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Above – Scott Waldom scored two tries on Saturday, you can’t teach an old wolf new tricks.
A bumper weekend of rugby just gone, and it gets better.
Confirmed school rugby this Wednesday at St Pat’s Silverstream and Porirua Park. The Silverstream First XV hosts Christchurch’s St Bede’s College at 11.00am at Silverstream No. 1. St Bede’s are currently second in the Crusa ders region First XV Championship and tipped over Christ’s College 20-15 on Saturday.
Aotea and Tawa Colleges meet at Jerry Collins Stadim at 6.00pm in a contest that doubles as a Beard Trophy defence for Tawa and a Wellington region Co-ed Cup qualifying match.
The Tawa College v Aotea College match is a Co-ed Cup semi-final, while the other semi-final is on Saturday between Upper Hutt College and Wainuiomata College.
The first round of the Premier 1 and 2 Wellington Schoolgirls rugby competition is this Wednesday afternoon/evening. Defending champions St Mary’s College open their account against Wellington East Girls’ College at Te Whaea at 5.30pm.
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Round 3 of the Jubilee and Hardham Cups are on Saturday. Check the draw HERE
The second round of the club rugby Women’s competition starts this coming weekend – check WRFU channels for the draw.
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Current Hutt Valley High School student Daniel Peckston has started a Facebook page for former Hutt Valley High School First XV players coaches and supporters to reconnect. “I am wanting to get as many people as possible that support HVHS rugby here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2150111998375196/?ref=share
If you have any questions please email Daniel at dpeckston318@gmail.com
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The Avalon Wolves U85kg side retained the first-round JC Bowl after a hard-fought 13-10 win over Paraparaumu up the coast. That competition still has a week to run, with the Wolves this weekend facing the one side to deny them an unbeaten campaign a year ago, when the Upper Hutt Rams beat them in an extra-time epic in the Paul Potiki Shield final.
There are two first-round titles left to be decided, both in the Reserve Grade. In Division 1 the Poneke Ruffnuts have an eight-point lead but the second-placed Upper Hutt Pirates have played one less game; a seventh straight win for the Ruffnuts will make all talk of playing moot. In Division 2 the Paremata-Plimmerton Punters need just a point against the Wests Mixed Veges this weekend to secure that title.
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Its very rare that someone plays in a game, and then gets to present a championship trophy that bears their name afterwards. Yet that’s exactly what transpired in a corner of Kilbirnie Park on Saturday afternoon as Ories legend and former Black Fern Rebecca Liua’ana not only put the boots on for the first time in several years and had a late cameo off the bench in their 50-17 win over MSP, but then handed over the first-round silverware to captain Joanah Ngan-Woo afterwards.
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Ories won the title despite only taking to the field five times with three of their opponents defaulting to them, and remarkably are yet to play at home at the Polo Ground this season; one of their “home” matches was at Ngati Toa Domain for Opening Day, another the televised match against Norths, and the other two were those defaults.
Try-scoring machine Ayesha Leti-l’iga was at it again. She had a hat-trick inside the first 15 minutes and a fourth by half-time which accounted for Ories’ total output in the first 40 minutes. A fifth after the break means her season tally now stands at 16 tries in 4 games, while her career club rugby tally is 107 tries in 48 games.
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Staying with the Women’s game, Leah Conley became the latest to join Norths’ 150 Club in their win over Petone where she celebrated by getting on the scoresheet. Still only in her mid-20’s after starting out while at Aotea College and having played numerous positions before settling in the loose forwards, Conley could yet take aim at the Wellington women’s record of just over 300 matches held by her former teammate Dawn Patelesio.
Hurricanes lock Hurricanes lock Isaia Walker-Leawere has signed a three-year contract with the Hawke’s Bay Magpies.
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Between 2014 and 2015 Hutt Old Boys Marist won 19 out of 20 games , including the Jubilee Cup in 2014 and the Swindale Shield in 2015. In the 2015 Jubilee Cup they were last. Will history repeat?
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Connor Garden-Bachop made his debut for Northern United on Saturday, playing alongside his brother Jackson. Five days earlier, Connor made his debut in Wellington provincial colours for the Wellington XV against the Manawatu XV.
In the same game, Norths No. 8 Luca Rees scored his 17th try of the season. But his sending off in the second half and possible spell coming up on the sideline could have wider implications.
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One of Wellington club rugby’s more colourful characters left these shores this morning, with HOBM and Wellington Lions halfback Sheridan Rangihuna departing to take up a contract with the Panasonic Wild Knights in Japan, coached by Robbie Deans. Not one to miss a moment of controversy, Rangihuna racked up nearly 100 appearances for the Eagles since his debut, the former NZ Schools and Under 20’s representative’s last on-field act was to lift the Swindale Shield two weeks ago.
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Rangihuna’s departure leaves just one of last year’s Lions halfbacks in town – in Tawa’s Kemara Hauiti-Parapara – with the third, Carlos Price, having shifted to the Waikato after last season. Wellington’s Isaac Bracewell and Hauiti-Parapara were the pair involved in last Monday’s trial match against Manawatu, and TJ Va’a might yet find that halfback is the avenue he takes to finally make good of his promise after some tidy performances there for Wainuiomata – although he left the field injured on Saturday. However we wonder what Petone’s Logan Henry has to do to earn a shot, having delivered composed performances for the best part of two seasons now, and even kept Price on the Villagers bench for much of last term.
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With big Kaliopasi Uluilakepa on Under 20’s duty and both Marcus Roil and Tyral Vigne injured, the well-travelled Adrian Barone answered the call to provide propping cover for Petone on Saturday and made his first appearance in a Wellington match since 2016.
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The Taranaki Rugby Football Union is investigating an “incident” that occurred after the Tukapa and Spotswood United premier match on 1 June 2019 at Sanders Park.
The Hurricanes ran in five tries to hand the Lions a damaging 37-17 loss in Johannesburg on Saturday.
The Lions will lament their missed opportunities. They dominated the collisions during the initial stages of the contest, but failed to translate that go-forward into territory and points. The Hurricanes did well to stifle and spoil at the breakdown.
The visitors made the most of their chances at the other end of the park. READ MORE HERE
The previous week the Hurricanes beat the Sharks 30-17 and they now return home to play the Blues this coming weekend, having already sealed the fourth home quarterfinal in a fortnight.
The Crusaders sealed top spot throughout the playoffs with a 66-0 win over the Rebels in Christchurch, while the Brumbies clinched the Australian conference with a 35-24 win over the Waratahs. Should the Hurricanes win their quarter-final they will have to get through the Crusaders in Christchurch.
The Hurricanes will be without Vaea Fifita for the next two weeks as he is suspended, while Beauden Barrett pulled out in the warm-ups against the Lions.
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Will the Crusaders change their name? If so, will the Northern Knights cricket team have to change their name too?
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Rugby in Australia at the professional level might be under the pump and perhaps heading towards breaking point. But not at the grassroots level in Sydney where over 10,000 people recently watched a Shute Shield match at the Manly Oval between the Manly Marlins and the Warringah Rats. It was also a pulsating game, with Manly leading 25-3 only for Warringah to storm home and win 31-25.
