By MARK CASHMAN

We’re not far from the start of the 2021 Shute Shield season and the phone has been ringing hot with all the news and views from the greatest club competition in Australia. Here’s what we are hearing:

It’s always good to get a line in the sand early in the season and that just what new Gordon coach Brian Melrose will get on Saturday when the Highlanders take on the Brisbane club side Easts in the Australian Club Championship game this weekend.

It’s the winner of the Shute Shield up against the winner of the Hospital Cup for Australian club rugby’s bragging rights.

But the teams that ran out for the grand finals in both Sydney and Brisbane don’t look too much like the combinations that the Highlanders and the Tigers will field on Saturday.

That’s the nature of the game these days with coaches and players moving on to new opportunities at home and abroad.

Gordon for an example will be fielding a squad that has a sprinkling of experience from that premiership decider at Leichhardt Oval against Eastwood and most interest will be on how their new halves combination goes about their work.

Reece MacDonald, who started at fullback in the grand final and scored a crucial try on the day just before halftime, will start at No.10 for the Highlanders and team with another “newbie” in Jake Abel.

Last year’s halves combination – Harrison Goddard and Rodney Iona – are both in the United States playing in the MLR so it’s time for the next wave to put their hand up.

As Melrose has pointed out about half the side that he will use over the weekend experienced the grand final and are looking for that opportunity for a consistent go at Shute Shield footy.

“A guy like Jake Abel came back from the Western Force and didn’t get the amount of time he would have wanted at the back end of the season,” Melrose observed.

“Reece wants to play 10 so it’s a great opportunity for him. Then there’s a guy like Lucas Price who just got injured at the wrong time last year.

“Saturday’s a great opportunity for us as a club to stand up to a great challenge. Flights, wet, muddy or not, we’re all looking forward to it.”

While the Highlanders are all change in the backline, at Easts, Tigers coach Moses Raulini is dealing with mass changes in his forward pack.

Three of their props from last year have picked up Super Rugby contracts and will be missing, while any thought of having talisman Ben Mowen available for this game have been dashed by his coaching commitments with the Australian Under 20s squad this weekend.

That hasn’t knocked the confidence out of Raulini though.

“Our colts and reserve grade sides won their comps so it will be a good test of our depth and the ambitions of the guys next in line,” he said.

“It’s a great game to have at this time of the year – another grand final, another chance too put some silverware in the trophy cabinet.

“It’s at our home ground and we’re expecting a big crowd so it should be a great day.”

The weekend will kick off on Friday with Easts annual long lunch that will feature the two coaches and some Reds and Western Force representatives.

Costs and the pandemic mean that Gordon will be staging a fly in, fly out operation on Saturday but by the end of the weekend both coaches will have an idea about where that line in the sand lies.

GORDON V EASTS TIGERS at David Wilson Field (Kickoff 3.00pm on Stan Sport)

GORDON (1-15):
Brandon Faavae-Eli, Jordan Ieremia, Nick Fraser, Jack Margin, Brendan Mitchell, Tom Silk, Jordy Goddard (c), Jake Abel, Reece MacDonald, Alesana Pohla, Ellis Abrahams, Lucas Price, Oliver Smealie, Luan Scherman.
RESERVES (16-23):
William Bremner, Mokoni Fuavao, Jack Parfitt, Manasa Rokosuka, Tom Horan, Patrick Fa’apoi, Luke Lough, Ben Pollack.

EASTS TIGERS (1-15):
Richie Asiata, Zac Crothers, SJ Tamala, Mitchell Schneider, Ben Grant, Ben Stoddart, Alex Smit, Tom Milosevic ©, Eli Pilz, Aidan Toua, Max Baker, Jack Frampton, Matt Smit, Shane Kennedy, Dylain Taikato-Simpson.
RESERVES (16-23):
Andy Ownes, JP Tominiko, Sani Ratulevu, Puketowa Garland, Henry Olsen, Ben Littleton, Landon Hayes, Mika Tela.

