A new look and potentially more balanced St Patrick’s first XV squad head in to the 2021 AIC season full of confidence after some impressive trial results.

Coach Josh Neilsen knows the challenge ahead for his side though and is predicting one of the tighter AIC competitions in recent memory this year.

Overview with Josh Neilsen:

“It’s looking really positive at the moment. The boys are all training really well and are on track to hit the ground running in round one,” the coach said.

“We’ve selected a larger squad this year and the competition for spots has been excellent.

“Our trials so far have been good. We’ve had some nice close games which as a coach, is what you’re looking for at this time of the year. You don’t really want to win or lose by a lot in a trial, you want it to be a nice close contest and we’ve got that this year.

“I really enjoyed last season because it was so unique. We got to do a lot of things that we wouldn’t usually get to do and the group really adapted well and bought in to the short sharp season.

“The flip side to that is that this year we’ve been able to return to our usual way of operating, including our pre-season camp and playing multiple trials to get ready for the season and all the boys are raring to go.”

What style of rugby can we expect to see this season?

“We want to be really physical up front and we want to ensure we utilise our strengths across the park.

“Set piece is really important when you play 1^st XV so we need to be really efficient up front to allow us to move the ball effectively.”

2021 Squad:

“We’ve got a few players returning, combined with having a solid amount of uncapped year 11 and year 12 students putting their hand up to be selected.

“This year our depth is probably a lot better than it has been in the past, we’ve got a lot of quality players in our year 12 cohort so we’re excited to see what the group can produce from 1-23.”

Player(s) to watch: 

“Our captain Jackson Dows is our halfback. He’s a really good general and stirs the side around well.

“Jack Booker at prop, he’s another preparing to play his third season in the first XV. His set piece is great, particularly his scrummaging. That’s something he’s worked really hard on that area of his game over the past few years.

“Ellis Lloyd is a flanker in year 12. He’s been on the fringe of the first XV for a while now. Last year he played a few games off the bench and now he’s really hitting his straps in year 12 which is great to see.”

Bold prediction for the season ahead: 

“I think it might be like a few years ago where whoever ends up winning the premiership doesn’t go through the season undefeated.

“I believe in my boys and think that we’re going to be right up there but I think it’s going to be very close with those top schools fighting it out for the premiership.

“Across all of the age groups, I think we are going to see some real improvement in our game play and ability to compete. Overall I think we’ll improve as a school and as a program.”