Steelers in three way race for survival

Counties Manukau’s race to avoid dropping down to the second tier of the Mitre 10 Cup continues in Palmerston North tonight.

Darryl Suasua and his nervous Steelers face hosts Manawatu at Central Energy Trust Arena in a match that may well decide their fate in the premiership division.

A bonus point victory against a side sitting third in the championship standings will keep them in the hunt for a place in semi final. It will also keep in tact the three point cushion the fifth placed Steelers’ enjoy over their southern neighbours.

A loss, on the other hand, will pile on the pressure going into their final game of the round robin against Tasman in Pukekohe. It could leave them in last place if Waikato get up over North Harbour and Auckland down Tasman this weekend.

The Steelers earned themselves a little breathing space with a scrappy 25-16 win over Northland on a wet and windy ECOLight Stadium in Pukekohe last Sunday. It took a late try and penalty to substitutes Stephen Donald and Luteru Laulala to put the match against the Taniwha out of reach.

Before the match, the Steelers publicly farewelled DJ Forbes, the New Zealand Sevens legend who came to Counties Manukau from Auckland in 2008.

Forbes played 36 games for Counties Manukau between 2008 and 2015. The number would have been greater were he not so involved with sevens where he carved out a stellar career as a player and captain. He played in over 60 tournaments, won six Sevens World Series titles and two Commonwealth Games gold medals.

Counties Manukau chief executive Bart Hoggard acknowledged Forbes and his stellar career before presenting him with a montage of photos from his years at Counties Manukau.

He presented Forbes, an openside flanker, with Counties Manukau jersey with the No.7 on it.

In women’s rugby, the Counties Manukau under-18s are the No. 2 team in the Chiefs region and fourth in the Northern region after they lost 22-14 to Auckland West in the playoff for third and fourth.

And the Counties Manukau Heat will be well rested going into their Farah Palmer Cup match against Wellington in Porirua on Saturday. They’ll be pumped up after having lost to Canterbury in their last outing.