Do we still play our best U20s in Qcup like a few years ago?...if not I'm pretty woried how we are going. I heard we lost to the Titans and I have seen them on TV and there bad.
Seen them on TV, how?
And yeah, 3 of our best players are playing QCup and we have a few key injuries as well.
Thought it'd be interesting to do a list of former players and where they're at now. Will need some help with a couple...
Tyson Andrews - Prop; Solid player who played for the club until 2010. Playing for Mackay.
Gerard Beale - Backline Utility; Had huge raps on him at age 18 where he was already apart of our senior squad. Injuries really affected his progress in the 20s where he never really got a chance to star. Played everywhere in his stint including the halves and backrow. Is now a Test player and a very handy player, particularly at fullback.
Kerryn Blake - Backrow;
Tom Butterfield - Hooker; Played the impact role off the bench. A lively player who's at the Dolphins.
Josh Coyle - Prop; A solid player who ended up at the Titans. Now plays for Burleigh.
Mitchell Dodds - Prop; Quiet achiever who ended up playing a modest amount of first grade games and is still apart of our senior squad.
Max Dudley - Wing; A lanky winger who made sporadic appearances for the NYC side. Could still be at Easts.
Guy Ford - Backrow; Captained the NYC in '09, a Dallas Johnson type backrow who was tough as teek and stabalise the defence. Went to the Comets in 2010, unsure what's happened since.
Brendon Gibb - Backrow/Centre; Ended up playing centre in the NYC to sure up that side of the field defensively. A solid player who's really developed into a good QCup player since. Could be making his first grade debut in the near future.
Matt Gillett - Backrow; People tend to forget Gillett was actually apart of our NYC squad but it's true. Gillett would have been apart of that GF squad but he snubbed the club for Wests which is where we brought him from. Went to Norths where he played the house down and the rest is history.
Alex Glenn - Backrow; Our inaugural captain, Glenn shifted into the backrow where he showed plenty of promise after arriving as a centre. Is now a Test player.
Matt Handcock - Backrow; Workhorse player who plays for the Dolphins.
Josh Hoffman - Fullback; Had a great season in NYC forcing his way into the senior squad at one point. Just made his Test debut.
Ben Hunt - Halfback; Starred in his debut season ultimately winning the 2008 NYC Player of the Year. Was a complete player in the 20s who had it all, the passing game, kicking game, running game etc. The side fell to pieces when he was pushed up to the Q Cup until his return brought them as far as the prelim. Hasn't made the move into first grade all that well but he's beginning to display the type of form he did in the 20s.
Jared Kahu - Five Eigth; Older brother of current Bronco Jordan, Jared was an enigmatic player who loved to play on instinct. Was offered a contract to join the Cowboys but ultimately he chose to give the game away and I believe he's back in NZ.
Dunamis Lui - Prop/Backrow; An NYC mainstay who lead the club in 2010. A stand out at this level who reminded me a bit of Thaiday & Civoniceiva. Has been affected by injuries so he hasn't developed as quickly as one would like but appears to be in the Broncos long term future.
Andrew McCullough - Hooker; Originally came to the club as a five eigth before Hook shifted into dummy half where he starred and IMO was a constant stand out. Bennett thought the same, handing him a first grade spot despite his limited experience in the position. I don't think his development was ideal, he should have spent sometime in Q Cup to iron out his faults but is beginning to come into his own.
Josh McGuire - Prop; A late starter who like Civoniceiva before him started his career on the wing, before eventually moving closer in field. Was considered too small to play prop by some but proved the doubters wrong by constantly being a star for us upfront. Really skillful too, always had a decent pass on him for a player at that level. Right now he's a potential Test player, such is his form off the bench.
Leon Panapa - Backrow; A skillful lock who didn't really get to play too much NYC for us. Playing for Easts right now.
Wiremu Ratana - Backrow; Was apart of a group of players who were promoted to the QCup and only played one game. Didn't really kick on but is a very handy player for Easts.
Mitch Rivett - Wing; Another lanky winger who was always fairly handy under the high ball. Played a handful of games for the Broncos in 2010 and is still at the Dolphins.
Jacob Samoa - Utility; Played a lot of positions backrow, centre & five eigth but never really kicked on. Playing for Norths.
Luke Samoa - Wing; Brother of Jacob, played QCup for Norths the same year he played NYC. At Norths.
Tariq Sims - Prop/Backrow; Came to the club a lot smaller than he is these days and was actually a winger. Was one of our best in 2009 coming off the bench and tearing teams apart much like he does now for the Cowboys before becoming the best in 2010. Could be an Origin player in the coming weeks.
Michael Spence - Backrow; Was our solid backrow prospect who was handy in both departments. Really reminded me a bit of a young Corey Parker minus the Uncle Fester look. Was responsible for the winning play that brought us into the GF. Was apart of our senior squad before stepping away from the game due to burn out. Returned this year to join Easts.
Nathan Strudwick - Hooker; I remember him having huge raps and another player that was supposed to spend the majority of his time in QCup. Didn't kick on and I believe the game away not long after his NYC stint.
Daniel Tanswell - Winger; Dreadlocked winger from Easts. Didn't play all that many games and I'm unsure if he still plays.
Will Tupou - Centre; Giant Rugby convert who terrorised his much smaller opponents. Was apart of our senior squad and was being moved into the backrow before a serious knee injury derailed him. Made another appearance for us in the 20s where honestly in a 40+ loss he came on, scored two easy tries and looked a class above a far more talented group of players. Went to the Cows where he never quite picked up on the nuances and I believe he's now at the Western Force.
Travis White
Brent Williams - Backrow; A solid player who mainly starred in defence. Is now playing for the Capras.
Josh Williams - Utility; Was like Gibb v2 for us in that he ended up playing the same centre role. A solid player who did his job nothing more. Unsure where he is.
Trent Williamson
Jharal Yow Yeh - Wing; Was a try scoring specialist in the 20s and had a great combo with Hunt who had a knack of finding Yow Yeh in the air which would become his trademark, particularly in 2011. Was a star for us in the NYC GF scoring an unlikely try off a strip. Made his first grade debut the next year and in 2011 became a Test & Origin star. Get well soon JYY!
Might end it there for the time being, will do 2009-10 next.
