RGC Senior Grand Finals!

Well this is it, the ultimate prize! After 23 weeks of slogging it out the Rugby Gold Coast Senior Grand Finals will be contested for all 5 Grades this weekend.
Friday night will see the action kick off at 7:30pm when Helensvale take the Celtics at home in the 4^th Grade, Bob Sinclair Cup, Grand Final. This is a rematch of the Major Semi Final played a fortnight ago and if that game is anything to go by it will be an absolute cracker! The hits were hard, the attack was fast paced and the scoreline went right down to the wire before Minor Premiers Helensvale Hogs pipped the Celtics 15 – 10. The Hogs will be well rested after having last week off but the Celtics were able to use last week’s hit out against Beaudesert to rework their midfield following the successful return from injury of Flyhalf Graham Dodge. The Celtics look to have more points in them now and the Hogs will have to be wary.

We also have some mouth-watering match-ups in Saturday’s Grand Finals at Bond Pirates RUC, Pizzey Park, Sonia St. Miami.

At 10:15am the Under 20 Colts will begin proceedings in a match that will see newcomers the Coomera Crushers take on the might of the Gold Coast Eagles. While this is the Crusher’s first foray in to Senior Finals, this young playing group will know what to expect after playing a lot of finals football for the Junior club in past years. The Eagles though are a hardened lot with plenty of Finals experience behind them as well. After stuttering in the Major Semi and going down to Coomera things clicked in the wet last week with the Eagles piling on five tries and defending stoutly to beat Helensvale 40 – 15. Both teams have plenty of attack in them and if they play to their full ability, this will be a fantastic showcase of running rugby. Get down to Pizzey Park early to enjoy what will be a fantastic match.

Following the Colts at 11:45am we have Minor Premiers Palm Beach Currumbin Alleygators taking on the Gold Coast Eagles in the 3^rd Grade Grand Final. These two teams have been playing at a level far beyond the traditional realm of 3^rd Grade ‘social’ rugby throughout the season resulting in both teams finishing with formidable points differentials. While the Alleygators will be looking to continue their 21 match unbeaten streak, the Eagles are the only side to have beaten them all year and will be looking to recapture the early form that led to this win. The Eagles are battered after last week’s Preliminary Final though and will need to play to their best to shut down the attacking skills of an Alleygators side which boasts a large number of former 1^st Grade, Regional and State Representatives. Eagles aren’t without their own stars though but following scores of 8 and 10 in the past two weeks, they’ll need to find a lot more points if they want to trump the Alleygators.

At 1:15pm, the penultimate match of the day is in fact the only Grand Final not to be a replay of the Major Semi. After finishing in fourth place at the end of the regular season, the Helensvale Hogs have gone on to beat the 3^rd placed Pirates in the Minor Semi before bundling out Minor Premiers Griffith Uni – Colleges Knights in last week’s Prelim. The Hogs will be hoping the rich vein of form that has seen them this far continues however their opponents the Eagles, who have enjoyed a week’s rest and recuperation, are not without their own form having won their last six on the trot.

Each of the three regular season matches played between these two fierce opponents have been tight affairs and this weekend is sure to be the proverbial arm-wrestle. While the Eagles have had the better bounce of the ball securing two regular season wins by less than five points, this would be a fairytale finish for the hard working Hogs and there is no doubt they will be heavily supported by their blue Smurf army. Please no chainsaws this year though boys!

As if these three preceding blockbusters weren’t enough, we reach the headline act at 3pm! After battling for the top spot all year the Alleygators stood tall in the Major Semi and proclaimed themselves as true title contenders. In a match that was alive to the death the Alleygators proved themselves superior when they beat Minor Premiers Gold Coast Eagles 24 – 22 through patient and perfectly executed finals rugby. They will of course be hoping for a similar result come Saturday when they again face the clinical Eagles side. Both teams obviously have plenty of motivation with the Alleygators looking to cap off a stellar year following their disappointing 4^th place in 2010 and the Eagles of course looking to finish a day in which they have a team in ALL Grand Finals as well as securing their First Grade’s third premiership in a row!

This will be a hard task for the Eagles following last week’s wet weather though. Winning the Major Semi may have proved a masterstroke as it seems that the Alleygators will have a definite advantage following the week’s respite they earned as a result. I know the PBC lads have been quietly preparing themselves for this match all year and will not miss a beat despite not ‘enjoying’ a match last weekend. I’m sure the Eagles though will have needed a quiet week after the slugfest that resulted from last weekend’s downpours. In a match that was as wet as any ever seen on the Coast it took all of the Eagles attacking prowess and defensive strength to fight out a 6 – 3 win over Surfers. Let’s hope the match is played in better conditions this weekend and we can all enjoy the spectacle it deserves to be!

Hope to see you an Bond Pirates RUC, Pizzey Park, this weekend!

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