Do any young New South Welshmen actually want to play for the Waratahs?

Sorry for late reply Barry and you seem to be in the know so tell me for the school kids from NSW for example - who has first pick ? The Oz Schools “A” or the Oz Schools / 18’s ?

Do you mean the Australia A School team & the Schools/U18 team? From memory, so don’t hold me 100% accountable. The A team is the team that’s picked predominately without Queensland kids as they play there school rep comps at a different time to the rest of the country, so there is something that can be “aligned for starters”. Schools & U18 team is made up of school players and age eligible players from the various club comp colts teams.

NP, NSW Rugby historically developed from Sydney outwards into the regional centres we have today, as Australia is bloody sparse. So the Sydney Rugby Union was well ahead of the game in Aust and at one point (1980's?) had about 80 clubs affiliated. At some stage, in an effort to concentrate talent, 20 of these clubs were anointed as "district clubs" while the rest became "sub-district". So if you wanted to "represent" your metro district, you now could. The DC's played in 2 divs of 10 teams each with rel/prom. The SD's 8 divs of 10 (now 8) teams each. In another effort to further refine a platform of player development, 8 of the DC's were dropped to SD (which changed it's name from Sub-District to Suburban) so the remaining 12 could form what we now know as NSW Premier Rugby. This was very effective in creating the best "club" rugby comp in Aust, drawing upon the best talent in Sydney and also attracting the best from all other states and developing them further. Brisbane pretty much followed suit and now also has QLD Premier Rugby that is above their Suburban Rugby. But yes, despite NSW rugby fans referring to NSW Premier Rugby as "club rugby, amateur and grassroots", it has clearly been set up as something different to Suburban and Sub-district (Country clubs) altogether. Other cities also have "Premier Rugby" comps, but just without the scores of suburban clubs below them. So not really comparable.

C'mon Frankie, even I can do better than that!

He's now*

The Tahs sacked Rob Penny. He's not a coach at the NZs most successful clubs. Robbie Dean's was sacked. Coaches Japans.most successful clubs.

Who hurt you Gary lol. I'm sorry your kids don't respect you

Most of the players in the super teams are from the Shute shield

More fact checking: Ben Dufficy played numerous 1s Colts games [was also in the Easts Colts 2s Premiership winning team along with Easts Colts 1s players Oliver NICOLLE, Otto SERFONTEIN, AJ PREKETES, to name a few] - that's what happens when previously unknown players break into the 1s from the 2s - shows how meriticracy works in Club Land. Does the fact that an unknown player who starts in the 2s and plays so well they become a starting 1s starter make you less deserving? I would argue it makes those players even more deserving - they worked their guts out to prove they were better than the incumbents - some of whom were NSW Gen Blue Academy players. Dufficy was 'dropped' to 2s Colts at the end of the season when Junior Wallaby and Aussie 7s star Darby LANCASTER played 15 for Easts Colts 1s - no shame there, but doesn't mean he isn't a worthy NSW U19 player, as Lancaster isn't elligble for U19s [as he is 20]. Quoting "Played half the season in Colts 2 at Eastern Suburbs and finished the season there" and "ended the season in Colts 2 at Eastern Suburbs" is simply misleading and disingenuious at worst, ignorant at best. More like "started in the first half of the season in Colts 2 and forced themselves into Colts 1 and stayed there [until Junior Wallabies came back from Worlds in SA]. What NSW Rugby should do is review their current [U19] Academy players and drop / amend the positions of under performers, and give contracts to the new crop of high performers - that's what happens with English and Irish Rugby. The author certainly identified the NSW to ACT player leakage that occurs, but I would suggest the ACT U19 win over NSW U19 was less to do with that, and more to do with some questionable starting selection decisions - but the make-up of the NSW Squad looks mostly valid.

Mind-bendingly misleading - ignorant at best disingenuous at worst - fact checker required on the NSW U19 selections claims - story simply a lengthy rant from a disgruntled Parent / Supporter.

