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The Premier Jubilee and Hardham Cup competitions might be done and dusted for another year, but the rugby on this website and channel rolls on for another couple of months at least.
Indeed, there is loads coming up, particularly over the next three weeks or so as the rest of the lower grade club season intersects with the remainder of the college competitions and the start of representative rugby.
Look out here for our usual end of week previews and also our annual ‘calendar of rep rugby’ article with what post-club rugby season teams are in action, where and when (either this week or next). We will endeavour to stay on top of it all as best as possible but if we miss something please message us on social media or email editor@clubrugby.co.nz
This week, we have rugby this afternoon at Hutt Valley High School where the first XV hosts local rivals St Bernard’s College at 3.30pm.
On Wednesday the Premiership First XV season resumes at Evans Bay at 12.40pm (updated) when the St Pat’s Town and St Pat’s Silverstream sides meet.
On Saturday, club rugby sees the Reserve Grade Division 1 final between Ories and Poneke and round-robin Premier 2, Division 1, Colts, U85kg and Reserve Grade Division 2 competitions in action. Plus all college competitions.
The Wellington Pride are back on Sunday at Porirua Park against Waikato.
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Two hundred and thirty-one. That’s the tally of Premier matches for Oriental Rongotai icon Whetu Henry who signed off in his sides win over OBU in the Hardham Cup Final. Add in his numerous appearances for Wellington, the Wellington Maori, and other representative sides it’s been quite the shift. Club Rugby congratulates him on a terrific career.
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Speaking of tallies, this from OBU assistant manager Brad “Patches” Houlahan. The OBU Goats used a staggering 58 different players across the 17-game season with 31 of them pulling on the green and white hoops for the first time. Of the 22 in the Hardham Cup final, 13 have come through their Colts set-up.
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In a result we didnt have on Saturday evening, the OBU Scallywags held off a fast-finishing Wellington 29-26 in their Under 85s National Club Cup fixture at Nairnville Park on Saturday.
The Wellington Axemen U85’s scored a try from a 14-man lineout in their game against OBU in this match. Footage anywhere?
The Scallywags now face Poneke in a third-round clash with Upper Hutt facing Johnsonville, with both matches to be played next weekend in the last round of the Paul Potiki Shield before a straight final a week later.
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Referee Jack Sargentina controlled his 47th Premier game in the Jubilee Cup final on Saturday. Possibly his best performance too. Little interference and a game that really flowed.
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Boston Hunt is the second lock in as many years to win the Jubilee Cup Player of the Final platter, after Tawa’s Hemi Fermanis in 2021. The first winner of this was Tamati Ellison in 2004, who was in the stand on Saturday.
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Jackson Garden-Bachop has scored 973 points in 98 games for Norths.
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Petone scored 83 tries throughout the season, Norths dotted down 86 times.
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Disappointing the ground announcer was obnoxiously loud and mispronounced Hardham Cup. Hardham was one of 21 Kiwis to win the VC!
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What about a Player of the Match award for the Hardham Cup final?
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Pena Va’a (see below) has scored 39 tries in 53 matches for Ories.
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The lower ranked qualifier has won four of the last five Jubilee Cup finals. Norths (3) beat Wainuiomata (4) in 2019.
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Wellington club rugby 2022 top try and point scorers (Swindale Shield and Jubilee/Hardham Cups combined):
Tries:
- Pena Va’a (Ories) 14
- Riley Higgins (Petone) 13
- Kyle Preston (OBU) 13
- Losi Filipo (Norths) 12
- Todd Svenson (Upper Hutt Rams) 11
- Zane Ainslie (HOBM) 10
- Luca Rees (Norths) 10
- Callum Harkin (OBU) 8
- Toby Crosby (Upper Hutt Rams) 7
Points:
- Callum Harkin (OBU) 184
- Tynan Barrett (Upper Hutt Rams) 173
- Jackson Garden-Bachop (Norths) 135
- Andrew Wells (MSP) 131
- Carne Green (Petone) 91
- Zane Ainslie (HOBM) 99
- Trent Renata (Tawa) 89
- Pakai Turia (Poneke) 89
- Mark Sutton (Johnsonville) 78
- Brandyn Laursen (HOBM) 77
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In the Reserve Grade Division 1 John Davies Cup semi-finals, the Ories Vatos maintained their unbeaten run with a 40-14 win over fourth placed the Petone Brotherhood. The Poneke Ruffnuts edged the Johnsonville Cripples 24-22 in the 2 v 3 playoff match, making it an all-eastern surburbs final this coming Saturday.
A thrilling result in the Reserve Grade division 2 grade competition on Saturday, with the OBU Teddy Bears and the Paremata-Plimmerton Punters fighting out a 45-45 draw in the division 2 Allan Seerup Cup competition. In the same competition, the MSP Internationals earned their fifth straight bonus point win, beating the OBU 69ers 62-14. The final round is this coming Saturday before the semi-finals.
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Wayne Barnes has refereed the All Blacks 20 times and we’ve 12 of those Tests. George Gregan beat the All Blacks 12 times in 29 tests.
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We’ll presume we’ll find out just who won the Billy Wallace Best & Fairest at some point. It’s appalling that one of the major and most popular awards has been allowed to slip into near obscurity, with the last publication of points coming two months ago.
Similarly, it is understood a new trophy is to be awarded called the Board of Directors Cup, which is to be awarded to the club that who has made the most positive contribution throughout the club season (or similar connotations). But what about the long-standing historic Griffiths Memorial (awarded to best team) and Junior Merit (awarded to club with best team average) trophies, awarded for similar reasons? Why aren’t these on offer anymore?
