Varsity produce late escape act against Yellows
Varsity are the Harry Houdinis of Manawatū club rugby after they enacted yet another great escape to beat Feilding 31-25 and retain the Freebairn Cup.
Almost everyone at Johnston Park in Feilding on Saturday had written Varsity off soon after halftime when they trailed Feilding 25-7 and the Yellows swept in for their third try.
But with a quarter to play, Varsity set aside their epidemic of mistakes and missed tackles to score three converted tries. Yellows supporters scurried for the bar, bewildered.
Don’t forget Varsity won the Hankins Shield last year in the 89th minute. As for Feilding, they had also fallen away late in losing to Old Boys-Marist, and this time two sin-binnings didn't help.
Varsity stole a lineout to score first, but for the next 50 minutes Feilding had all the hunger and a driving set of forwards, notably lock Kepa Bryce and flanker Mike Tuiala.
First five-eighth and Turbos prospect Caleb Leef turned Varsity around with his pop kicks, and midfielder Kyle Brown scored a try and set up another with ease. In his 384th game, wing Brad Carr showed he still has it.
A desperate Varsity resorted to quicktap attacks. The stars of the fightback were reserve hooker Moses Armstrong-Ravula and lock Matt Masoe, while the steady fullback Logan Henry landed every kick.
Linton Army’s soldiers led Te Kawau 28-26 with three minutes to play and then took the risk of running the ball. The upshot was the soldiers were penalised and Te Kawau's Kody Edwards kicked the goal for victory, 29-28.
It was all entertainment at Rongotea where electric Linton wing Levani Rova bagged all three tries, one from an intercept as Linton attacked out wide in the first quarter.
They had speed and defended well, led by second five-eighth Sione Akau, while lock Finbar Reynolds and prop Hunter Anderson excelled in the pack.
Linton had eight changes from last weekend and were without the experienced Leif Schwencke, Jeremy David and Harry Black, while Te Kawau were missing two players, victims of spider bites.
The young Te Kawau forwards never stopped trying. First-five Ethan Woodmass had one of his best games, as did fullback Edwards, flanker Te Atuarere Albert and halfback Kaylum Gullery.
Kia Toa’s match against Feilding Old Boys-Ōroua was essentially over after 30 minutes, as the Kias romped to an 88-7 win at a wet Bill Brown Park in Palmerston North.
Kia Toa stormed to 50-0 after half an hour, ripping through the Stags’ poor tackling, and scored 14 tries.
They punished the FOB-Ōroua scrum and won both teams’ lineouts.
Flanker Joe Fabish, second five Malua Mauola, halfback Logan Love and wings Pena Va’a and Jerry Fryer were full of running, and FOB-Ōroua struggled to put them down.
Mauola scored a hat-trick while Love, Va’a and Fabish all scored doubles.
FOB-Ōroua had some men out with injury, including their two regular locks, but missed tackles everywhere. They had had almost no ball until the second half and made mistakes when they did.
With Paora Rakatau out, coach Crete Cribb started at first-five. Assistant coach Jeremy Waitoa came on in the forwards in the second half.
FOB-Ōroua were better in the second spell when they had more ball and with the direction of Jack Beatson, who moved from midfield into halfback. Forward Amon Panikoula was their best, coming off the bench in the first half to replace injured loosie Dre Sherwill.
College Old Boys might have scored four tries to two at Palmerston North’s Colquhoun Park but praised the pluck of Freyberg.
COB came on stronger in the second half and blew the score out with two late tries, despite playing well only in patches, while Freys had two tries disallowed.
Andre Taylor, a former Turbo, held up the COB midfield under heat from Freys youngster Will Jay Mitford, but out wide was COB’s strength.
The first half was scrappy when COB led 15-10. Their standouts were Jared Sellwood, Jared Goodson, new Turbos prop Misinale Epenisa and first-five Rihari Jobe.
In their big pack, Freyberg’s best were Chris Lafaele, up from Wellington, and hooker Apelu Tautele, while first-five Carson Hepi controlled the game.
Old Boys-Marist had the bye.