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Randwick have honoured three of their very best with MICHAEL CHEIKA, EDDIE JONES and IAN BONNETTE being bestowed with life membership last month.

It’s an interesting mix of the people that go to make up a vibrant rugby club with Cheika and Jones heavy with the on-field contribution and Bonnette a real giver off the field.

Bonnette played for only the one year in 1970 before injury curtailed his time on the field but he has held the purse strings at the club and his strong financial guidance and business acumen has helped keep things ticking over in good and the good and the not so good times.

“Where ever I played or coached in the world I was always a Randwick person first and foremost. I love the integrity and the accountability of this club and the way we play the game,” Cheika said about the award.

Jones added: “As a Randwick man through through, it is the greatest acknowledgment you can receive. It is a fantastic honour and I am very proud.”

Well done every one of them!

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LANCE PEATEY’s authoritative and thorough tome, A Complete History of the Rugby World Cup – In Pursuit of Bill, is my go to when reacquainting myself with goings on at the greatest show on turf.

There have been three print editions of the book and Peatey has just released an audio book edition that takes in the drama and stories in and around the 2019 tournament in Japan.

Pulling it together was an extensive process according to Peatey and the new format opens up a few bells and whistles that normally aren’t available in a printed product.

Peatey has worked some match commentary into the offering and of course there are snippets from the World in Union theme song in the mix.

Those golden commentary nuggets include the 1999 RWC final try when Owen Finegan was implored by former British and Irish Lions great JOHN TAYLOR to “go for the line man”.

There is also GORDON BRAY’s words at the end of the final in 2003 when Jonny Wilkinson kicked that field goal in extra time and then that win for the ages by Japan over South Africa in the UK in 2015.

The book is divided up into 28 chapters in chronological order, and they are bite size chunks of 20-45 minutes per chapter, and easily consumable on the way to work.

It is narrated by DRYW McARTHUR, a Kiwi who lapses into a number of accents to colour up the many quotes in the book, and he has done a superb job.

It’s available from most major audio book websites, and you can tune into a free sample chapter and find more information at rugbyworldcuphistory.com

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Young Manly Marlins winger YOOL YOOL is still at the start of his rugby journey so it’s great to see that he has scored himself a gig with the Australian sevens squad.

Not sure if the Tokyo Olympics later this year are an achievable goal at this stage but he’s going to come away from the experience a better footy player and I am sure a better person.

Marlins coach MATT MCGOLDRICK is not sure when he will see Yool back at the Village Green but there is a feeling that this is the opportunity of a lifetime for the 21-year-old.

Sevens squad observers tell me he is showing his natural gas to good effect and is up there. On the “gas” metre with squad mate TRAE WILLIAMS.

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I keep hearing the HUNTER WILDFIRES being thrown up as the big improvers with kick-off to the 2021 Shute Shield season a little over three weeks away.

The Wildfires have gone hard on the recruitment front and they will be a tough nut to crack especially at home.

One coach jokingly told Rugby News: “I thought ‘Money Bags’ Coleman had moved to the United States but now we’ve got one with us up in Newcastle.”

That’s a reference to Wildfires coach SCOTT ‘BUBBA’ COLEMAN’s brother Darren who is considered the maestro of player recruitment at this level.

Last year the Wildfires had less than a month to pull the whole show together and did amazingly well to be as competitive as they were.

This year the world is their oyster!

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Bit going on at the Two Blues this year with the announcement this week of a special luncheon to celebrate Eric Tweedale’s 100th birthday.

Tweedale is the oldest living Wallaby and I’m hearing he’s still as sharp as a tack.

The luncheon will be held on Friday May 14 in the Swan Room at the Merrylands RSL Club and tickets are moving quite briskly.

A month on from the birthday celebration Tweedale will be honoured again when the Two Blues home ground is named in his honour.

And while we are at the Two Blues good to see LEESA POGSON, a very accomplished sports administrator in a number of sports, driving their very successful women’s program.

IMAGE: ANDREW QUINN