Still on the subject of trophies, the first round Colts Trophy for the Paris Memorial Trophy is actually now the Paris Memorial Trophy 2.0, following the disappearance of the original in 2020. If anyone knows the whereabouts of this please let Club Rugby know (confidentially of course) and perhaps we can help recover it from a student flat or the depths of Lake Taupo as the case may be! The [new] Paris Memorial quickly made its way to Porirua Park on Saturday and was seen in the crowd amongst Petone supporters.
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The Wellington Pride bounced back from their opening round shocker against Canterbury to beat Counties Manukau 27-19 to record their first win in the Farah Palmer Cup yesterday. It was the first time they’ve beaten the Heat away from home. Ayshea Leti-iiga has scored 54 tries in 41 games for Wellington.
It was a game of table-tennis at times, with numerous turnovers and penalties between two similarly styled teams.
The Canterbury v Auckland Farah Palmer Cup game was an absolute beauty. Canterbury won 33-27 after being ahead 26-7 and down 26-27. Both sides scored five tries each with one try traveling the length of the field and involving nine players. Well worth a look.
What about this new one in rugby – “water breaks.” From what we can see, teams can now call water breaks during stoppages in play, up to twice per team, so four per game. Each one of these is like a 90-second (in reality a couple of minutes) halftime huddle, akin to a basketball or volleyball timeout. The purpose of these appears to be to prevent water boys and coaches etc running on to the field and directing their payers throughout the match in an ad hoc fashion. Okay, well if this to be a new thing then surely the number of these needs to be reduced and a strict time limit needs to be adhered to (so Sky can start scheduling more advertising in this segment if nothing else). It also gives the tiring players rests, and we suggest that rugby needs to go the other way and the idea is to tire these players out (and eight substitutions, not counting injuries, is about four too many) so the game opens up and smaller and specialist players can come into their own as the game develops.
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Both Horowhenua-Kapiti and Wairarapa Bush have named squads for their preparations for the Heartland Championship, with a number of Wellington players or players with Wellington connections included. Horowhenua-Kapiti have included Norths loose forward Callum Watts-Pointer, who may still be wearing his playing kit from Saturday’s Jubilee Cup Final as you read this, while other names that will be familiar include Hamish Buick, Leon Ellison, and Imanueli Bese. Former OBU captain Jonathan Fuimaono is listed amongst those unavailable for selection. Over the Remutaka’s Ben Brooking (Petone), James Coburn (Wellington), and Tafa Tafa (Upper Hutt Rams) are in Wairarapa Bush’s squad along with recent Wellington club players Jack Loader, Soli Malatai, Charles Mataitai, and veteran prop Tolu Fahamokioa.
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Perhaps a more well known name to wider rugby audiences is Alapati Leiua. The former Porirua College and Northern United Jubilee Cup winner has been playing overseas for several seasons since leaving Wellington and the Hurricanes. He returns to New Zealand to join the Waikato NPC squad.
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A group of 2021 Wellington First XV players named in Otago’s U19 squad late last week, including Xavier Bell (St Pat’s Town), Archie Tredwell (Scots College), Ashton Teau (Wellington College), Jacob Waikari-Jones (Wellington College), Eric Lawson (Scots College) and Tony Solomona (St Pat’s Silverstream).
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Wellington’s all-time leading try scorer Bernie Fraser turned 69 this week.
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Mount Maunganui pipped Te Puna 27-26 in the BoP Baywide Premier club rugby final on Saturday:
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An interesting hat-trick of club titles for former Norths halfback Campbell Woodmass. Already a winner of the Jubilee Cup and Auckland’s Gallaher Shield (with Ponsonby), he added the Taranaki title to his resume as Tukapa retained the title by beating favourites Clifton 22-21 in the final on Saturday. It was all the more sweeter for the Chooks as the final was played at Vogeltown Park, home of their bitter rivals New Plymouth Old Boys. Tukapa fullback Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens scored a hat-trick of tries in his side’s win. Read more HERE
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Talking of halfbacks, word at Jerry Collins Stadium on Saturday was that OBU halfback Kyle Preston has been called into the Lions squad to replace HOBMs Connor Collins who were are told suffered a torn pectoral muscle in the Eagles semi-final defeat to Norths. If correct, its a deserved elevation for one of the form players of the competition.
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Forwards coach John Plumtree and backs coach Brad Mooar have parted ways with the All Blacks coaching group, replaced by Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan.
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Sister Frances Marie who had a profound impact on generations of St Patrick’s College, Silverstream old boys passed away aged 101 this week. R.I.P. Sister.
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England women’s rugby captain Sarah Hunter has 78 tests, 61 wins, 1 draw and 16 defeats in charge of her country. Only the following men can claim to have captained an international side more often.
- Richie McCaw (New Zealand, 110 tests, 97 wins),
- Sergio Parisse (Italy, 94 tests, 18 wins),
- Brian O’Driscoll (Ireland, 84 tests, 52 wins) and
- John Smit (South Africa, 83 tests, 54 wins)
She eclipsed Will Carling for most wins as England captain. Carling had 59 tests for 44 wins, Martin Johnson 39 tests for 34 wins, including the 2003 World Cup win.
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Woodlands won its third straight Galbraith Shield Southland Premier club rugby title with a 28-27 victory over Pirates-Old Boys on Saturday.
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Club Rugby Photos:
https://clubrugby.smugmug.com/2022/2022-Jubilee-and-Hardham-Cups
