Ipswich High have defied the odds all season, upsetting highly fancied opposition to this year claim both the Allan Langer Trophy and the state Phil Hall Cup.
The side will aim to do it all again this Wednesday (September 14) when they take on New South Wales Peter Mulholland Cup winners Patrician Brothers Fairfield in the national final of the Schoolboys Cup at Moreton Daily Stadium, Redcliffe.
This year, the school team took inspiration from District Five Ice Hockey team the Mighty Ducks on their way to winning both Queensland-based titles for the first time.
“That’s exactly where we have come from, if you saw our rag tag set up in 2012, you’d be quacking,” Ipswich State High coach Josh Bretherton said of his charges.
The team’s call is “do your job”, and all the players have certainly done that in 2022.
When Ipswich won the southeast Queensland Allan Langer Trophy by beating schoolboy rugby league juggernaut Palm Beach Currumbin 16-12, people took notice.
PBC had been schoolboys champions 12 times previously, and have a proud history of success in the competition.
The school from Ipswich shocked the league world; and when it came time to take on North Queensland’s Payne Cup winners Ignatius Park – who won in 2004 and were runners up in 2012 – Ipswich blew them away in the second half to win 30-10.
This saw them claim the state champions title on the Gold Coast and set up their chance to defy the odds again in the national final.
In their state championship final match, hooker Gabriel Satrick. who said he drew inspiration following a talk with Queensland Maroons and Melbourne Storm rake Harry Grant, came off the bench and sparked three tries in 10 minutes after halftime, seeing the game go from 4-4 to 16-4.
However, Ignatius Park’s defence was outstanding, forming a blue and white wall in front of their line. It wasn’t until the second half that Ipswich was able to show their attacking flare and their effort was rewarded.
The explosive dummy half combination of Tommy Luhrman and Satrick, coupled with the fearless charges of captain Josiah Pahulu and his front row mate Ahmani Leluia and the scoring and footwork of Tre Fotu, was too much for any team to handle.
But this was a journey 10 years in the making.
“This started in 2012 when we decided we wanted a world-class rugby league program, before that, rugby league had just been to control behaviour and play on Friday afternoons,” Bretherton said.
“We wanted a program that led the way for making students better students and better players.
“We are all teachers first and we want better Ipswich citizens first and then better footballers will follow.
“We looked at things like how the All Blacks work and how other schools run their program, we have spent time looking at how successful programs work.”
As coach, Bretherton also knows the importance of effort.
“Everything we do is about effort and that’s what pleased me the most about the two wins; we play a lot of effort games at training,” Bretherton said.
“That’s what made us proud … the effort was there; James Frazer’s ankle tap on Rayzarlin Pearson was outstanding and pure effort.
“That’s what we are about – ankle taps when you are tired.
“We are undefeated, and we want that to continue … against Patrician Brothers. Fairfield at Redcliffe.”
Ipswich State High’s strength and conditioner Jonathan Dore is also a teacher and has played his part in changing the perception of what Ipswich can achieve.
“Rugby league is a vehicle for better people and that’s what we want, we want students playing Hostplus Cup or NRL or having an apprenticeship after school; that is so rewarding,” Dore said of attracting rugby league loving students to Ipswich State High.
“We want them achieving more than they could if they’d never come to Ipswich State High.”
Ipswich State High captain Josiah Pahulu, a Springfield Panther junior and future Titan, is a 102kg wrecking ball of leadership inspiring Ipswich to its year to remember.
“It’s about doing your job that’s what we talk about on the field and off field,” Pahulu said.
“Being a good student and being a good player after that.
“I looked at the boys against Ignatius Park and Palm Beach and I just knew.
“We have one more game to go now.”
NRL Major School Competitions grand final day
This Wednesday, it will be a big day of schoolboys and schoolgirls rugby league at Moreton Daily Stadium, with a full schedule locked in from 9am.
9am: Karyn Murphy Cup quad series - Cairns SHS, Isis District SHS, Stretton State College, Woodridge SHS
11.30am: Queensland Schoolboy Trophy grand final - Trinity Bay SHS v Lockyer District SHS
1pm: Queensland Karyn Murphy Cup grand final (top two teams from quad series)
1.45pm: Queensland Schoolgirl Cup grand final - Kirwan SHS v Marsden SHS
3.30pm: National Schoolboy Cup grand final - Ipswich State High v Patrician Brothers Fairfield
