It could have been a hat-trick for the Saints, but unfortunately the under 12s went down by 46 points to Penrith, failing to come to terms with the conditions after being minor premiers.
In torrential rain and muddy conditions that none of the players had probably ever seen before but which brought back memories of a true winter sport, the under 11s went into their match against St Clair as underdogs, and it appeared the match would go to script as the Crows jumped out to a six-point lead at the first change.
But the Saints rallied as Nate Lawson got on top in the ruck, providing Daniel Evans and Jayden Cass with excellent service, and it was only wayward kicking (1.5 to 1.0) that kept them a point behind at the main break.
However, it was in the third term where Hawkesbury set up the victory in the terrible conditions, holding St Clair to just one goal on their turn with the wind and kicked five points themselves to turn for home just three points behind.
Centre half back Josh Edwards was one of the catalysts for shutting the Crows down, while Lachlan Chase ran hard out of defence to repel the Crows.
With the premiership on the line, the Saints stood up as forwards Josh Norton and Connor Moore took control and regular under 10 player Alex Earle made his presence felt, putting on 2.2 to no score to set up a 4.14 38 to 4.3 27 victory.
Edwards was named best on ground by the umpires, while Earle finished with two goals.
Hawkesbury’s under 14 Black team completed a brilliant
season when they held Camden goalless to win 2.6 18 to 0.5 5.
The Saints kicked their first goal from a 50 metre penalty in the opening quarter and added a second in the third term, with the key to the victory being the ability to shut out the tall Blues’ forward line.
Big ruckman Dhruv Kaushik revelled in the conditions to be named best on ground for the Saints, but it was a true team effort to secure the premiership and redemption following their loss in last year’s grand final after they had been undefeated all year.
Meanwhile, Kaushik, Nick Crowe, Dean Brewer and Leif Stuart have been selected in the Sydney Starz team that will compete in the under 14 State Championships in Narrandera next month.
The four boys were the only Sydney West players to make the squad.
