INTRUST SUPER SHUTE SHIELD ROUND 17
Randwick v. Eastwood
Coogee Oval – 3.00pm
7TWO TV Match
Referee: Michael Hogan
Assistant Referees: Matt Kellahan, Bradley Smith
Randwick will be looking to break into the top four when they take on new ladder leaders Eastwood at home in the Round 17 Match of the Week to be televised on 7TWO. Randwick sit just outside the four with ten wins for the season, six points off Southern Districts and Warringah who are third and fourth placed respectively.
Senior Waratahs player Stephen Hoiles returns to the Shute Shield this week following the Super Rugby season, and will add much needed experience to the Randwick pack – which was left exposed last week in their 22 point loss to Southern Districts at Forshaw Rugby Park.
Meanwhile Eastwood wrested the top spot on the ladder from Manly with an emphatic 46-15 victory over Eastern Suburbs at Woollahra Oval in Round 16.
Gordon v. Manly
Chatswood Oval – 3.00pm
Referee: Will Houston
After an uncharacteristic second half collapse, Manly experienced just their second loss of the season when they fell to Warringah in the match dubbed the ‘Battle of the Beaches’ at Pittwater Rugby Park last weekend in the televised match for Round 16. Manly have named a virtually unchanged line-up from the side that scored four tries in the first half of their match against Warringah, keeping them in touch with the leaders despite the loss.
Sitting second of the ladder, just two points from Eastwood, the Marlins will be looking for a bonus point win when they take on Gordon at Chatswood Oval this week. The Highlanders are coming off an eighteen point loss to a star-studded Sydney University and will rely heavily on key players like Jack Dempsey and Will Shirvington to produce scoring opportunities.
Warringah v. Sydney University
Pittwater Rugby Park – 3.00pm
Referee: Ed Martin
Sydney University are travelling to face Warringah in a must-win match to secure their finals berth. Currently sitting in sixth position on the ladder, the Students will have a strong line-up to take on the Rats, who will be fighting hard to secure a home semi-final position.
Uni welcomed back Tolu Latu, Paddy Ryan, Jeremy Tilse and Tom Carter in the previous round, and the experience showed as they served Gordon an 18 point defeat at University Oval. They will be ably assisted by Pat McCutcheon, who returns this week, and Jim Stewart, who was recently contracted to the NSW Waratahs.
Southern Districts v. Penrith
Forshaw Rugby Park – 3.00pm
Referee: Andrew Lees
A rampaging Southern Districts side punished Randwick last week, and will likely produce a similar performance against a Penrith side that will be buoyed by their 34-all draw with Parramatta, easily their best performance of the year to date.
Southern Districts will again have the services of Waratah Jed Holloway in the No.8 role, as well as classy Australian Sevens player Afa Pakalani on the wing. The Rebels, who sit in third place on the ladder, are 11 points away from Manly in second place. With just two matches to play before finals they will need some luck to bridge that gap and ensure
Parramatta v. West Harbour
Merrylands RSL Rugby Park – 3.00pm
Referee: Richard Goswell
West Harbour managed to snatch a one-point victory from Northern Suburbs in their encounter last week, and will go into the match against their local rivals with confidence. Parramatta drew with Penrith in the last round, and will be looking to leapfrog Eastern Suburbs on the ladder to preserve some pride before the season’s end.
Northern Suburbs v. Eastern Suburbs
North Sydney Oval – 3.00pm
Referee: Charles Hartson
After an inconsistent season, Norths are still in the hunt for a finals berth and will be looking to earn a bonus point win when they take on the underperforming Eastern Suburbs at North Sydney Oval. After a narrow defeat to West Harbour last week, Northern Suburbs should bounce back to punish Easts, who suffered another big defeat – this time at the hands of ladder leaders Eastwood.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL TEAM LISTS FOR ROUND 17
CURRENT STANDINGS
RANK TEAM P W L D F A Df BP4T BP-7P BP Pts
1 Eastwood 16 14 2 0 732 295 437 12 1 13 69
2 Manly 16 14 2 0 555 306 249 10 1 11 67
3 Southern Districts 16 11 5 0 529 360 169 9 3 12 56
4 Warringah 16 11 5 0 522 358 164 10 2 12 56
5 Randwick 16 10 6 0 407 369 38 7 1 8 48
6 Sydney University 16 9 7 0 467 347 120 7 5 12 48
7 Northern Suburbs 16 7 9 0 513 399 114 9 5 14 42
8 West Harbour 16 8 8 0 388 369 19 4 2 6 38
9 Gordon 16 7 9 0 402 422 -20 6 3 9 37
10 Eastern Suburbs 16 3 13 0 332 479 -147 5 4 9 21
11 Parramatta 16 1 14 1 359 574 -215 8 4 12 18
12 Penrith 16 0 15 1 122 1050 -928 0 0 0 2
SYDNEY RUGBY UNION FINALS FORMAT (venues TBA)
Qualifying Finals – August 1 & 2
Semi Finals – August 8 & 9
Grand Final – August 15 at Concord Oval
WEEK MATCH TEAM 1 v TEAM 2
1 QF – A 1 v 6
QF – B 2 v 5
QF – C 3 v 4
2 SF – D Highest Ranked Winner v Highest Ranked Loser
SF – E Second Ranked Winner v Second Ranked Loser
3 GF Winner D v Winner E
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