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Big crowds and plenty of support around the club rugby venues in Wellington Saturday.
A high scoring round, with over 60 tries scored in the seven Swindale Shield matches played.
Round 4 matches this coming weekend at a glance:
The Colts Paris Memorial Trophy competition starts this coming Saturday. Draw out early this week.
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The week of rugby starts at 10.30am this morning at Rongotai College, where the home school hosts Nelson College. Nelson College defeated St Pat’s Town on Saturday. Update: Nelson College defeated Rongotai College 72-0.
On Thursday, Wellington College play visiting northern Sydney school Barker College at the NZCIS venue. Barker College defeated Scots College this weekend by a comfortable scoreline.
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What a debut by Marist St Pat’s centre Jack O’Brien on Saturday! The St Paul’s College (Hamilton) school leaver scored two tries and assumed the kicking duties. He kicked eight conversions and two penalties, for a personal haul of 32 points.
Also, MSP fullback Francis Mettrick scored a hat-trick of tries on debut in the same match.
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The Johnsonville Hawks beat the Hutt Old Boys Marist Eagles 42-7 – their first win over them since 2005.
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The Upper Hutt Rams started no fewer than six teenagers on Saturday against Wellington. First-year players Senio Sanele, Toby Mallon, and Devon Sopoaga were on their starting debut joining fellow first-year Emmanuel Solomona and second-year pair Pene To’o and Toby Crosby, who also captained the side. So here’s a challenge…has that ever happened before?
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At the opposite end of the spectrum is Jeff Makapelu. Currently coaching the Axemen’s Colts team, the ageless veteran came off the bench for Wellington on Saturday and scored the second of their tries. By our records that makes the Axemen the fifth team he’s scored for at Premier level alongside Tawa, Norths, Paremata-Plimmerton, and Johnsonville, as well as for Stokes Valley last season.
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And speaking of Stokes Valley, club legend Jamie Pita also pulled on the boots on Saturday and made a cameo off the pine in their Premier 2 loss to Upper Hutt. Records are sketchy, but one Valley supporter reckoned it’s “Game number 250+”
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Upper Hutt Rams first five-eighth Tynan Barrett is the competition’s leading points scorer after three rounds with 48 points. Tawa hooker Joyner Gaualofa has scored five tries.
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A reported 16-thousand strong crowd at Wellington Stadium for the Hurricanes on Saturday. Mid-afternoon Saturday rugby a success?
Perhaps this crowd proved to officials that they don’t need the rugby community as supporters anymore and deliberately schedule future matches in this timeslot, to court the entertainment crowd. Community rugby doesn’t need the revenue professional brings, so perhaps a clean separation between the two arms?
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Despite the clash with the Hurricanes game in town, big numbers watching on out at Maidstone though as the Premier game blew out more eyes turned to the #2 field where two of the clubs Reserve Grade sides – the Thirstys and Pirates – were doing battle.
The club also paid tribute to Junior Ram Paxton Leofo before both games after his passing in January after a battle with illness.
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Three Hurricanes props and two Hurricanes hookers in the 38-man New Zealand U20s squad named late last week.
Wellington players in the squad are: Bradley Crichton (Northern United), Peter Lakai (Petone) and Siale Lauaki (Tawa).
Four current Manawatu players in the squad. Player to watch: Feilding hooker Vernon Bason.
No Toby Crosby or Dominic Ropeti in the squad though, so New Zealand’s loss is the Wellington competition’s gain.
The squad is here in this NZRU article: https://www.allblacks.com/news/new-zealand-under-20-wider-squad-announced/
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Some personal milestones brought up by some of our Women’s players recently. Pare-Plim duo Roimata Parata and Ilona Taupau brought up their 50th and Blazer game respectively last Saturday, while on Saturday Norths’ Mariah Chadwick played her blazer game MSP’s Kelly Tuiatua-Laumalili her 50th (and blazer).
MSP also honoured Monica Tagoai for her representative success, and inaugurated a new honours board for their Women who have achieve 50 caps.
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Taradale are setting the hot pace in Hawke’s Bay club rugby. They have won their opening four matches with bonus points to be on 20 competition points in the Nash Cup. They beat Aotea 46-24 in the latest round.
Sheridan Rangihuna’s Napier Tech are also unbeaten through four outings, with one fewer bonus point. The former HOBM halfback scored 12 points in his side’s 22-12 win over Hastings Rugby & Sports.
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Injured Paremata-Plimmerton captain and lock James Corcoran would no doubt have give his left arm to be out on the field on Saturday assisting his side to their 39-3 win over Poneke. Instead, he was nursing a broken arm and commentating for Poneke TV. Shout out to Poneke TV too, a top notch set-up and some difficult venues to work at, and sharing t scaffolding media centre with the radio commentary team.
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An entertaining curtain-raiser at Ngati Toa Domain on Saturday, with Poneke’s second team winning 40-34, after jumping out to a big lead only to see the opposition reel this in. This was similar to the run of play the previous week when they beat their Rams counterparts 36-27.
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Recent WRRA referee Ryan McLean has returned to playing this year. Former collegaue James Taylor gave him his marching orders to the sin-bin late in the first half in the Poneke-Paremata-Plimmerton Harper Lock Shield fixture.
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The Poneke first-five in this same match above as listed was Ifeanyichukwu Nnebechukwu – a tough name to commentate!
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Some scrambling by Johnsonville officials re-registering second-five Olly Paotonu. He had been in Melbourne and was registered with an Australian club. He had to be released and signed back up to play in Wellington. His transfer came through on Friday morning and he lined up in the midfield in his team’s sizable win over the Eagles.
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Varsity and Old Boys Marist are joint leaders on 14 competition points in the Manawatu competition after three rounds. Varsity defeated Te Kawau 26-12 and Old Boys Marist beat Freyberg 34-17 in their matches this past weekend. Kia Toa defeated Feilding 26-11 in the third fixture.
Two of the three Women’s games saw centuries raised, with big wins for Old Boys Marist over College Old Boys and Kia Toa over Bush.
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Rahui were big winners over Waikanae in their Horowhenua-Kapiti Ramsbotham Cup competition match on Saturday at Otaki, winning 41-14.
The two other Premier matches saw Foxton defeat College Old Boys 31-19 and Paraparaumu march to a 53-14 win over Levin Wanderers. Ben O’Keeffe was the referee in this latter match.
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Happening tonight:
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When winning streaks end.
Having won 47 on the bounce, the Panasonic Wild Knights lost 44-28 to the Shizuoka Blue Revs this weekend in the penultimate Japan League One round-robin fixtures set of matches.
Also, Jackson Garden-Bachop kicked the winning conversion for the Kintetsu Liners in their 34-33 win over the Kobe Steelers – their first win of the season.
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Sky, the New Zealand broadcast rights holder for the 2023 Rugby World Cup, announced last week free-to-air coverage of this year’s tournament will screen on Prime.
As well as 48 matches broadcast live on Sky Sport, 12 matches will be broadcast on free-to-air channel Prime (six matches live).
Sky said live free-to-air coverage includes a semi-final, bronze final [that’s the playoff for third and fourth] and grand final.
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