions such as He who hesitates is lost. This sentiment is found in a variety of derivatives including the SAS maxim, Who Dares Wins and Faint heart never won fair lady. Regardless of context, whether in terms of combat or romance, the principle remains the same proactivity is preferable to inactivity. There have been many occasions this season when Trinity teams have faced less than ideal circumstances due to injury, late-arriving players or stronger opponents. However, the teams that overcame adversity to post winning scores or respectable margins displayed desire and focus before the game, which translated to determined performances during their matches.
In the early years of international judo competitions, Japanese judo players were known to dominate their bouts against most opponents. Part of the reason for their success was their preparation, which was to visualise their victory over their rivals even before walking onto the competition judo mat. The inverse of this positive attitude to competition occurs when the perception of one s opponent determines defeat in the contest days before the referee has blown the whistle. The question to be asked then is how to overcome this obstacle. Firstly, rehearsing skills at training and focusing on the technical elements of collision management provide a platform for confidence in contact during a game. Secondly, by focusing on individual responsibilities in the opening stages of the game, instead of dwelling on concerns, could also assist players to approach their games with a more confident attitude. For many of us, our chosen sport is primarily determined by the pleasure we derive from participation in a particular physical activity, so, in the words of a 3rd XV player this week to his team one afternoon at training: Just play and enjoy it! Andrea Folli MIC Rugby 1st XV The match against Cranbrook was evenly balanced in the first half around the dominant performances of both the Cranbrook centres and the rapid spread of the ball through the hands of the Trinity backs. However, the Trinity First Fifteen forward players, particularly the flankers Hugh Stonier (11Ar) and Matthew Yazbek (11Yo), continued to pressurise Cranbrook s fly-half by disturbing his fluent distribution to the dangerous pair of centres. This style of attacking-defence, ably led by captain Cooper Chambers (12 WJ), allowed Trinity to play an unstructured and style from the loose ball that disrupted the valiant defensive efforts from Cranbrook. To their credit, the tight forwards sustained continuous phases by attacking the narrow channels close to multiple breakdowns, drawing in peripheral defenders, and opening the wide channels for both Trinity wingers, Byron Hollingworth- Dessent (12Sc) and Brian O Neill (12Sc) to frequently attack. At other times, the interplay between forwards and backs displayed a level of individual skill and game sense that established the platform for frequent incursions onto Cranbrook s twenty-two. The attacking variation provided by Tane Edmed (11Fo) at fly-half prevented Cranbrook from establishing a reliable defensive pattern, which caused many instances of staggered defence that Matthew Stead (12Hi), who played at inside centre, capitalised on. The game provided an entertaining spectacle for all spectators, regardless of the team they supported. The Trinity players played cohesive group to collectively win a well-played contest. Only two more games remain before the season concludes, so I would encourage all players to take advantage of the final three training sessions and aim to finish on a proverbial high.
Andrea Folli MIC Rugby 2nd XV The 2nd XV took on Cranbrook at Hordern Oval on Saturday. It was a beautiful day and the men in green did not disappoint, putting together a strong team performance. From the outset Trinity had control of the game attacking deep into Cranbrook territory several times in the first 15 mins, however we were our own worst enemies turning the ball over on each occasion. After tightening up our phase play and working hard to repel some attacking raids from the opposition Trinity went into the half-time break with a 14 0 lead. The second half was one way traffic with some hard straight running and patient phase play clearing the way for three more tries to be scored. Most notably, Rhys De Grut (11He) scored on the back of six straight phases, in which he carried the ball into contact in three of them. A stellar example of work rate and committed support play. In the end Trinity ran out winners 31 0. Tries: Lachlan Fitch (12Hi), Rhys De Grut (11He), Thomas Diiorio-De Domeneghi (11Yo), Joshua Wong (11Sc), Matthew Teixeira (12Sc). Con: Thomas Corias (11Hi) (3). Andrew Payne 2nd XV Coach 3rd XV The 3rd XV had an excellent game against Cranbrook on Saturday, dominating the opposition s defence with a victory of 45-7. The 3rds put up an excellent display of skills, both in the forwards and backs with excellent drives off the rucks by Chris Talarmis (12Ta) and George Fournaris (11Hi). The forward pack worked brilliantly as a team, running pods under the command of Salil Barrett (12Ta) and Sam Austin (12Hi) in order to punch through the opposition. This would not have been possible without the direction of Sam Halmarick (12Ar) who organised both the attack and defensive lines. Great credit must go to the backline with four brilliant tries scored by Ned Hatton-Ward (11Sc), a number added to by Taro Ide (11Sc). Solid tackling by Vice-Captain Carl Wingti (12Sc) damaged any attempted runs by the Cranbrook forwards and allowed for sweeping up of the ball and quick passes out to Tom Newell (11Yo) and Harry Barden (11Yo) on the wings. The efforts put into training over the last two terms showed clearly on Saturday, and despite starting the game with only fourteen players, the 3rds have added to the momentum of a solid win against Knox last term, and are now looking forward to another victory against Waverley. Salil Barrett (12Ta) Captain 3rd XV
Mackenzie Roberts (12Mu) overwhelms the Cranbrook defence with his straight running. Carl Wingti (12Sc), Supported by Ned Hatton-Ward (11Sc) and 3rd XV Captain Salil Barret (12Ta), nullify a Cranbrook attack.
