Once again, the GM has given us the go ahead to cast our eye over the field and bring all our fearless predications for who will take home the choccy’s in the divisions outside Premier League. You know those where the real action is! It’s the 3rd year of the divisional categories, and to be honest we weren’t actually fans of the idea, but the GM and Mr Rushworth might have been right, with 20 more teams involved than last year. Mixed Open With some 34 teams contesting the division there is plenty to consider. But really with Murwillumbah not in the field who is going to challenge the Roosters for the Championship? Well we think we might have found one, and it is not who you suspect. Not the Magpies, and not the locals of Port Macquarie who we both think will make the semi’s. Quietly going about their business has been those Grizzly Bears. Our spies tell us they have put together a formidable line-up and might just pull off the upset of the event. Remember you heard it here first. 2017 could be a teddy bears picnic…. “if you go out in the woods today”. As for the Bowl and the Plate, well this is where it gets really murky. The Sea Eagles we hear are preparing well and may fight it out with the Knights and the Redbacks for the Bowl. The battle for the Plate could be between Appin, Wagga and Forster. Wagga could be the dark horse as they tried to get themselves a mixed division over the last few State Cups. Championship- Roosters, Bowl- Redbacks, Plate- Appin. Men’s B Cup/Bowl/Plate/Shield. 44 starters make this the largest field in the 2017 Cup and with so many teams where do where do we start? Can anyone spring a surprise and come from the clouds? It promises to be an intriguing battle with well credentialed teams such as Wests, UNSW, and Hills all looking for the B Cup title. But don’t discount the Dogs and Roosters teams, as both should fair pretty well, but the top four start the obvious favourites. Looking at the Bowl, Plate and Shield it really is a lottery and us old timers agree this is one of the great beauties of the State Cup. Teams from all over the state getting to play against each other with no real idea who is going to go well and who is going to go out on Saturday night because they planned to bring two pairs of jeans. Cup- Hornets, Bowl- Sharks, Plate- Flames and for the Shield- Mambas. Women B Cup/Bowl/Plate If we thought the Men’s B was hard to pick then this division is more difficult than getting this week’s Powerball numbers. As old timers who have been around a bit we won’t be surprised at all if some unknowns cause a few surprises here. Our spies tell us that the Hornets, after the Vawdon Cup, are primed to have a crack. Central Coast has performed well in the lower grades at the Vawdon Cup and should figure, as should the Taree girls who always try and fly under the radar. However, both the local Port girls and the UNSW ladies may have something to say about that. The Wolves from Wallsend also tend to favour the State Cups and always go well. If you are getting the feeling we really don’t know who will go well here, then you’d be right? Cup- Hornets, Bowl- Flames and Plate- UNSW. Mens 20 Cup/Bowl The Traditional 5 flick passes/four man cut out Cup has 18 teams this year. However, we know this about the division, it will be exciting, and us old timers will be watching and swapping lies about how we were once that good! After some spying missions, we think the Cup will be heading to the steel city. The Knights look pretty good but don’t discount the Seas Eagles or the Neptunes who look to spoil the Newcastle party. Wallsend has good pedigree so does the Penrith boys, and both might be thereabouts as well. Beresfield went well over the past few JSC’s so it will be of interest if they can back that performance up. For the Bowl, we like the look of Peninsula taking the chocolates. Don’t be surprised to see either Macksville or Kyogle spring an upset along the way! Cup- Knights, Bowl- Peninsula Women’s 20 Cup/Bowl Good luck girls but it will be Manly by the length of the straight. We reckon they will still be smarting from the JSC and we don’t see that mistake happening again. The Eels have pulled a tactical ploy by dropping out of the Premier League to contest the 20’s. Astute move or brave backfire? Only time will tell. Personally, we think for the benefit of the players’ development they should have stayed in Prems, but what do we know? The dangers will be the Dolphins and the Northern Beaches. Keep an eye out for the Wolves though, they have deep history in this division. The Bowl could see the home town favourites Port Macquarie get home in a tight field where Ballina, Peninsula and Hills all have claims. Cup- Sea Eagles, Bowl- Port Makos On the Edge of Seventeen By the Old Timers 36 | Keeping In Touch 2015 IMG002_NSWTouch_Dec17_v3_FILM_R.indd 36 28/11/17 4:22 pm