Eight schools converge at Wynnum’s BMD Kougari Oval on Wednesday for the GIO National Schoolboy Cup South Queensland quarter finals.
Ipswich (3) v Morayfield (7)
1.30pm
Third-placed Ipswich open the day when they take on Morayfield State High. Morayfield qualified via the Gee Cup by defeating St Marys and Harristown the following week. Corey Horsburgh, Mitchell McPaul, Hayden Evans and Michael have represented the Sunshine Coast schoolboys side for state titles this year, with Horsburgh and McPaul earning start with Redcliffe Dolphins in the Colts competition.
“The boys have really bought into the concept of team football and working together to achieve a good result… we have the belief that if play to our potential we can match it with anyone.\\,” coach Dmitri Faolua said. The Morayfield side is made predominantly from students within their catchment area.
Palm Beach Currumbin (4) v St Peter Claver College (8)
2.45pm
Skippered by Sean Garner at lock, Palm Beach Currumbin enter this match with a very mobile pack led by Queensland schoolboy reps Jack Peacock (prop) and Brent Woolf (hooker). While PBC’s strength is up front, coach Geoff Bagnall said his side has some exciting and powerful backs, in particular centre pairing Shay Compain and Malachi Morgan. “Both players are capable of busting defence on opposing teams edges,” he said. “Our halves pairing Nathan Kocass and Dylan McLaren steer our team around the park and also trouble teams with crafty attack.”
Their opponents St Peter Claver College progressed through the Level 2 Gee Shield competition by beating Redcliffe and Murgon. The side has a number of Ipswich Jets Cyril Connell and Mal Meninga representatives. “We are under no illusions about the challenge that we face against Palm Beach Currumbin who have been at the top of Schoolboy Rugby League in Qld for a very long time,” coach Todd Riggs said. “Our aim against Palm Beach is to compete for the full 60 minutes and see how long we can match motors with them.”
Wavell (2) v Coombabah (5)
4.00pm
Wavell State High School finished second in the Broncos Langer Trophy, only dropping one game to eventual pool leaders Keebra. The again loom as one of the heavy weight sides in this competition. They take on an understrength Coombabah side, who have ten players under 16 this weekend.
Coach Rod Pryor said six players had suffered fractures. "We'll give it our best shot, we won't be able to match Wavell for size but we'll throw the ball around a bit and see how we go," he said. "We've got nothing to lose, so that's the mindset we're going in with." Pryor said Luke Mastroianni, Konrad Edwards and Vito Sula-Fiasoi were key players for his side.
Keebra Park (1) v Marsden (6)
5.15pm
A young Marsden outfit face the big challenge of taking on the might of first-placed Keebra. The two teams have met once this season, with Keebra earning a 12-point win. Marsden coach Kev Stephensen said he was proud of his school’s efforts to date.
“For a team half made up of 16 year olds playing against bigger boys who are 17 and 18 years old, they have done an amazing job just to be competitive,” he said. “We have played well in patches throughout the season… our fullback Corey Allan has been a standout all year and he has just kept getting better every game.”
Keebra earned top seeding with top spot in the Broncos Langer Trophy. After beating Marsden 28-16, they toppled Coombabah 54-16 before narrowly beating Wavell 18-10. Nine Keebra Boys were successful in gaining spots in the South Coast Under 18 squad earlier this year.
