Season starts with Tiny White opener

Flashback . . . Skipper Shayde Skudder holds the Lee Brothers Shield as YMP celebrate their premier championship win in the 2023 final against Waikohu. It’s game on again tomorrow as Gisborne rugby celebrates the start of the new season with the Tiny White Opening Day. File picture by Liam Clayton

Poverty Bay club rugby’s community event of 2024 takes place tomorrow at the Gisborne Oval.

This season is boosted by the inclusion of Wairoa-based Tapuae in the premier grade and a Waikohu team in the senior 1 grade.

Tomorrow the Oval will be the venue for the premier grade Tiny White Opening Day from 1pm.

At that time, on Oval 1, Kevin Hollis Glass Pirates will host Larsawn Ngatapa under referee Ben Holt, with assistant referees Neville Barwick and Terry Reeves.

From 2.45pm on Oval 2, High School Old Boys’ will meet Kahu Scaffolding Tapuae. Joel Pearson will be the referee, with the assistance of Tony Watson and Paul Brown.

At the same time on Oval 1, officials Ben Holt and Terry Reeves will run touch for Canadian-born, 16-test whistle-bowler Maggie Cogger-Orr (Auckland), in OBM’s home game against two-time defending champions East Coast Farm Vets YMP.

The Senior 1 competition will play out at three venues, all at 1pm. Nuhaka V8s play Harvest Matawhero Transport Ngatapa at Nuhaka Domain, Charteris Choppers Wairoa-Athletic will host defending Senior 1 champions Tapuae at Bayley’s Athletic Park, while Horouta has home team status against the YMP Bumbles at Barry Park 1.

Poverty Bay Heartland head coach Miah Nikora, assistant coaches Ken Houkamau and James Grogan, and trainer Adam Cranston, will watch the games at the Oval like hawks.With input from other expert eyes, they will select the Taste One most valuable player for each team and the Tiny White medallist for outstanding player of the day.

Civil Project Solutions will sponsor senior club rugby competitions again this year.

Gisborne Glass are again sponsoring the hugely popular “Pick the Score” for $100. This will jackpot every week until it is won. The score to be guessed tomorrow is that of the Ngatapa v Pirates premier game.

Nikora attended the third council of clubs meeting since February on Thursday. During these meetings, everything from season length to competition draws was covered.

“We have this season seven teams in the Premier Grade and Senior 1 grade, the most we have had since I joined the union in 2019.

“There’s excitement because we have players of quality, such as Jacob Leaf of Waikohu, OBM’s Lance Dickson, and George Whakatope, who last turned out for OBM, is back with Tapuae after a year off rugby.”

HSOB lock and Hurricanes Heartland under 20 rep Nelson Moran, Stu Leach and Te Peehi Fairlie of YMP have all been training the house down.

Anthony Kiwara and Kohi Waihi will take up the coaching reins at Pirates together for the first time and Poverty Bay’s most capped player, Sione Ngatu, is now at the helm at Ngatapa.

The last two Tiny White medallists are Isaiah Leach (2023) and his older brother Stuart (2022), both outstanding YMP players, with strength, daring and flair.

The medal to be awarded tomorrow is in the name of All Black No.511, Gisborne HSOB and Poverty Bay 23-test lock Richard Alexander “Tiny” White, QSO, Mayor of Gisborne between 1977 and 1983.

Beaten Premier Grade grand finalists GT Shearing Waikohu and the club’s Senior 1 side have the bye in Round 1.