Brisbane City have claimed the opening match of the 2014 National Rugby Championship with a 45-20 victory against the Sydney Stars at Ballymore.
The Sydney Stars got off to an excellent start and led the match 20-16 at half time, but Brisbane City showed their class in the second half, closing the gap and accelerating to victory.
Nick Frisby and Samuel Kerevi were the stand-outs for Brisbane city, along with the nice finishing from Harry Parker.
A great match that has hopefully set the tone for the rest of the NRC competition.
FINAL SCORE:
Brisbane City – 45
Sydney Stars – 20
The inaugural game of the National Rugby Championship sees Brisbane City host the Sydney Stars at Ballymore. Join The Roar for live commentary and scores from 7:30 pm (AEST).
The ‘Stars’ moniker is seen by some as an overstatement of the Sydney side’s quality, others would simply shrug their shoulders and suggest that no other name was suitable for a team with at least one foot clad in a famous blue and yellow University sock.
Brisbane City is a less turbulent team name, and they are channeling a tradition harking back to 1904 when Brisbane played the British Isles.
Stars head coach Chris Malone has included a number of Waratahs in the first run-on team, and will field an imposing front row featuring Paddy Ryan and Jeremy Tilse.
Pat McCutcheon, captaining the Stars from the side of the scrum, played for the Sydney Fleet in the ARC as a rising 19-year-old.
Off the back of 14 tries in the Shute Shield, watch out for Stars winger Henry Clunies-Ross.
Brisbane coach Nick Stiles has a few Reds at his disposal, and with a sprinkling of solid local talent has an excellent squad to choose from.
The Ballymore crowd won’t yet see the likes of Quade Cooper and Will Genia attempt to play themselves back into Wallabies contention, with both still in recovery mode from Super Rugby injuries.
Harry Parker, notable for his slight frame in an era of large outside backs, has an opportunity to own the other wing, with his extreme pace crucial in the recent University of Queensland premiership victory.
This match should prove to be an excellent start to the revamped third tier of Australian rugby – NSW vs Queensland at its best.
Join The Roar from 7:30pm (AEST) for live scores and commentary.
If you are following the action live, be sure to share your thoughts on the match in the comments below.
In Brief
Guest
nice ideas
Mike
Guest
Brisbane and Stars were hard to differentiate, with so much yellow in the strips. As Brett comments below, it will get even more difficult when Stars play Perth - both using gold strips, with black and blue/black. I think tradition is very important for these sides – they should link into their antecedents wherever possible. Yet Perth's traditional right to use black/gold hoops is beyond question. Equally, the two constituent clubs of Stars have more than a century of tradition behind their use of blue/gold and black/gold hoops respectively. But there is more than one way to skin a cat. Here is a suggestion for a change to Stars (when the money is available!), based on Stars' links to rugby in the 19th century: 1. Adopt a dark-coloured jersey, but with hoops of blue, black and gold shown in large panels on the front and back, so that the dark colour effectively "frames" the hoops. 2. Impose a large emblem over the front. Create the emblem using symbols drawn from the shields of SUFC and BRFC. Both clubs have complex shields with plenty of good material to draw on. Use e.g. the muzzled wolf and fish of Balmain, and the open book and four stars of Sydney Uni to make something new and up-to-date in style. 3. Also impose the number "1874" in black below the emblem, or as part of the emblem. This is the date of the first domestic rugby competition in Australia, and since the two founder clubs of Stars competed in that comp, that surely gives Stars a right to use it. The focus of this strip is therefore not so much on the two constituent clubs but on Sydney itself. The message is: "Rugby has been played in Sydney for more than 140 years, and our team embodies that Sydney tradition"
Brent Ford
Roar Guru
I'll be doing for the blog for the Rams and Vikings game which will hopefully be a cracker. Plenty of firepower with both sides.
Mike
Guest
They haven't gone it alone, and I am sure other clubs could also join in if they want . Sydney Uni is one of a number of groups (not just clubs) who put the effort in to make this comp work, back when it was just a concept on a piece of paper. Its not arrogance, rather its hard work, dedication and team effort. You would do well to contemplate those concepts. And you can stop shifting goalposts as well - you started off by denigrating the standard of play of both Sydney Uni and the Shute Shield, and then when challenged on that tried to pretend you were referring to a business decision.
Cj
Guest
Kerevi is just immense. Really looking forward to seeing him play more at the reds next season. Could be a good pick for fantasy team too
Rugby stu
Guest
I can't believe there was no ATM, put the kibosh on anymore beers, other than that I loved it! Very impressed with how they threw it around despite the very trying conditions. I had a non rugby fan walk away very impressed. Kerevi was epic, I will be back in two weeks time well worth $15. I tell you what though if it was on a Friday, dry conditions, more buses, bit more marketing I think It would be packed. Will be good to get QC and Genia back to create some buzz and hype.
Tom
Guest
Parker is studying Medicne at University of Queensland
RobC
Roar Guru
:) who's your daddy
Mike
Guest
You sound like my mother.
Mike
Guest
ABC reports Pat McCutcheon's comment after the game: "I think our kicker owes me a few frothies there." Amazing comeback by Brissie.
Charlie Mackay
Guest
~3500 people
RobC
Roar Guru
Yup. But is (yet another) rain soaked game - so the dry weather form isn't apparent yet. And its the first game for the first season of NRC, with only one training run.
El Gamba
Roar Guru
Thought they got the bonus point - sorry!
El Gamba
Roar Guru
So he didn't clash with the fluro ball Brett.
AndyS
Guest
As in, why the f*** weren't they kicking directly into touch and chasing the bonus point try???
Such as shame that I won't be able to do the match highlights of the other games for you roarers, We need to broadcast the socks off this competition to gather interest!
Cameron
Roar Guru
Cheers. Didn't realise it was raining over there. I'm in the Logan area and haven't had any rain.
El Gamba
Roar Guru
Done. Keep you posted.
Brett McKay
Expert
I welcome your assistance EG!!
Jiggles
Roar Guru
um what? If a single club are so arrogant they think they can go it alone in a national comp, they deserve everything they get. I wouldn't be surprised if they come last.