Exactly right - many 20 year olds were playing for Colts 1s - they are not elligible for U19s funnily enough [a point well missed by the author]. In fact, his favourtite Club [Warringah] only had 3 players from their winning Colts 1s elligble for U19. Warringah Colts 2s were beaten in the Premiership final by Easts [who had a couple of Easts 1s who were 2s elligible, as they had been promoted from 2s to 1s over the 2nd half of the season]. Another point missed by the author is that some NSW Selected U19 players [Oliver Nicolle for example] played the entire second half of the season for Colts 1s. After his first game in 1sts colts he kept his spot up until the team got knocked out by Eastwood, when he then went on to win a premiership with 2nds colts, as any player would if they could. So not incorrect that Nicolle played [the first] half his season for the Colts 2s - but not honest, either through ignorance or disingenuity, omits to tell his audience that Nicolle played the whole of the second half of the season as 1st choice #7 for Colts 1s, and ended his season in Colts 1s [not in Colts 2s] - winning a premiership final [as elligible for Colts 2s once Colts 1s were knocked out] is not the same - suggesting Nicolle ended his season in Colts 2s is pure disingenuity. Doesn't sound such a strange NSW U19 selection now does it.....

Seems like from the relative lack of responses that no one gives a stuff about your opinion LOL !

"Looking at the NSW Waratahs U19s squad I noticed the following:" Classic mis-information - corrected here: Jarvis is a hooker who can play prop - behind in the Easts pecking order as the other boys were not elligible for U19 as they are already 20 [Easts have some very good 20 year old playing #2]. Nicolle ended the season as first choice #7 for Easts for Colts 1s and started, and played the whole match in the last Colts 1s game at #7 [with Di Staso at #6]. Working one's way up from the 2s into the 1s from round 9 means the second half of the season was all Colts 1s [but the journo focuses on the 1st half of the season] - why use stats correctly hmmm? Easts operated with genuine meritocracy, such that certain NSW Academy players were dropped when better players proved themselves. Nicolle played in the Colts 2s final, as he was elligible to do so as Colts 1s were already knocked out [after a 34-34 draw with Eastwood] - Colts 2s were extremely lucky he was available; so sure, technically / statistically ended his season playing [and winning] for Colts 2s - but don't let the real truth get in the way of a 'good' story. Why don't some players start the season in Colts 1s? Some [like Nicolle at Easts or Tancred at Uni] were relatively unknown, and rely on meritocracy; the way it should be.

That was interesting and I bet nepotism in Shute Shield is rife.

Typical Aussie Union comment. All talk and nothing to back it. Is that you Eddie? Lol

It's called an opinion

A telling article - thank you. I am curious as to why 'journalists' are not highlighting this type of issue - are they only interested in and can only be bothered with the glamour level of rugby that brings fee tickets and the odd drink.

Thanks Club for this article. Very interesting, and a pertinent issue at the moment as we look at all things Aus rugby from the bottom of a ruck, so to speak. Those crying to restrict pro teams in Aus can't then cry that we don't have enough players prepared and playing professional level. We need more players working through systems, getting good coaching, and development in high performance settings. But your question is a good one. Who is selecting? And why are they selecting who they are selecting? I mean looking at what you have up, it seems odd so many Colts II players are picked in a state team. I guess it could mean that all other options are contracted elsewhere perhaps? Or that Colts is over different age groups, so those in Is are not eligible for this age group? It could be they started in IIs, and went up? I guess everyone sees something others don't, and of course, miss things others might see.

When I was playing Lord was Michael Hawker. Admittedly and thankfully he has a decade on me.

This is one of the things I don't fully understand about the "grassroots" structure of Aus rugby. Coming from a English (British) model, little Jimmy can come through a club's age grade system from U7s all the way to senior rugby, play for the 3rd XV, 2nd XV and then 1st XV, which can, in turn, ostensibly go from Level 10 up to Level 1. In Aus, it seems (and please correct me if I'm wrong, I simply want to understand it better), that little Jimmy would play for his subbies club through age grade, then could play senior rugby at the same club, or if really wanting to have a crack at higher level play would need to join one of the "elite" grassroots clubs and work their way through a different senior system which has its own age grade section from which players filter. Why, in the Shute Shield anyway, can only 12 clubs compete for an elite trophy? And why do those same clubs have to have 4 grades? What happened if Sydney Old Pisspoorians had a great 1st XV but little else? Is it possible for them to climb the ladder? The point is, is there a problem that the Shute Shield doesn't actually aid the pathway through to the 'Tahs?