Last year, Shore claimed the school’s first outright GPS premiership since 1969 in emphatic scenes at Northbridge.

A year on, a new-look squad under returning coach Angus Sinclair will look to continue the school’s run when they open their campaign against Joeys at Northbridge this Saturday

Overview with Angus Sinclair:

“It’s exciting to start to be at the start of another season because the schoolboy preseason is a very long one,” premiership winning coach Angus Sinclair told Rugby News.

“You seem to spend most of the year preparing through the offseason and then the preseason and then you only end up playing 14 or 15 games each year, so it’s exciting to be back and playing at Northbridge this weekend for the first time this year.”

“Last year was an incredible achievement. You want to win every season and that’s what every team aims for but obviously not everyone can lift the trophy.

“You’ve got to make sure that when it does, you enjoy it and celebrate it.

“But with any sport, you’ve got to click over into the next year and put last season in the rear view mirror, which is exactly what we’ve done and for the last few months we’ve been solely focussed on the season ahead.

“We’ve had a different preparation to recent years. We’ve had a few injuries which is less than ideal.

“That’s been a challenge, but it’s also given us an opportunity to build our depth and we’ve given game time to a lot of players who could play a big role for us this season.

“We’ve played five trial games, so a lot of those guys have had plenty of time to acclimatise to first XV rugby.

“We’ve played against four CAS schools and then went up to Lennox Head and played Brisbane State High, so it’s been a good preseason and we’re looking forward to getting stuck in this weekend.”

2025 Squad:

“We’ve got a few guys returning from last season, then we’ve got players who are pushing up from seconds last year or the 16As.

“We’ll have a competitive squad again this year and it looks like most schools will be the same.

“In the forwards, we’ve got a lock named Charlie Gallaghan and a No.8 Bede Clout who have both been playing some good footy in the trials and I think they are in for big years.”

What sort of rugby can we expect from Shore this year? 

“You’ve always got to evolve and keep developing your game but the style we play won’t change because it suits our profile,” the coach said.

“We’re a fit and fast team and we want to make the most of that but you’ve got to be physical if you want to play that style of rugby so first and foremost, we’ve got to dominate collisions on both sides of the ball.

“If you do that, typically you can attack and defend the way you want to.”

What can we expect across the competition this season? 

“I think it’s going to be very similar to last year where there won’t be one team that stands out from the rest,” Sinclair predicted.

“I think there will be a number of good teams and a lot of tight games.

“I said the same thing last year, you’ve got to win those tight games if you want to be at the top end of the ladder.

“It’ll come down to winning key moments in tight games and if we can do that consistently, I think we’ll be in the mix again towards the backend of the season.”