The MARC - 1 year on.

[RugbyReg]

I remembered I copied a couple of games onto a DVD and wrote down the team lists. The Rebels were obviously a success, on-field. Was wondering if anyone knows what happened to a few of their players?

15 Nathan Trist
13 James Lew
12 Jack Farrar
8 Dave Haig
1 Scott Cameron
17 Mike Ross

I remember being impressed, particularly, by Farrer and Cameron, both of whom I hadn't heard of.

Interestingly, in the first round, Quade Cooper was on the bench for the Aces behind Ben Lucas (at 10). Can't remember if Cooper was returning from injury or not, but a year later he's in the Wallabies.

 

[formeropenside]

I think Scott Cameron was Sydney Uni but injured in 2008, from what Google tells me. Maybe one of the Sydney Uni followers knows a little more.

 

[naza]

I don't know why you ask Noddy - none of these guys will be anything.

Cameron - Reserve grade prop for Sydney Uni.
Trist - still with Uni. Had some injury problems IIRC but was class in the club grand final.
Mike Ross - played mostly reserve grade with Easts, who rotate McMicken, Tawera & Levaka at prop.
Lew - still playing 1sts for Norths though their main weapon was big Central Coast Rays winger Andrew Smith who featured mostly at fullback to get more attacking opportunities.
Farrar, Haig - no idea. Didn't hear about either this year and neither played 1sts.

 

[Lee Grant]

Agree with naza.

Farrar and Haigh must have moved on. I have 7 programmes from games I went to this year and neither is mentioned in any grade.

Wasn't a bad team though was it?

 

[RugbyReg]

I really liked that prop Cameron. I guess he has Jerry Y in front of him.

 

[Lee Grant]

Exactly so Nod - you are getting to know the Sydney teams pretty well - eh?

Jerry was playing 2nd Grade last year at age 21. He has really stepped up. Pity he didn't go to the Force though, along with Charles - or have I said that before?

 

[Scarfman]

While we're talking along these lines, can someone help me out with an argument I'm having with my (QLDer) father.

Scarf Snr says:

i note you are still obsessed with that non-event called the ARC-- RIP- I would not be telling people that I was the first person in the gate

Scarf says:

Don't you think we need a domestic compeition? The ARC brought a lot of guys through to the next level.

Scarf Snr says:

isn't s14 the"next level"?I would be interested in the"lot of guys" who were selected in the 4x s14 teams as a result of arc performance and not club performance or poached interstate or from nrl.. persuade me. I would have thought that aust school and under21/19 would have more influence in s14 new starts.

The old bloke loves Hynes, Barnes, Horwill and Moore. Hates Waugh and Dunning. Starting to see a pattern?

But help me win this argument or else I will have to admit that he's right. [shudder]

 

[whocares]

Well where would Ben Alexander be right now if there were no ARC. I'm guessing having a couple of beers getting ready to watch the tour in a few weeks time. Plus he's a prop which we desperatly needed and still do.
Ben Lucas is another. I'm not sure he would have been picked up by the reds without his performance in the ARC.
The Fainga'a brothers as well.

 

[Lindommer]

Scarfie, your father's a Queenslander? You poor bastard. 8) 8) 8)
I'd imagine there'd be no amount of logical argument which could convince him there might be another point of view. Turn his remark back on to himself and ask him about that hooker who played for East Coast Aces.

 

[Scotty]

I think Lucas would have been picked up anyway, due to his performances for Sunnybank.

 

[RugbyReg]

agree Scotty, he was almost picked for Australia from club footy

 

[Lee Grant]

Scarfman

I don't think that the ARC was ever meant to be the a forum to suddenly pick someone that nobody else had noticed before for next year's S14 squad.

We can have a forensic look through all the team ARC sheets from and come up with names of players that played in the 2008 S14 that were surprises - Dayna Edwards comes to mind - but all the S14 scouts would have known 95% of the players pretty well. And wasn't he the bloke that came on a working holiday from NZ to Oz and thus was more 'unknown' than others?

Ben Alexander the big "find" of the ARC may have surprised we punters, but he was already in the Brumbies stable. They had sent him over to England for a gig and he was back for the ARC.

