Thames Valley Rugby
The province took a step up against the first-tier rugby provinces with the entry of their Swamp Foxes (men) and Vixens (women) sides into the Northern Region Provincial 7s.
This three-week series challenged the Valley players against the stronger opposition of Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Countiesmanukau and Northland. Whangamata¯ hosted the first weekend of this tournament then off to Pukekohe for round 2. The main event was held at Pohe Island, home of Northland Rugby, Whanga¯ rei last Saturday.
The Swamp Foxes went down early in pool play to Bay of Plenty 7-31 and North Harbour 5-29. With confidence still high, they went into their final pool match against Waikato with nothing to lose. Against a quality Waikato team, featuring noticeable players Luke Masirewa, Newton Tudreu and Fletcher Morgan, Thames Valley pulled off a remarkable upset victory 14-10. A late team try scored by Jarrod Gellert sealed the victory on the fulltime hooter. Playing Northland in the semifinal, the emotional roller coaster eventually caught up with the team, going down 14-26 and then losing the Bowl Final to Bay of Plenty. The Swamp Foxes were able to blood in three players all under the age of 20 years old, Korbin Chwesik, Max Baker and Fozz Gilbert all of whom have had great 2023 seasons. They performed and contributed to the Valley with quality play.
Dane Mathew of Mercury Bay was a consistent standout performer after his experience in the Heartland Championship this season. As were Charlie Best with pace and energy on attack, and Eliki Sicinilawa who was an enforcer on defence.
The Vixens also created history by beating North Harbour (12-10) in the Bowl Final of the Women’s Competition. For the first time, a Heartland Provincial Union Women’s team claimed a scalp against a Farah Palmer Cup Provincial Union. The Vixens’ defensive effort late in the match was the difference between the two teams, sustaining pressure and forcing a mistake. This capped off a challenging three weeks for the Vixens, with a large number of players falling to injury and unavailability.
Earlier in pool play, the Vixens lost to Bay of Plenty 0-22, North Harbour 0-14 and Waikato 7-22. This victory over North Harbour continues to solidify and build on the success and growth we are witnessing in the Women’s space within the Thames Valley.
For the Vixens, Cory Middleton who lives in Coromandel but played for the Hauraki North Diamonds put in a massive shift each week. As was fellow Diamond, Natasha Forsythe, who was involved in everything and continues to show her talent.
It was also a prime opportunity for two secondary school students, Josey Hansen (Paeroa College) and Dana Lang (Hauraki Plains College) who never took a backward step and again showed the talent we have coming through our female ranks.
Thames Valley Rugby thank the key volunteers who led the teams throughout the campaign, Brendan Clark (Vixens) and Scott Paterson, Steven Hill, Jason Simpson and Tamsin Armstrong (Swamp Foxes).