Whiti te Ra take grand final spoils
Whiti Te Ra are Wellington rugby league champions after a season whitewash that left their big city neighbours licking their wounds.
The men in green from Otaki triumphed 26-24 over the defending-champion Te Aroha Eels in a hard-fought final at the Hutt Recreation Ground on Saturday.
The Wellington Rugby League chairman said the speed of their success, after joining the competition this year, has left the other clubs surprised.
Adding wins in two playoff matches to 18 consecutive roundrobin wins, Whiti Te Ra achieved an unbeaten season.
The victory comes after Whiti Te Ra won three titles in a row in Manawatu, and moved to Wellington this season in search of sterner competition.
Despite their achievements, manager Shanti Davis said his team still has room for improvement
‘‘We’ll come back even better and stronger.
‘‘We weren’t at our best this season ... we haven’t performed at a hundy.’’
This year’s win was more satisfying than the previous ones.
‘‘Just because the compe- tition’s a lot harder. Back when we were playing in Manawatu we didn’t even train in the last year. We just played touch.’’
On Saturday both sides scored five tries and exhibited steely defence at times, and Whiti Te Ra fullback Himiona Henare’s extra goal was the only difference on the scoreboard.
Te Aroha led 14-12 at half-time. Whiti Te Ra overturned the deficit to lead 26-24 with 15 minutes to go, and held on.
‘‘It was 15 minutes waiting for the whistle to blow. I was asking the match manager what the time was every minute,’’ Davis said.
He said the side backed their defence in the closing stages.
‘‘[The message was] to never say die and to have each other’s backs ... our team’s pretty good at that.’’
He said a crowd of about 400 watched the game, creating a boisterous atmosphere.
‘‘It was crazy ... the crowd were going nuts. Every hit. Every run.’’
Interest in rugby league has grown in Otaki this season. Davis said the club will try and field a reserve team alongside their premiers in 2017.
Wellington Rugby League board chair Darren Rewi said other clubs will be licking their wounds.