RUGBY
IT’S crunch time for YMP and Waikohu — win and they make the final, lose and their season is over.
Both teams in the Poverty Bay club rugby premier competition will relish the conditions at Rugby Park tomorrow.
The weather has been fine all week and blue skies are forecast for tomorrow.
YMP had a chance last week to make the final but they came up against an OBM side who were much too good in slippery conditions.
YMP had the luxury of being able to afford a loss last week but there’s no safety net tomorrow — they must win to keep their season alive.
They have had an up-and-down season and this game will be a defining one for assessing the team’s performance.
GT Shearing Waikohu won a knockout semifinal last week against High School Old Boys, so they’ve had an extra week of playing under the pressure of a knockout format.
They’re also the 2018 Lee Bros Shield champions, so know how to get the job done.
YMP manager Vaughan White said tomorrow’s assignment was a bit different from last week’s because it was “do or die” this time.
“We learnt from our mistakes against OBM but Waikohu are a different team and they like to play a more expansive game,” he said.
“The weather’s going to be great, for players and supporters. We’ve trained well and it’s now up to the players and what they bring to the game.”
Waikohu coach Jason Tuapawa said his team had lost twice against YMP this season but they were feeling good about their chances.
“I’ve got every confidence in the team.”
Tuapawa said some nerves were about leading up to last week’s match but he sensed more confidence this week.
The chance to play in another final was exciting for Waikohu.
“I think YMP have a lot of pressure on them.”
YMP will have an advantage on their substitutes bench, because they have a bigger squad than Waikohu.
Waikohu were short of replacements last week and that will be a challenge again tomorrow.
Giant prop Jarryd Broughton has been out with injury but is expected to be one of the substitutes for Waikohu.
In their first clash of the season, Waikohu and YMP played probably the most exciting 40 minutes of rugby in the Poverty Bay club regular season.
YMP used their skill and pace to score some scintillating tries and Waikohu took the game right back at them for a halftime score of 27-21 to YMP.
YMP went on to win the match 39-21 and they also won their second clash 26-19, though Waikohu had the better of much of that game.
The last time these two teams met in playoffs rugby was the 2018 final, which Waikohu won 40-26.
White said YMP learnt from that experience.
“Any mistakes and they’ll punish us.”
The game kicks off at 2.30pm.