Foxton put in big shift in loss to Ka¯ piti club
10-point margin for Paraparaumu
Paraparaumu defeated Foxton in sunny conditions at Easton Park on Saturday. The match was evenly contested with Paraparaumu slotting an early penalty to take a 3-0 lead.
This was until a backline move down the right hand side of the field saw Foxton’s right wing score on the clubrooms side of the field.
This settled the flow of the game until a mistake cost Foxton. They were penalised with Paraparaumu taking the lead back at 6-5 on the scoreboard.
With continued pressure from the Foxton forward pack and quick distribution to the backs, Foxton three-quarter Trevior Owens scored near the posts making the score 12-6.
Paraparaumu set up and put the pressure on the Foxton forwards to score a try of their own.
This was followed by a late penalty when Foxton lock Kale Erikkson was sin binned, making the score 14-12 with Paraparaumu leading at the halftime break.
Assistant coach Garry Phelps from Paraparaumu said, “We need to keep our composure, as we know with our defence, this will help us win the game.
“[We were] keeping our line speed, and keeping our connections, putting the men on the deck . . . with this we can live and play some more rugby,” he added.
Foxton assistant coach Kenny Hill said, “Our start wasn’t all that great really, from a bit of a lacklustre warm up from us.
“It was like we didn’t want it enough, and Paraparaumu stuck at it and fought back to take the lead.
“Paraparaumu just play like that, however, I’m glad the boys fought back at the end there which has been better than previous weeks.
“There was also a bit of an
impact from players on the bench. The game in the second half became more intense and
evenly fought, where previously we had sort of chucked in the towel, but to finish like we did shows there is still some promise.
“We kept fighting till the end,” Hill said.
Two quick tries to the visitors saw Paraparaumu extend their lead after the break to 26-12. This was from the big lock forwards from Paraparaumu making breakouts up the middle of the field.
Foxton fought back to score a well deserved try taking the score to 26-19 but Paraparaumu, from a break out of their half, managed a further try extending their lead to 33-19. They also kicked another penalty before Foxton replied with a late converted try.
With time up, it was too late to shut the gate with Paraparaumu winning, 36-26. Standout player for Paraparaumu was right wing Darren Falaniko, with Foxton’s standout player
being Canaan Hapeta-Tekura.
At the after match, Windsor Honotapu was presented with his blazer by coach Tipu Luke, for playing his 30th game for Foxton.