WAIHI CONTINUE WINNING WAYS
From the quill of Tighthead Ted
Photos by Bart’s Rugby Photography
Well, thankfully, there isn’t a tipping competition for this year’s Premier League, as ole Tighthead Ted would have looked sillier than PC after a few glasses of giggle juice at a Cedarwood karaoke night last century. Zero from four after some great efforts, and because of some plain dumb picking!
Anywho, it was business as usual for the usual suspects. Waihi and Waihou are starting to flex their muscles as the semi-finals approach. Whangamata finally got into gear, and the Snakes came out hissing under the mountain to beat the Blue Bulls.
We’ll start off with the replay of last season’s final. Paeroa started off well, landing two early penalties as they took every opportunity for points that came their way. Waihi tried to respond, but Collard’s radar was out, and with two sitters missing, it had the feeling it could be Paeroa’s day.
But then Collard slotted his first penalty, and an intercept from Ish Leilua as Paeroa swung onto attack saw the visitors leading 10-6, even after making more mistakes in 20 minutes of rugby than they had in the previous six matches combined.
The game was still there for the taking for the home side. Waihi were holding on, but only just. But the home side’s discipline fell apart, and with the players doing more talking than playing rugby, the result was inevitable, and Waihi took the match away. It was still a close affair until Waihi’s outstanding eight-man Lesen Huirangi also took an intercept, showed good pace for a low number, and bolted away on an 85-metre run to the line.
The Paeroa scrum had an edge on the Waihi pack, but couldn’t gain any advantage from this, otherwise the forward battle was pretty equal as the packs tried to bludgeon each other into submission. James Mahi from prop was again the go-to man for forward momentum, and replacement Peni Tafia also was hard to stop. Paeroa was well served by Talalelei Moli at eight, a human wrecking ball, and his right-hand man, Misi Palea, who blotted his copybook with a yellow card.
Tyrone Keith for Paeroa, with a searing break setting up Paeroa’s first-half try, was the highlight of both sides’ back divisions, which, by and large, cancelled each other out with solid defence.
Whangamata hosted the previously high-flying Mercury Bayside, who had thumped the Red’n’Whites’ 60-12 at their last meeting. This week, the result was vastly different, with Whangamata winning 22-10, Mercury Bay lucky to get the ten, according to some of their supporters! Whangamata played well and thoroughly deserved the win, a genuine team effort with no one outstanding, because everyone was outstanding.
The visitors produced an error-ridden performance, filled with wrong options, knock-ons, missed tackles, you name it, they did it wrong—their worst game of the last few seasons. The only strong point was a dominant scrum that would have the home side back pedalling at a rate of knots, only for the number eight to burst off the back and make twenty metres before anyone knew he had even picked up the ball. The smiles from the win over Waihi and taking the Silcock Shield will be wearing off now.
A couple of comments from THT’s spies in the two opposing camps say it all. From Whangamata, “never underestimate the Dynamite at home,” and from the Bay, “turn up half-baked, and you’ll get a half-baked result.”
Another team that finally got it all together was Waihou, which travelled to Thames and came away with a thumping 32-18 win. The visitors were class across the field, from lineout time, where Scotty Day’s throwing was a clinic, to the halves pairing of Devyn Sheehan and Jake O’Connor, who are gelling now like ten-season partners, not a seven-match pairing.
Thames were their usual direct and brutal selves, their pack carrying ferociously and making Waihou work hard to contain the never-ending supply of willing ball carriers. Jahvani Lolesi at prop and Laulea Ma’u were hard to stop, but the Waihou close-quarter defence, led by Caleb Hazelton and Atelea Moeata, was up to the task. Out wide, though Waihou had the better of proceedings, Harry Lafituanai, filling in at centre, combined well with Bronson Wilson-Beech, showing the class that saw him crack over 50 matches for the Swampies.
Results
Senior A
Boyd Park, Te Aroha
COBRAS 43 (S Schuler 2, S Raiyawa C Dromgool, E Mataira AN Other tries; A Payne 5 conversions, penalty) beat Hauraki North 20 (R Wathne, R Hart, L McDuff tries; L Mitchell conversion, penalty).
Referee: Brian Rose.
Centennial Park, Paeroa
Paeroa 16 (B Johansson, H Beazley tries; Johansson 2 penalties) lost to Waihi Athletic 28 (h Vea, I Leilua, L Huirangi tries; Q Collard 2 conversions, 3 penalties).
Referee: Bill Howie.
The Boom Pitt, Whangamata
Whangamata 22 (Z Clarke, C Mikkelsen, U Latukefu tries; TJ Wise 2 conversions, penalty) beat Mercury Bay 10 (T Mason 2 tries).
Referee: Stu Watts.
Rhodes Park, Thames
Thames 18 (J Lolesi, S To’a tries; D Edmonds conversion, 2 penalties) lost to Waihou 32 (J O’Connor, D Sheehan, C Bracey, L Tevita tries; Sheehan, H Tafolo 2 conversions, Tafolo 2 penalties).
Referee: Ryan Rogers.
Senior B
Thames 26 beat Ngatea 12
Paeroa 55 beat Hauraki North 7
Coromandel 28 beat Waihi Athletic 0
Tairua 40 beat Waihou 12
Mercury Bay, COBRAS, Whangamata byes
Women’s
Waikato Invitational XV 10 beat Vixens XV 0
Under 21
Rugby United 57 beat Varsity 15
Under 19
College Rifles 59 beat Rua-North 12
