Cubs Set Roster For Opener

Posted on February 10, 2010

The Cubs have named a 40 man roster for their 2010 Gridiron NSW Colts season opener against the Bondi Storm.  The game will be a re-match of last year’s Championship Game, won by the Cubs 48-44 in a thriller.  However, much will have changed for both clubs.  Bondi will be looking for a fresh start after losing their coach and core players to the newly formed UTS Spartans.  Meanwhile, Sydney Uni will have a fresh look, with 24 first year players on the list and a new game jersey for 2010.

On offence, the Cubs will be guided at quarterback by returning senior Sam Darcy (#84).  Darcy had a bumper year in 2009, winning the Championship Game MVP award and being honoured with State and National team selection.  Darcy will be looking to cap off his stellar career at the Cubs with a repeat Colts championship.  Darcy will be backed up at quarterback by freshman Krishan Dass (#6).

Also returning to the offensive backfield will be the versatile Harry Granger (#5).  Granger was second in scoring for the Cubs in 2009 with 104 points (15 TDs, 7 2pts) and is likely to split time at running back, wingback and also quarterback.  Joining him in the backfield will be second year junior Francis O’Neill (#38), first year senior Brady Olsson (#32) and first year sophomore Jacob Stevens (#30).

The receiving unit will be lead by returning senior Alex Klaric (#82) and second year junior Max Granger (#39).  This will be Klaric’s fifth season for the Cubs, having started with the club as a 14 year old in 2006.  Klaric and Granger are likely to see action at both wingback and receiver.  The receiving corps will include second year juniors Judd Fitzsimon (#34) and Tyrone Williams (#88) and four first year players, senior Vlad Matovic (#13), junior Richard Taylor (#85), sophomore Warwick Tomkins (#9) and freshman Oscar Mason (#2).

On the offensive line, the Cubs will be boosted by the return of junior Oscar Heidrich (#94).  Heidrich won State selection in his first year of football last year and will be looking to build on his strong start.  Heidrich will be joined by a strong group of first year players: seniors Jack Horgan (#97) and Trung Tran (#52), and juniors Angus Bishop (#58), Kendall Generoso (#60), Elvis Trompf (#67) and Alexander Panebianco (#77). Bishop follows his brother, Mathew, into the ranks of the Cubs.

On the other side of the ball, the Cubs will be spearheaded on the line by National team member Daniel Pearson (#55).  Pearson is sure to pressure the opposing backfield, and will be joined in the attack by returning sophomores Alex Astafiev (#15) and Elliot Mills-Connolly (#37) and four first year players: seniors Jack Danielson (#74) and Jonathan Vavouris (#17), sophomore Hieu Nguyen (#91) and freshman Reuben Brien-Arnold (#99).

The Cubs welcome back junior Cameron Prentice (#42) and sophomore Andrew Shattuck (#31) to the linebacker corps.  These players will be joined by first year seniors Nabeel Siddiqui (#21) and Hau Neo (#26) and first year sophomores Kevin Dizon (#24) and RJ Funtanilla (#47).  All of these players have a great opportunity to step up this year, with none of the starting linebackers returning from 2009.

In the secondary, Chevy Abraham-Jacob (#14) is the lone returner from the 2009 squad, although senior Stanley Chin (#22) returns from the 2008 roster after a year’s absence.  This pair will lead a strong posse of first year seniors in Justin Chow (#8), Tim Zhong (#10) and David Chau (#12).

The full 2010 Cubs roster has been posted to the “Roster” link on the Cubs page.

The Cubs open the 2010 season against the Bondi Storm at the St George Hockey Centre, Mutch Ave, Kyeemagh, on Friday, 19 February 2010, kick-off at 7.00pm.