If you, like me were lucky enough to be at the Taihape Rec on Saturday then you know what I mean when I say we had the pleasure of watching our boys play and win two great games of rugby. Saturday was absolutely, emphatically, with whipped cream and a cherry on top the best game of rugby I have ever seen the Taihape Premiere Team play if not any team play! The supporters lined the sidelines and filled the grandstand and as earlier stated we were not disappointed with our Seniors score line at 15 all half time and 54-15 fulltime. Not to be outdone our Premieres score was 17-0 halftime and remained the same to the full time score. There was some great rugby played on Saturday and by the end of the game this sentiment was reflected by pretty much every rugby critic/supporter who watched the games. On the Seniors game things were fairly even in the first half with Rodger Gilbert leading his team from the front and crashing over for one of the tries. There were so many guys that stood out with some excellent effort coming from the forward pack.Mr Consistent Jay Rewai continues to provide great leadership in the team and he was one of the 9 guys who crossed the try line in the game. Other try scorers included Matana brothers Kiel and Tane, Jason Huxtable, Malcolm Rata, Wade Teepa, Cyrus Tasi, and seasoned player Simo Nepe. Wade Teepa continues to totally excel and he won Player of Day third week running. After a 15 all draw at half time the second half was a try fest for our boys. Young Hoani Woodhead made his presence felt and excellent to see Jericho Lucas back on board playing some solid rugby. New comers Rangi-herehere Broad and Aidan Mcnaught played some good rugby and Mike Loye also did good work. Big man Cyrus Tasi was devastating as always and Wal Thompson got stuck in. Clint and his team will be happy with the effort put in by his boys this week but Im sure he will have some areas that he wants his boys to work on. Pre-match team talk by Coach Kerry Whale aka Sharkie gave his Prems team the motivation and inspiration to want the win and to do everything in their power to ensure they got it! The first half was a total joy to watch. The forwards dominated up front and the positional play was spot on. Tom Wells played a pivitol role in the game and his boot helped to pin point where on the field the army of red and black players needed to be. Spending pretty much a third of the first half in opposition territory the red and black army could at times be likended to a row of tanks which just could not be penetrated. Sargeant at Arms Richie Iorns led by example and was closely followed by the rest of the engine room players Rimu Wipaki, Matiu Teepa, Johnson Hiroa, and Slade Hay Horton. Captain Tremaine Gilbert had a punishing game as did his fellow loosies Dylan Maloney and Timi Teepa who hunted and made the most of every opportunity by scoping up loose ball and all round had great games. New comer Brett Nicholls is proving his metal and it will be interesting to see how far this guy goes. Cyrus Paringatai and Jezza Gilbert ensured our back three of Jaye Flaws , Dane Whale and James Barrett were fed the ball which in turn created open space that caused headaches for the opposition defenders. All our points were had in the first half with a great try from Tremaine Gilbert and a clever try by Slade Hay Horton. Tom Wells took both conversions and a penalty which gave us the 17 nil half time score. The second half was an absolute heart stopping game to watch at times. With no scores in this half from either team the red and black army continued to contest everything that came their way. In the end the furious and constant pressure they put on the opposition led to play that was picked up on by the Ref who in the space of 10 minutes had 3 guys sitting in the sin-bin. The defence was superb and showed the many supporters and the boys themselves that if you stand Shoulder to Shoulder 9 times out of 10 you can stop a raging bull! During this time Ratana came close to our try line on multiple occasions however the strength kicked in and our boys formed a wall of defence. The fresh legs and drive from reserves Marcus Totman, Johnno Maxwell, Travis Phillips and Cyrus Tasi were a welcome respite. Marcus Totman had his first game of the season and it was a pearler, Cyrus Tasi was consistent as a great impact player and Travis continues to improve his game. At the after-match function Kerry Whale welcomed our Ratana whanau and gave an inspiring speech about the history between the two clubs as well as the many connections that exist. We were treated again by an awesome haka by our visitors and the last words were given to Ref Gordon Ririnui. His take on the game was and I quote 17 points in the first half and nothing in the second, That was War!!!!For me those words pretty much sums that game up! A quick mention to boys that have sustained injuries like Luke Whale, Wiremu Lawrence, Tyler Ashworth, and Corey Teepa who continue to support the teams and club. Kia Kaha boys! To all those people behind the scenes such as Terry Baird, Dave Sargison, Al Aplin, Nobby and other committee members thank you , thank you thank you! To Hau, Anthony, Bossy and the rest of the team management thanks for your continued contribution to keeping the back running. It was excellent to see Aunty Tahi Chase and Nan Barrett at the aftermatch as well as our players wives, girlfriends, children, friends and parents. This week both teams will be travelling over to Waverley to play Border which is a start of a new mission. Kia Kaha Boys, as supporters of this club we share in all of your successes but more importantly are their to pick you up and stand with you when times are tough. Have a good week people. Enjoy your weekend and hope to see you on the sideline. Till next week ... Ka kite!!!
Posted on: Mon, 14 Apr 2014 08:59:03 +0000
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