A Cranbrook attacker runs into solid defence from Joshua Thanopoulos (12Hi) and Mackenzie Roberts (12Mu). Christopher Tarlamis (12Ta) makes his intentions clear in an attempted tackle from a Cranbrook defender.
Jacob Taylor-Tighe (11Ta) punches a hole through Cranbrook s defence, ready to offload the ball. Cranbrook struggle to contain a rampant Joshua Wong (11Sc).
Thomas Diiorio-De Domeneghi (11Yo) looking for space against an eager Cranbrook defender. Thomas Lambert (11Fo), displays good ball security in contact.
Matthew Stead (12Hi) slicing through a staggered Cranbrook defence. Tane Edmed (11Fo) scores against Cranbrook despite being tackled close to the line.
Malachi Hawkes (9WJ) repels an attempted tackle. Ky Willoughby (9WH) taking the ball to the line, generates momentum for his back line.
Miles Amatosero s (9Hi) straight running provides a solid platform for his support players. 16A The 16As had another hard-fought game on Saturday, going down to Cranbrook 24-10. The boys prepared well for the game, and started off with a great intensity. Defence was a key factor in the game, as Cranbrook were known for their wide passing and fast running. We defended well for the first quarter, shutting down their attack out wide, forcing a number of errors. Ben Jabbour (11Ar) had a great impact early, with a damaging run off a deep ball from Blaise McKee (10Ar). Ben ran almost 40 metres, before offloading to Zane Chesterfield (10He) who worked the ball another 20 metres up the field. The team reset their line, and with some handy passing skills down the line, saw Ben Jabbour score the try in the corner, with the conversion unsuccessful. Trinity went on to the attack straight after the kick off with a good intercept from Taylor Miller (10Yo) and plenty of support in hand. Unfortunately a few handling errors turned possession and saw Cranbrook on the attack. After some quick passing and sloppy defence from Trinity, Cranbrook sneaked a try down the sideline from their speedy winger. This continued to be the fashion of play from Cranbrook with another try, this time under the posts which saw the half time score of 12-5. The second half saw Trinity a bit weathered, with another try to Cranbrook winger; however, Trinity stepped up and went back on the attack. With some great play from the Trinity backline, Ethan Grimmond (10He) scored a very good try in the corner bringing the score back to 17-10. Trinity placed further pressure for the remainder of the half, and were unlucky not to score on several occasions. Unfortunately the Cranbrook winger again took advantage of narrow defending
and took a runaway try to seal the game 24-10. Standout players for the game were Ben Jabbour (11Ar), Zane Chesterfield (10He), Ben Austin (11Hi) and Alex Tsetong (11WJ). The boys have learned a great deal from this game, and although they have had very close battles with both Barker and Knox, they are yet to have a victory in the competition season. The 16As are very much looking forward to next Saturday against Waverley, and although slightly depleted in numbers, are quietly confident they can provide an upset on the weekend. Nick Pay 16As Coach 16B The 16Bs had a tough day at the office on Saturday against a strong Cranbrook team. There were some outstanding individual efforts from some of the players. Isaac Khoury (11WH) had several dynamic runs and utilised an unpredictable kicking game to put Cranbrook on the back foot. Similarly, some big ball running from Ryan Scott (11Yo) and Oscar Groth (10Ke) helped gain some momentum. Unfortunately,this wasn t enough to convert to points on the score board. Even though there was some stout defence from the likes of Isaac Sharwood (10Ho), Tom Griffin (10Yo) and Luc Bonnell (10Ar), Cranbrook were the well-deserved winners, defeating Trinity 41-Nil. David Chilton 16Bs Coach 16C The under 16 s age group has been hampered by injury all season and most weeks it has been difficult to put up a C team. This