Boo-hoo for Mooloo: Shield goes south for the summer
The Log o’ Wood is heading south for the summer.
Otago battled their way to a 23-19 victory over Waikato to lock away the Ranfurly Shield in Dunedin for the first time since 2013, and with it, a home Championship semifinal.
This was Shield rugby at its finest: two provincial powerhouses battling to end strong seasons with a bang on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Hamilton.
The visitors laid down the challenge early — jumping on every loose ball, celebrating every turnover — and rushed out to a quick 17-0 lead through three tries in the first 20 minutes.
Waikato — one of the most entertaining sides this season — reacted instead with a more pragmatic brand of footy, camping in Otago’s 22 for the rest of first half.
The sustained period of pressure paid off for the Mooloos as the first half buzzer sounded, with winger Tyler Campbell crossing over in the corner through a perfectly constructed set piece for their second try.
It was more of the same for Waikato in the second half, with prop Toby Smith eventually making it a one-point game — after Fletcher Smith’s conversion — with a 50th minute try.
But Otago would earn a couple of penalties in quick succession at the other end, ultimately proving the difference in the game.
After opting against going for goal moments earlier, on a second Waikato penalty in the kicking zone, Otago’s No 10 Josh Ioane — who strikes the ball as purely as anyone in the country — decided to take the points and slotted a crucial threepointer to put Otago ahead 23-19.
And that score would remain, after a mammoth second half defensive effort from the Blue and Gold, fending off a dogged Mooloos effort to hang on for a famous victory.
“It is, I guess, the old cliche´ , we had to come in and attack and we did,” said Otago skipper Michael Collins after the game. “And then we closed it off at the end to sneak away with a win so, yeah, I’m so proud.”
● Earlier, Bay of Plenty ended their Mitre 10 Cup season on a high with a 38-35 win over Northland in Tauranga.
But it will be Northland who will play in the Championship semifinals after finishing fourth, and will play Waikato — who finished top of the ladder despite yesterday’s narrow loss — in Hamilton next weekend. ● Canterbury claimed a 19-14 victory over Counties Manukau in Pukekohe last night.
The result means Auckland need just a bonus point from their final game against North Harbour today to confirm a home semifinal and confirm Canterbury in third.
All Blacks props Nepo Laulala (Counties Manukau) and Joe Moody (Canterbury) returned to top rugby in the game.
Otago 23 (M. Scott, J. Dickson, J. Koroi tries; J. Ioane con, 2 pens) Waikato 19 (J. Iosefa-Scott, T. Campbell, B. Sullivan tries; F. Smith 2 cons). Halftime: 20-12.