Kautai Performer of the Week for Round 6

This week’s Club Rugby Performer of the Week is Harmony Kautai, Petone Ponies centre/left wing.

Kautai has been in sizzling form for the co-first round Women’s competition winners.

In five matches played she has scored 17 tries, which is Ayesha-esque. This includes a five-try haul and four hat-tricks.

On Saturday she scored three tries in Petone’s 51-20 win over Ories and her team won the Rebecca Liua’ana Trophy, to be shared with Norths over the next 12 months.

Kautai made her Women’s NPC debut for the Hawke’s Bay Tui as a teenager out of unheralded rugby school Karamu High School.

She moved to Wellington to play for Petone and the Pride in 2023 and in two seasons has played 12 matches and scored nine tries for the Pride. She has also played nine games for the Hurricanes Poua, scoring three tries.

In Wellington club rugby, she has scored 30 tries in 17 matches.

The Women’s second round gets underway this coming Saturday, with Petone, Norths, Ories and MSP lining up in the tier 1 Tia Paasi Memorial Cup. Games this weekend see Petone host MSP and Ories host Norths.

The Division 2 Izzy Ford Cup opening round sees Avalon and Paremata-Plimmerton meet at Fraser Park and Wainuiomata and Pōneke play at William Jones Park in the former’s Old Timers’ Day.

The second round competitions are three-week round-robins, followed by a semi-finals weekend and finals on Saturday 21 June.