Ngatapa and Pirates get a run

RUGBY

Rugby teams don’t sit and wait for the end of the season.

Nor do they sit and wait for it to begin.

A week out from the start of the Civil Project Solutions premier grade chase for the Lee Brothers Shield, two teams with a point to prove will run out tomorrow.

Larsawn Ngatapa — placed fifth in 2019 — have a pre-season game against Opotiki Sports Club at Princess Street Reserve in Opotiki at 2.30pm, under Bay of Plenty referee David Brouwer.

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In selecting East Coast club champions Uawa as their first hurdle, Kevin Hollis Glass Pirates have chosen the biggest bull in the round-up. Kick-off, at the Oval in Gisborne, is at 1pm.

Pirates are to be admired. As dual entity Pirates-GMC, they came sixth last year but hard competition drives standards up.

“I’m anticipating a physical game from their forwards, with Willie Waitoa taking them,” Uawa head coach Laman Davies said.

“The only one of their backs I’m familiar with is Jacob Leaf — he was awesome in the Barry Cup campaign for us.”

Poverty Bay’s Royce Maynard will referee the Pirates-Uawa match.

While Enterprise Cars OBM, East Coast Farm Vets YMP, GT Shearing Waikohu and Contract Consultants High School Old Boys may all view this weekend as the calm before the storm, Ngatapa head coach Steve Hickey has in his charge good keen men for whom sitting still is not an option.

“We had good numbers at training last night — we’re excited,” Hickey said.

“These guys just want to get out there, so we’ll give everybody a game and see if we can get a few patterns together.”

The Ngatapa Senior 1 side will also play an Opotiki Sports team, at 1pm at Princess Street Reserve. Grant Moore (Bay of Plenty) will be referee.