Country rugby at its grassroots best
Bebbington Shield a sign of good health
Country rugby celebrated another big moment when Central Hawke’s Bay successfully defended sub-unions’ prize the Bebbington Shield with a 27-20 win over Dannevirke at Tikokino on Saturday.
But the only match for the centuryold trophy this year was hardly the stroll of recent Bebbington Shield defences, when CHB beat Dannevirke 45-19 last year, Northern Whanganui 76-13 in 2018, and Rangitikei 65-10 in 2014.
CHB had players from all four subunion clubs which played senior rugby in Hawke’s Bay this year and solid representation from Waipukuraubased Premier club Central. It could have been forgiven for anticipating a significant win again on Saturday and completing a double after CHB beat Dannevirke 44-0 in the Colts curtainraiser.
The Dannevirke senior side had just a sprinkling of players with premier club rugby experience, and was chosen from just two clubs — Hawke’s Bay Division 1 beaten finalists Aotea and Manawatu Division 2 champions Dannevirke Sports.
But coaches Steve Baker (CHB) and Nigel Castles (Dannevirke), each of whom had played in past matches, rated it a “good arm-wrestle” — a five tries to four affair which after an early CHB breakaway was anyone’s at 22-20 to CHB when the visitors scored their fourth unconverted try, entering the last 20 minutes.
In front of about 400 people at a game hosted by the Onga-Tiko club, who fields just a Colts side, it was a good way to make a point about both country rugby and the once big tradition of sub-union matches in Hawke’s Bay.
CHB looked set to dominate when opening with tries to fullback and Waipawa Country United player Josh Wardle and Otane midfielders Daz Pere and Etene Gaucake, Pere converting his own from near the posts to make it 17-0 after just 25 minutes.
Dannevirke struck back with tries to fullback and former Hawke’s Bay Magpie Waka Petera and big prop Gene Ropoama to close the gap to 17-10 at halftime.
Central club hooker Max Fryatt scored early in the second half, Dannevirke blasted back with tries to No 8 Jacob Stephenson and centre Trent Conway, before CHB got the ball out left for wing Mark Donald to wrap up the scoring with a try in the corner about five minutes from the end.
CHB were still able to muster a strong side, despite the absence of up to 10 of the area’s top players who have commitments to the Magpies and other upper levels of the game.
The match was a triumph for those trying to restore sub-union rugby and the Bebbington Shield to some of its former glory, with CHB still maintaining up to six clubs in recent seasons, amid a general decline in numbers of smaller town and country clubs nationwide.
The Shield travels with a diary of results and match reports, started soon after the trophy was first presented in 1921. The “bible”, they call it, has a gap of four years from 2014 to 2018 because CHB struggled to find challengers, including 2017 when Rangitikei pulled out a day before they were to have travelled from Marton to Waipukurau for the game.
Team medic and Waipawa Country vice-president Jacqui Cudby says the concerns led to the gathering of two players or recent players from each club to get Shield rugby going again, to provide opportunities for players who still wanted more rugby after the end
of the club competitions.
It has asked the Hawke’s Bay rugby union to consider some level of restoration of the once-popular sub-union rugby in the region, which included an early season sub-unions’ day in which six areas were represented, a concept otherwise kept alive only by the Ross Shield tournament for intermediate and primary players from Napier, Hastings, Hastings West, Wairoa, CHB and Dannevirke.
Whatever, CHB are not hanging around waiting for something to happen. They have become regular preseason opponents for provincial sides looking for match practice ahead of the Heartland championship, having played both Wairarapa Bush and Horowhenua Kapiti in recent years and they are hopeful of a match against King Country next winter.
“It’s the next level,” said Cudby. “Hopefully more players will be able to go on to higher honours.”
CHB were beaten 59-12 by Horowhenua Kapiti last year, but coach Baker reckons it’ll be much more competitive on Saturday when the two sides meet at Otane Domain.
The Hawke’s Bay Magpies Ranfurly Shield and Bunnings NPC Premiership squad celebrated a last pre-competition match with a 33-29 win over CountiesManukau in Taupo¯ on Friday. The return to the top level of the NPC starts with a match against Taranaki on Saturday.
Among other results over the weekend, Hastings Boys’ High School and Napier BHS each had wins in the Super 8 schools first XV championship on Saturday.
Hastings beat Tauranga Boys’ College 22-8, guaranteeing a place in the August 14 final. HBHS retain the hope of an unbeaten record as they play defending champions Hamilton BHS in the last round-robin match on Saturday. Napier BHS are already out of the running ended but beat New Plymouth BHS 27-24.
In the 10-team Central North Island schools competition, bottom placed St John’s College of Hastings were beaten 50-7 by unbeaten leaders St Peter’s School in Cambridge.
Lindisfarne’s last round-robin doubles as a traditional fixture between the schools in Hastings tomorrow, with the same two sides set to meet again in a fifth to eighth place playoff just four days later, again in Hastings.
Two other matches at Park Island, Napier, saw Poverty Bay scoring a double against fellow Heartland union Wairarapa Bush. It won the Heartland teams match 36-31 and the opening match of the Hurricanes Heartland unions’ Under 20 series 26-19.