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- By Scott MacLean
All roads (actually one road so plan your journey accordingly) lead to Kilbirnie and Evans Bay Parks tomorrow with no fewer than eight club rugby finals at these two neighbouring grounds.
The day culminates in the presenting of the 97th Jubilee Cup sometime after 4.30pm to either Tawa or Hutt Old Boys Marist.
It is also a key round of college matches tomorrow, heading into next weekend’s semi-finals, while Rahui and Foxton meet in the Horowhenua-Kapiti Premier final in Levin.
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Tipping Competition: Enter your tips by Saturday 2. 30pm at: https://www.faceyoursfears.com/games/WGTN2025/join – it’s the final round and several pundits are still in the hunt to win.
Radio and streaming coverage: There will be more glass than an atomic detonation on Finals Day tomorrow, with a number of live streams and photographers trained on every kick-off, scrum, sidestep and try being scored. This website will carry one feed to collate them all so you don’t have to go looking, published on Saturday morning.
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Draws & Results website. These pages and all historical information 2005-24 at at https://clubrugby.co.nz/wellington/games-results.php?competition=71&season=22&Submit=Go (Access to our administration pages still remains offline for 2025)
For Draws & Results please visit this page here: https://clubrugby.nz/wp/2025-wgtn-club-live-scores/
For this week’s line-ups please visit the article link here:
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Premier Jubilee Cup
Tawa (2) vs Hutt Old Boys Marist (4)
The major championship final will be played out between the two sides that eventually prevailed in last Saturday’s pulsating semi-finals, with HOBM having come back from the nearly dead to beat Pare-Plim at the death and Tawa needed 100 minutes to conquer Johnsonville. Both teams are in double-digits in terms of their wins tally, with Tawa having won 12 of their 15 outings this season while HOBM are 11 from 15 but one of those was the Swindale meeting between the pair that saw HOBM win 27-17 at Lyndhurst back in mid-May.
In team news Tawa make just one change, with Matolu Petaia’s involvement in today’s Lions pre-season match ruling him out (at this stage). His place in the XV is taken by veteran Tito Ioane, with Saimoni Roraqio moving to Petaia’s blindside flank. Their only other change is on the bench with Malosi Luafalealo replacing Jacob Mua. HOBM go with the same XV that started against Pare-Plim with just one change on the bench, with Nui Muriwai also involved today Joseph Pinfold replaces him in the side.
So what are the match-ups to watch? The Eagles bring a massive forward pack and how Tawa combats that will be significant in the outcome. Big Filo Paulo has found the fountain of youth in recent weeks and he alone can be destructive around ruck and maul. The contest between opensides Luke Bidois and Jordan Gillies could be telling as well. In the backs the clash between Tawa veterans Faraimo Nofoaiga and Nigel Hunt and their opposites Kapu Broughton-Winterburn and Sapati Tagoai will be of note, as will how Randall Bishop might be able to contain Fritz Rayasi on the wing. HOBMs bench carried them home last week, and its little surprise given where their strength is they’ve gone with a 5-2 split.
Kick-off is a 2.30pm.
The referee for this is Matt Thomas, who will be controlling his first Jubilee Cup final and 53rd Premier match in all. He’s assisted by Matt Perry and Charlie Harris who refereed the two semi-finals.
Premier Hardham VC Memorial Cup
Upper Hutt Rams (5) vs Poneke (7)
The prelude to the Jubilee Final gets underway at 12 noon, with the Upper Hutt Rams meeting home hosts Poneke for the Hardham Cup. While both sides would rather been in the following match, this piece of silverware is still a highly worthwhile prize. Both sides won nine matches in the Swindale (the same as HOBM) and two of their three playoff matches since. For the meeting between the two, we also need to go back to the same mid-May round where Tawa and HOBM met, with Poneke prevailing 30-22 on this same ground.
Poneke run out the same XV that started the win over OBU last week with just one change on the bench that sees Jacob Graham replace Isaiah Opai and go for a 5-2 split. The Rams are forced into a pair of changes in their pack with Leon Tuiloma on Lions duty today and Mat Luamanu an injury casualty from last Saturday’s win over MSP. Connor Lemon comes in in a straight swap at hooker, while Jack Wright replaces Luamanu with Tavis Polglase going into lock. Potene Rolls-Paewai replaces Scott Svenson at first-five with veterans Eli Hunt and Hokianga Morunga joining the bench.
Intrigue here starts up front and how the Rams combat their bigger Poneke opposites and in the loose where both sides have plenty of speed. How Rolls-Paewai and Carlos Hihi match wits will be of note, as will the midfield clash.
Zarne Johnson will be the referee here for his 31st Wellington Premier match, but his experience at this level goes back over a decade and to Hawkes Bay. His assistants are the two referees from last weeks semifinals in James Taylor and Ethan Jefferson.
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Premier 2 Ed Chaney Cup
Petone (1) vs Poneke (2)
There’s only one final where the top two seeds have survived to meet, and that is over on Evans Bay at 2.10pm when Petone take on locals Poneke in the Ed Chaney Cup decider after both enjoyed ultimately comfortable wins last Saturday. The Villagers are looking to emulate OBU last year and Tawa in the three years prior to that in winning the double, and have lost just once this season; ironically that came across Evans Bay parade on Kilbirnie Park to MSP. Poneke have won 12 of their 15 matches this season by comparison, but their loss to Petone was only by four points and their points-difference across the Harper Lock Shield was only eight points inferior.