week, a number of players from the under 15s came to play with the 16 s as their game was cancelled. So the Trinity 16Cs was a team that had not trained together or played together before Saturday; there were boys from Year 9 playing with boys from Year 11. The result was a spectacular game of running rugby where the ball was moved from side-to-side, beating Cranbrook at their own game plan. With a mix of 15s and 16s in both the forwards and backs, communication was the key, and the boys kept up the talk. There was great vision from George Panopoulos (10Du) to get the ball out to the wing on both sides, with Oscar Jones (10La) having a number of great line breaks, setting up tries from most of his runs. The forwards worked hard, especially in the first half where they strung together a number of phases only 10m from the try line; Kai Brand (11Hi) and Nick Bouletos (10Mu) were consistent in taking the ball forward. Later in the game a number of tries were scored by the forwards, coming from the ball security at the breakdown. Trinity scored 8 tries to 1, with the tries being shared between forwards and backs. Special mention goes to William Beretov-Millar (9Ho) and Euan Marshall (9We) who both scored twice. Great thanks goes to the 15s and 16Bs players who made the full game of rugby possible. Great fun was had by everyone on the field, and even more fun with a final score of 46-5 win to Trinity.
Marian Dunbar Age-group Coordinator 13B Trinity s 13Bs are perhaps the greatest team ever to don the Green and White (or indeed a uniform of any colour for that matter), and they added credence to this claim last weekend. The boys started slowly, conceding two tries in the first half, one of which was converted. An inspirational half-time G-up from captain, and resident enforcer, William Blanchfield (8 Ho) was what it took to turn the tide of the game. Balls started sticking, structures began to click, and the young men of (perhaps) the greatest sporting team in the world right now took the game to another level. With penetrating runs from forwards Ian Hong (7We) and Max Santhiran (8He) into the opposition s red zone, the backs were able to capitalise with some striking strike moves coming off the quick ball provided by the halves combination of Cooper Vimpany (7Mu) and Nicholas Keogh (7Ta). Sam Wade (8Ke) crossed for a try that was made to look easy by the hours of hard work and dedication put in every week at training. With the momentum clearly in Trinity s favour, Jacob Nasser (7Sc) was able to crash through the Cranbrook defensive line (and looked likely to break down brick walls) on his way to a 5 pointer. The stand-out performance came from Nicholas Hubbard (7We). His strength through contact, and sheer grit to gain every possible inch for his team saw him cross for a brace of tries in what was one of his better performances of the year. Tomorrow sees the boys up against the strength and size of Waverley; however, if they pick up where they left off against Cranbrook, there is no doubt that they will conquer their opponents in the blue and yellow. Phillip Roser 13Bs Coach 13C The 13Cs had a dominant win on the weekend, defeating Cranbrook 67-5. The team did exceptionally well in the scrums, with Elias Sidiropoulos (7Yo) leading from the front. Dominic Feros (7WJ) and Jonathan Fouad (8WJ) scored three tries each to push the score out of reach for the opposition. Most impressive was the last period of play, with Trinity successfully defending 16 consecutive phases of play from Cranbrook. It is great to see the defensive work at training paying off on the field. Sarah Tallis 13C Coach Congratulations
Congratulations to Ky Willoughby (9WH) selected as part of the National Junior Gold Indigenous U15 Rugby Team Results vs Cranbrook 1sts W31/10 2nds W31/0 3rds W45/7 4ths L0.36 16A L10/24 16B L0/34 16C W46/5 15A L12/41 15B NO GAME 15C W47/10 14A D15/15 14B L19/49 14C L10/42 14D L0/87 13A L14/15 13B W26/13
13C W67/5 13D L35/36