Marymount College’s Burleigh Waters rugby league teams matched it with the state’s best in Townsville yesterday as Brisbane Catholic Education (BCE) schools took part in the annual Confraternity Carnival. Seventeen BCE schools are competing at “Confro” which was first held in 1980 when won by Aquinas College, Ashmore.
Just a few suburbs away, 27 teams from BCE schools are participating in the Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Netball carnival. The BCE schools include teams from St Mary’s Catholic College, Kingaroy, Carmel College, Thornlands and Siena Catholic College, Sippy Downs.
BCE schools are the largest group contesting the carnivals that continue to grow in popularity, drawing in Catholic and Independent schools from across Queensland.
Marymount College are playing in the top-level Confraternity Shield for the boys and girls with both teams coached by staff teacher and former NRL premiership winner and NSW State of Origin player Matt Geyer.
The girls’ team, which won the inaugural girls’ Shield title in 2022, qualified for today’s semi-finals alongside fellow BCE school Mt Maria College, Mitchelton. The winners of the semi-finals go into the final to be played as a curtain-raiser to the women’s State of Origin decider in Townsville on Thursday.
Marymount College’s boys’ team took on host school and Confro heavyweights Ignatius Park College in front of a large home crowd at Townsville’s Jack Manski Oval last night.
Ignatius Park College has a strong league history, producing multiple State of Origin players over the years, but Marymount College held them to a tense 4-all draw in a match that impressed Geyer.
“That was just great schoolboy rugby league played in a tremendous spirit,” Geyer said.
“This is such a fun carnival to be a part of and our players just love turning up here to play for each other.
“Marymount has a really proud history in rugby league across the boys’ and girls’ competitions and we do it organically, just developing the players who attend our school.”
Xavier Coates, who will play for Queensland in tomorrow night’s State of Origin match, is a Marymount graduate and his brother Phillip is featuring in this carnival.
Phillip is also a member of the Queensland open schools’ team yet he ensured that he could play for Marymount to notch up his third appearance at Confro. He has made the carnival’s overall honorary team in Years 10 and 11.
Marymount are playing without Year 12 student Cooper Bai – a member of the Queensland Under 19 squad – after he injured his ankle.
A total of 16 teams each contest the boys’ Divisions 1 and 2 while 20 teams are playing in Division 3.
Aquinas College was undefeated after the first day of Division 2 after the first day.
In Division 3, five teams were unbeaten after two matches including Xavier Catholic College, Hervey Bay, St Patrick’s College, Gympie, Unity College, Caloundra West and Mt Maria College, Mitchelton.
The girls’ competition brings together 12 teams including Emmaus College, Jimboomba which includes some girls experiencing rugby league for the first time.
The rugby league competition has a rest day tomorrow with finals on Thursday and Friday.
The QISSN competition continues to play across the week leading into finals on Friday. The carnival is played across eight divisions in the girls’ competitions and two divisions in the boys’ competition.
©Brisbane Catholic Education, Marymount College, Burleigh Waters (2024).