Counties out to beat Auckland
It can’t be easy playing second string to the best halfback in the world, but Arihiana MarinoTauhinu says she doesn’t mind it.
Counties Manukau captain Marino-Tauhinu runs the show for her Farah Palmer Cup side. From behind the scrum she calls the shots, she’s vocal and quick in both defence and attack. She is also a pretty handy first-five.
But playing halfback for the Black Ferns, the same position as World Rugby player of the year Kendra Cocksedge, she accepts she has some way to go before she can claim to run the show in the black jersey.
Although making Black Ferns squads in 2015 and 2017, she didn’t make her debut until this season, when she came off the bench against Canada in the Super Series in San Diego.
Marino-Tauhinu, who this year was contracted for the first time,
At a glance
Farah Palmer Cup round 6: Today:
■ Hawke’s Bay Tui v Otago Spirit, Tremain Field, Napier
■ Bay of Plenty Volcanix v Manawatu Cyclones, Tauranga Domain
■ Northland Kauri v Tasman Mako, Trigg Sports Arena, Whangarei
■ Auckland Storm v Counties Manukau Heat, Eden Park, Auckland
■ Waikato v Canterbury, FMG Stadium, Waikato hasn’t started a match for the Black Ferns yet, but she doesn’t mind and has pushed the international season to one side to concentrate on an FPC comeback with Counties.
In 2018, she played all the Heat’s matches, and finished the season as leading points scorer.
Counties Manukau haven’t won a premiership since 2016, beaten by Cocksedge’s Canterbury in the last two finals.
Counties are fourth on the table and a win against Auckland today would go a long way to securing a semifinal berth in two weeks time.
Counties have had two wins and two losses so far this season. Beating Auckland would keep them in the top four.
Marino-Tauhinu says her team of young players is improving with every match and is confident they would make their fourth final running.
Marino-Tauhinu teaches at Papakura High School and says juggling the fulltime job with rugby has its challenges.
‘‘It gets a bit overwhelming with all the trainings and stuff that needs to be done, but when you have done it so long it is just second nature,’’ she said.