Star quartet watch as Bears do battle
ANY rugby league fan would give a rugby league team little chance of reaching a Queensland grand final without four of its star players.
Especially when those missing players include Australian and Queensland representatives.
But that’s exactly what the Kirwan State High School Bears have done, with injured talents Hamiso TabuaiFidow, Daniel Buckland, Ieremia Pua’avase and Ethan Edwards watching their team’s fortunes intently from the sidelines.
Kirwan plays Brisbane’s Marsden State High School in tomorrow’s state final of the NRL Schoolboys Cup, which also acts as a national semifinal.
The winner of tomorrow’s clash will play the winner of the New South Wales final being played between Westfields Sports High School and Patrician Brothers Blacktown.
Kirwan has been without its star quartet for much of the year, with all four players suffering season-ending injuries.
They were unavailable when Kirwan won its Aaron Payne Cup final against Ignatius Park College, and were on the sidelines when Kirwan thumped Wavell State High 28-12 in the Queensland semi-finals a fortnight ago.
“They’re massively disappointed, that goes without saying,” Kirwan coach Todd Wilson said.
“They wanted to be playing their school and with their mates. for
“But in saying that, they are very positive young men and they have been around the group and are staying involved.
“They’re still playing a big role in what we do as a group and they’ll still be playing their parts on Wednesday.”
Tabuai-fidow is recovering from a torn hamstring and is one of the biggest losses for the Bears. He gained Australian Schoolboys selection in July after impressing for Queensland at the national championships.
Buckland – the Bears captain – ruptured his patella tendon while playing A-grade local football for Western Lions a week before he was set to represent Queensland alongside Tabuai-fidow.
Cowboys signing Pua’avase, a 193cm tall Year 10 student who relocated from New Zealand to Townsville with his family, broke his tibia and suffered extensive bone bruising in a recent club game.
Edwards, a final year student at Kirwan, broke his shoulder while playing for Norths in the local Agrade competition.
“It’s an unfortunate game,” Wilson said.
Kirwan travels to Brisbane today ahead of tomorrow’s game at Brisbane’s Langlands Park, the same venue where Kirwan beat Wavell in the semis.
“We’ve had a good week at training and the boys are excited,” Wilson said. Tomorrow’s Queensland schoolboys final at Langlands Park kicks off at 1pm. part of the