Rats revert to Sevens to kick start 2025 Shute Shield title campaign
After falling just short in this year’s Shute Shield preliminary final, Warringah will again split their time across next year’s preseason between XVs and Sevens.
The Rats have been a dominant force in the Sydney Sevens’ scene for a number of years and took that form into the more traditional format of the game in 2024.
Under coach Josh Holmes, a gun in both formats during his playing days, the Rats are aiming to go undefeated across multiple Sevens’ tournaments early next year and take momentum into the 2025 Shute Shield season.
“We won two out of the three tournaments we played in 2024 and the only tournament we lost was our own at Rat Park on the same day that we played the Waratahs,” Holmes reminded Rugby News.
“Sevens is massive for us and I think it’s a really important piece of the puzzle in preparing for a Shute Shield season. It gets guys fit and focussing on specific skills and it helps players get ready to compete.”
Warringah were the big improvers in this year’s Shute Shield but fell agonisingly short of reaching the club’s first grand final since 2019.
“It’s been exciting to get back into preseason, particularly after the way last year finished,” Holmes said.
“It’s pretty heartbreaking to get within a few seconds of a grand final, only for Darcy Lancaster to score.
“But we’ve moved on now and we’ve turned our attention to what we can do better in 2025.
“The fundamentals don’t change. You’ve got to work hard in the early parts of preseason to get your fitness and skill levels up and then we can focus more on rugby as the season approaches.”
Holmes coached Warringah first grade colts side to a premiership in 2023 before taking the top job at Rat Park earlier this year.
He said he’s excited by the talent, depth and desire that his playing group has presented so far.
“Everyone is hungry and that hasn’t been led by me, it’s been led by the players.
“They got a taste of it this year after playing finals in three of the four grades and I think we’ve got a good understanding now of what we can achieve if we work hard.
“They also know how tough it is at the backend of the season and moving forward, we want all grades to be pushing to not just play finals, but to be winning premierships.
“Our colts boys that pushed into grade also have a season under their belt now and I think they’ll be better for that experience.
“They want to push for spots in the higher grades and that’s only going to add to the competitiveness within the place.”
On the back of a standout individual season, Rats’ flyhalf Coby Miln has spent the summer training with the Western Force, while No.8 Clayton Frans has spent time training in the Waratahs wider squad.
Gun 21-year old outside back Archie Saunders also toured Japan with a Tahs’ development side late last month.
“We should have everyone back on deck by the start of February and we’ll rip in from there,” Holmes added.