FIRST MATCH PREVIEW
Local rugby supporters have a dream start to the 2018 Mitre 10 Heartland championship on Saturday when Meads Cup champions Wanganui host 2017 top qualifiers South Canterbury at Cooks Gardens.
The Stags may have a poor record in previous games in the River City, winning only three times in 19 visits since 1894, but they have been unbeaten in preparation fixtures to their 2018 championship campaign.
They have beaten Canterbury Maoris 40-24, Mid Canterbury 28-17 and Otago B 26-22 this month. By comparison Steelform Wanganui has beaten Manawatu Evergreens 14-12 (half game) and Wairarapa-Bush 61-14 and lost to Bay of Plenty 12-24 (half game), Taranaki 10-33 in a Ranfurly Shield challenge) and to the Hawke’s Bay Saracens 19-34 last weekend.
After leading 19-12 at half-time the first-ever loss to the Saracens, even if it was a stronger Bay team than in recent years, was a disappointing effort and an improved all-round performance will be required this Saturday.
Wanganui has foiled the Meads Cup title hopes of South Canterbury twice in Timaru, winning the 2015 final 28-11 and last year’s semi-final 29-24.
In both those years the Stags were the top qualifiers. The Butcher Boys also beat South Canterbury 17-14 in the NPC Div 3 semi-finals in 2003, also at Timaru. Although Wanganui has by far the best record in the past 12 years of Heartland rugby, reaching 11 finals and winning the Meads Cup six times and Lochore Cup once, the blue and blacks have only qualified tops three times – in 2008, 2011 and 2016 – and carrying on to win the Meads Cup.
Wanganui won the 2009 final from the No 2 qualifying slot (beating top qualifiers Mid Canterbury 34-13 in the final in Christchurch), the 2015 title from No 3 (beating top qualifiers South Canterbury 28-11 away) and last year from No 4 (30-14 v No 2 qualifiers HorowhenuaKapiti at Levin). Wanganui qualified fourth in the Lochore Cup in 2014 and beat No 3 qualifiers North Otago 14-12 for the trophy in Oamaru.
The Stags and Butcher Boys have met 11 times since Heartland rugby started in 2006 with Wanganui unbeaten in the five matches played at Cooks Gardens with South Canterbury’s two successes both on home soil – 31-18 in 2014 and 21-17 last season when the Stags won seven of eight qualifying fixtures.
Last year South Canterbury scored 297 points
(45 tries) and conceded 219 (25 tries) from nine Heartland games compared with Wanganui’s 338 pts (42 tries) for and 163 pts (17 tries) against in
10 matches.
The sole defeat for the Stags in 2017 qualifying was 24-27 against Buller in Westport on the opening day with Buller first five James Lash scoring the first dozen of his NZ Heartland record of 147 points.
There were three qualifying defeats for Wanganui, all away from home – 17-21 v South Canterbury and 39-40 v Mid Canterbury (the two losses on successive weekend trips to the South Island) and 8-15 v Horowhenua-Kapiti (which also counted for the Bruce Steel Memorial Cup).
Wanganui returned to Timaru and Levin to register victories in the Meads Cup play-offs
Ironically this year the Butcher Boys host all the three sides they lost to last season along with Buller, four unions that finished with rankings from No 2 to No
5 in 2017.
Playing key games at home is clearly an advantage for Wanganui who struggled to beat Buller 20-19 here in the 2016 Meads Cup final and only qualified for last season’s play-off as the No 4 qualifiers on the count-back (plus 154 pts) ahead of North Otago (plus 57), Mid Canterbury (plus 51) and West Coast (plus 8).
Record home victories against Wairarapa-Bush (79-7) and King Country (80-3) saved Wanganui’s bacon last year when it came down to points differential to decide the fourth spot in the Meads Cup.