The referee for this one is Stefan Wright.
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Premier 2 HD Morgan Memorial Cup
(This section written by editor-in-chief Steven White)
Tawa (5) vs Paremata-Plimmerton (9)
It’s not unusual to see the Tawa second-side in action on Finals day; they’ve been present each of the last four years. But seeing them in the HD Morgan decider is different, being more accustomed to playing for the Ed Chaney Cup. It was a slow start to their season which cost them a chance of the Harper Lock Shield, but their loss to the Upper Hutt Rams in the first-round of the playoffs put them here, but only after surviving a scare from Norths last Saturday. Pare-Plim are the opposition, and despite having lived around mid-table all season have hit form when it counts. They’ll be buoyed by last week’s stunning 45-43 win at Polo over Ories, and that they held Tawa to a narrow 10-12 loss at month ago. That game was played in a bog, with conditions likely to be somewhat better tomorrow on Evans Bay from 11:40am.
Veteran long-serving referee Scott MacLean will have the whistle for this one.
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Colts John E Kelly and Vic Calcinai Memorial Cups
Just like the final round clash for the Paris Memorial, the Colts championship John E Kelly Cup comes down to the Upper Hutt Rams (1) and Tawa (3). The Rams won that day and will be looking for the double while Tawa will be looking to flip that result around. With both winning pulsating semi-finals last weekend, this could be a classic. For more, check out our standalone preview from Wednesday. Kickoff is at 1.50pm on Kilbirnie #2.
The Vic Calcinai final before that at 11.20am is between Pare-Plim (9) and Norths (10) after they both won away last Saturday. It’s actually a repeat of last year’s final which Norths won at the death, while they also won this year’s previous encounter narrowly by two points.
Craig McWilliams will be in the middle for the Championship Final, with Simon Mallon taking charge of the Vic Calcinai Final.
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Under 85kg Paul Potiki Memorial and Tony O’Brien Shields
The lightweights are a welcome addition to the Finals day schedule, and will lead off both time blocks on Kilbirnie Park #3. First up at 11am is the Division 2 Tony O’Brien Shield decider, which sees Eastbourne and Pare-Plim meet for the second time in a week. The Gulls have won all three encounters with the Piranhas this year – 25-10 in the JC Bowl and 13-7 and 29-26 in the two matches in this round – but both sides that counts for nothing when in a one-off match when there’s silverware at stake.
Following that at 1.30pm is the championship Paul Potiki Memorial Shield decider, pitting defending champions Tawa (1) against their main challengers from just down the road, Johnsonville (2). The Ducks have been almost impervious this year with just a single loss to their name (against Wellington), but neither match against the Terrahawks have been easy despite winning both; 31-19 in the JC Bowl and 33-29 at month ago. That second result alone should give them the confidence they can topple the champs, but in any case expect this to be a torrid encounter.
Promising young referee Finn Mallon has the whistle for the Paul Potiki decider, while before him Chris Casey – who refereed the Johnsonville vs Wellington semifinal last Saturday – will be in charge of the Division 2 final.
In the event that any of these matches are tied after 80 minutes, then 10 minutes extra-time each way will be played in full – there is NO Golden Point: If still tied then the procedure is the most tries in the match including extra-time (as used in last year’s Women’s Final), but if equal it is their points-difference from the round-robin part of the season. In the case of the Under 85s, this is the second-round following the mid-season split.
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College
The Premiership reaches the conclusion of its round-robin tomorrow. Three of the semi-finalists have already been found in Silverstream (39), Wellington College (35), and St Pat’s Town (31). The race for who will join them is well alive though, with Rathkeale on 28 and Hutt International on 26 but neither have it easy; Rathkeale have a 12.00pm appointment on the slopes of Mount Victoria where Wellington College need a point to ensure they’re hosting next week, while HIBS are at home at the CIS Campus to face Town and they’ll know by the time kick-off there at 2.30pm happens if and what they’ll need to do. Silverstream will be looking for a clean sweep when they visit Tawa (7) while Scots (11) and St Bernard’s (5) go looking for a morale-boosting win when they meet in Strathmore, also both at 2.30pm. Rongotai (9) hosts Wairarapa College (14) in the second 12.00pm start.
The news about Premier 2 is that the three missed games will be played next weekend, so the finals are also pushed back a week as a result. After beating Hutt Valley HS last week, the Silverstream 2nds (35*) can wrap up top spot when they host their Wellington College counterparts (35) (11.30am), but WC can at least lock in a home semi if they secure a bonus-point win and deny the Streamers any points themselves. HVHS (35) will look to rebound when they visit Mana (10*) while Porirua (18) host the bottom-placed Town 2nds (6*) as they seek a playoff place, along with the Silverstream 3rds (18*), who host Kapiti (8*). All three of these matches are at 1pm.
The fifth match of the round has already taken place as Paraparaumu (22*) moved into fourth place for now with a 63-7 win over Bishop Viard (10) on Thursday afternoon.
(* denotes sides to play next week)
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Elsewhere
The postponement of all rugby in Horowhenua-Kapiti a few weeks back has pushed their finals day to tomorrow. All roads lead to the Levin Domain for a Foxton vs Rahui doubleheader with the Senior Reserve Bill Muir Cup raising the curtain for the Ramsbotham Cup final where the northerners are the defending champions and the Otaki side looking to exact revenge for last year’s defeat.
