- By Neville Shirley
We were back home at Bell Park on Saturday for a finals weekend with three of our teams fighting for Pakuranga United Rugby Club.
The Under 85s’ played their final against the Ponsonby Hustlers – which they won 10-3 – as the certain-raiser for the Premiers, putting the first trophy in the cabinet.
The Premier Development team made it two from two and advanced to their final by beating Ponsonby.
The Premiers’ semi-final against Marist kicked off with the home team playing with the chance to make it to the final the following week at Eden Park.
Early exchanges saw Marist putting pressure on the Pakuranga 22 which resulted in conceding a converted penalty just two minutes in.
Pakuranga manoeuvred their way into the Marist 22 on the back of a great scrum.
Our forwards muscled their way to the goal line and broke through for a try to Gafe Sua which George Sims converted.
Marist grabbed another penalty and scored a try which was converted to make it 13-7 to Marist at half time.
Into the second half and Pakuranga had the running, with penalties coming on a regular basis.
Three penalties were converted by George Sims, putting Pakuranga ahead 16-13.
As the ground dried out the backs came into their own with some great play on the back of a dominant forward performance.
A mismatch in the backline allowed Michaile Van Wyk to score out wide. The try was unconverted but gave Pakuranga an 8-point buffer.
Marist intensified their attack and forced their way into our 22.
A penalty was conceded and a player was sent to the bin. That penalty was converted to make it 21-16.
With nine minutes left to play and a man down this was going to take a mammoth effort on the part of the forwards to keep the Marist players from scoring.
Every player stepped up and they held onto the ball, keeping possession away from Marist.
They only conceded territory on one occasion, with the rest of the play staying in the Marist half.
To the crowd’s relief the final whistle was blown, making it three wins for Pakuranga from three matches as the game ended 21-16.
There were a number of players who stood out, the best of which were player of the day Sean Carter, followed closely by Tane Dunn and Stetfano Leavasa.
A great result for the club, sponsors and supporters.
We’re hoping for as many people as possible to travel to Eden Park for both finals on Saturday.
The club has a special event organised for the day with buses available for supporters.
Watch for notices on how and when. Thanks again for your support and our lads will continue to do you proud.
