The three-day competition that was held at Blacktown Olympic Park AFL/ Cricket facility in New South Wales brought together the best Under 14 school sides from New South Wales, Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory and Queensland.
Helensvale have been Queensland representatives two years in a row in the National Finals of the Under 14s Northern State Cup but were denied the cup last year when Northern Territory defeated them.
The Cup competition began on Friday with NSW representatives St. Ignatius College, securing a position in the Sunday finals by defeating ACT, Lyneham High School by a whopping 95 points.
Helensvale’s played Northern Territory’s St. Johns College next which was seen as a rematch of last years game which had cost them the cup.
However this year was not to be a disappointment, with Helensvale keeping the NT side goal-less until 28 minutes into the third quarter, and comfortably winning the game 19.19 (133) to 2.5 (17) to secure their spot in the final against NSW on the Sunday.
On the second day of the competition all four teams relaxed and mingled and completed an educational part of the competition that included a tour of the Sydney Swans headquarters and a boat, cruise through the Sydney Harbour.
But it was back to business on the third day, with the schools heading back to the Blacktown oval to commence a day of finals and to have a final showdown to name the best of the best.
Northern Territory and the ACT lined up first to fight for third and fourth position of the Cup with Northern Territory’s talent being too good for the ACT team with the scores sitting at 15.12 (112) to 7.6 (48).
The Helensvale boys ran out next, pumped and ready for what was to be seen as a great contest that would determine the winner of the National 2009 Northern States Cup.
Both teams started off strong in the first quarter with New South Wales and Helensvale scoring point for point.
However the game began to heat up quickly with both teams fighting to score the first goal of the match- Helensvale succeeding with forward Andrew Siekai kicking one seven minutes in.
In the second quarter things began to get feisty with captain Zane Smith coming off the field with a bloodied cut lip after clashing with an opponent.
It was still seen as anyone’s game at halftime with Helensvale in front by only six goals.
However the third term changed all that with Helensvale’s Matthew Watmuff, Andrew Siekai and Jason Kisch all scoring a goal each for Helensvale three and a half minutes into the quarter.
Helensvale seemed to be too strong for the boys in blue and white with NSW only scoring a point in third quarter with best players Jack Brandwood, Alex Jalloh, Patrick Ferguson and Tom Welch trying everything they could to move the ball forward.
In the fourth quarter NSW seemed to wake up with Sierra Leone born player Alex Jalloh stepping up for his team to keep Helensvale at two goals to their four but it simply wasn’t enough with Helensvale winning 17.11.113 to NSW 6.11.47.
Helensvale Coach Ben Tindall was impressed with his player’s efforts on the day as well as throughout the weekend.
“The boys had a fantastic time and a terrific experience in Sydney, Mr. Tindall said.
“They not only won against the top schools from different states but also got to become friends with the other boys.”
But what inspired the boys the most was young Nathan Cawley, ACT player, who has a neuropathy disorder known as charcot marie tooth.
“Watching Nathan play for his team throughout the weekend in his condition was so awe-inspiring for the boys,” Mr. Tindall said.
“The boys became good friends with Nathan so when they won the finals the boys decided to sign the match ball and dedicate it to him as they were truly touched by this amazing young boy.”
Mark Riddiford, AFL Schools Program Manager, was also impressed with the social networking displayed by all teams on the weekend.
“It was good to watch the interaction of players over the weekend,” Mr. Riddiford said.
“They all were a bit stand offish to begin but through the use activities that were held they began to start socializing with one another and began to bond.”
Ethan Alexander-Crackel was voted best on ground for Queensland while Jason Kisch, Zane Smith, Andrew Siekai, Jack Dalzotto, Matthew Warren and Matthew Watmuff also starred.
Helensvale secured their position to compete in the National finals of the Cup in Sydney after an impressive win against Brisbane’s Nudgee College 12.7 (79)-4.6 (30) in the statewide Under 14 Northern State Cup final that was held in August.
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