But the scouts couldn't be sure which ones could take their game above amateur club rugby and the ARC was good for that.

The S14 franchises used the 2007 ARC to select their Academy players for 2008 with particular emphasis on the 10, or so, fellows to form part of the professional group of the Academy. They have to have professionals available to move into S14 squads during a tournament if contracted S14 players get injured for a while.

You can't pull a guy out of the office to play in the Super14; not these days.

Some Academy players selected after the 2007 ARC, like Dayna Edwards, got onto the park in the 2008 S14 for this reason, but their realistic goal would have been to be promoted from the professional academy category in 2008 to the contracted rookie category in 2009.

The Academies always had a few duds in them because they had never played anything but park rugby and were hard to assess. The ARC served as a filter to minimise this dud factor.

No doubt the ARC, had it prevailed, would have identified an unknown rising star every now and then and would walk into a rookie contract the following year, but it would have been uncommon.

 

[naza]

Without the ARC, what do we have ? Queensland club rugby finishes in frigging' June. The Sydney club comp is the only worthwhile club comp in the country. Rugby lovers get 5 S14 games and 2 tests a year if they're lucky. Not enough high standard rugby for people to get out and see. Talent struggles to come through because of the enormous gulf between club footy and S14. Academy players spend their life in the gym, instead of playing. There's no opportunities for coaches. The implicit message sent by the ARU to coaches & players is - go overseas, go to league.

 

[Pfitzy]

Scarf Snr says:

i note you are still obsessed with that non-event called the ARC-- RIP- I would not be telling people that I was the first person in the gate

Scarf Jnr should say: You're just grumpy because the Turds and Arces from the northern wastes could only manage a fight for the wooden spoon after the best player in the state went to Melbourne. That's what 20 years of Knuckles gave you: backs that can't catch.

 

[Scarfman]

Scarf Jnr should say: You're just grumpy because the Turds and Arces from the northern wastes could only manage a fight for the wooden spoon after the best player in the state went to Melbourne. That's what 20 years of Knuckles gave you: backs that can't catch.

That's pretty much all I ever say to him.

G'day, how're the Reds travelling?

 

[formeropenside]

Scarf Jnr should say: You're just grumpy because the Turds and Arces from the northern wastes could only manage a fight for the wooden spoon after the best player in the state went to Melbourne. That's what 20 years of Knuckles gave you: backs that can't catch.

That's pretty much all I ever say to him.

G'day, how're the Reds travelling?

Three Super Rugby Titles under the belt, how many do the Tahs have again?

 

[whocares]

Scarf Jnr should say: You're just grumpy because the Turds and Arces from the northern wastes could only manage a fight for the wooden spoon after the best player in the state went to Melbourne. That's what 20 years of Knuckles gave you: backs that can't catch.

That's pretty much all I ever say to him.

G'day, how're the Reds travelling?

Three Super Rugby Titles under the belt, how many do the Tahs have again?

3? I thouht it was two in 94 and 95.

 

[Ash]

Without the ARC, what do we have ? Queensland club rugby finishes in frigging' June. The Sydney club comp is the only worthwhile club comp in the country. Rugby lovers get 5 S14 games and 2 tests a year if they're lucky. Not enough high standard rugby for people to get out and see. Talent struggles to come through because of the enormous gulf between club footy and S14. Academy players spend their life in the gym, instead of playing. There's no opportunities for coaches. The implicit message sent by the ARU to coaches & players is - go overseas, go to league.

Whoa, Naza got it almost right (for once)!

Disagree with the bolded part. I don't think any are worthwhile (let alone barely worth to be a boil on a baboon's ass) as a step up to the S14.

<edit>:

Three Super Rugby Titles under the belt, how many do the Tahs have again?

3? I thouht it was two in 94 and 95.

*ahem* Foolish Tahs fan, how quick you forget the Super 6.

 

[Pfitzy]

And don't forget all those titles the Reds got playing the Super 1 back in the 1920s. No wait - that was them against themselves in Aussie Rules 8)

 

[whocares]

*ahem* Foolish Tahs fan, how quick you forget the Super 6.

Yes sorry, but i have trouble remembering things that occured when I was 1

By the way how does that wooden spoon look amongst all those trophies?