Now they face Pango Productions Waiapu in the competition final, with the Rangiora Keelan Memorial Shield at stake.
Jesse Haenga's Waiapu beat last year's champions, Pango Productions Uawa, 38-17 in the 2 v 3 semifinal at Tolaga Bay.
The Uawa captain, lock Paddy Allen, won the toss and chose to play from the town end heading east, with a sou'westerly breeze prevailing.
Eight minutes into the game, referee Whetu Haerewa gave Uawa a scrum-penalty six metres from the Waiapu goal-line, 14m off the left touch. With their third carry off a pick-and-go play, big Uawa tighthead prop Myles Lardelli-Muir-Tawa opened the scoring with a try six metres in from the left corner for 5-0. First five-eighth Carlos Kemp then struck a long-distance conversion for 7-0.
In the 13th minute, Kemp landed a penalty goal from 31m out, just left of centre, to give the home team a 10-0 lead.
In the 19th minute, Waiapu blindside flanker Richie Green won a lineout 15m into Uawa's half, on the left touch. They worked right for five phases before tireless fetcher Will Bolingord finally took the inside pass to score 12m infield.
Halfback Hamuera Moana-Baker converted Bolingford's try to close it to 10-7.
In the 26th minute, Waiapu were awarded a scrum-penalty seven metres to the left of the posts, five metres from Uawa's goal-line. No.8 Morgan Poi opted to tap-kick and found left wing Te Hei Turei, who scored. Moana-Baker converted, and Waiapu now led 14-10.
It was a highly entertaining, see-saw contest, with Waiapu's alertness and flair matching up against Uawa's powerhouse pattern. Waiapu played well.
On the stroke of halftime, Waiapu set another five-metre attacking scrum, this time 17m off the right touch, and a penalty try followed. The visitors led 21-10 at the break.
Haenga's colleague and fellow first-year head coach Laman Davies doesn't make excuses and certainly would never take the gloss off a tremendous performance by deserved winners Waiapu.
“This was a tough season for us,” he said.
“We struggled to field a full team, and had no more then two reserves per game, three if we were lucky.”
Davies said they needed four more players of the quality of front-rowers Maia Fox and Semisi Akana, right wing Shayden Stevens and fullback BJ Sidney.
In the 47th minute, Moana-Baker kicked a penalty to make it 24-10.
In the 51st minute, Waiapu posted their fourth try. From a penalty-award five metres out from Uawa's goal-line, 15m off the right touch, they swung the ball wide and lock Jorian Tangaere turned back to score seven metres to the left of the posts. Moana-Baker converted for 31-10.
It was then that Waiapu captain scrum-anchor Perrin Manuel delivered the coup de grâce. From a five-metre scrum set 15m off the left touch, they twice inched forward from rucks. Manuel's try under the cross-bar was a front-row forward's dream. Moana Baker converted for 38-10.
In the 80th minute, Allen scored, after reserve halfback Chris Richardson took a tap-kick five metres from the Waiapu goal-line, two metres to the right of the posts. Two rucks later, Uawa went right again and Allen dotted down 15m wide of the posts.
With Kemp's conversion, the final score was 38-17 to Waiapu.
Allen said: “We were good in patches but gave away far too many penalties in the second half. Credit to Waiapu, though. They defended bloody well.”
Waiapu head coach Haenga said his team had kept their shape and structure.
“Our pick and go, our wide game and our defence were really good,” he said.
“Once we got some rhythm, it all clicked. It was an entertaining game to watch as well.”
Tihirau Victory Club lost the epic that was the 2021 final, and will host club rugby's showpiece for the second year running on Saturday.
And they know what it costs. Last year's champions Uawa and the TVC unit of 2017 are the only teams in 101 years of East Coast club rugby to win the big game in extra-time. TVC captain and first-five Ngarangi Haerewa won the toss, and chose direction, opting to play into the wind.
He said that the 1 v 4 semifinal was “fiercely contested”.
None would disagree.
To City head coach Ian Logan, the game featured all of the physicality and attrition typical of semifinal rugby.
No.8 Hoani Te Moana and Te Manu Herewini scored tries for TVC, halfback Neihana Ratahi-Brown and prop John Brown did the same for Ruatoria City.
TVC led 14-7 at halftime. The score at fulltime was 17-all, which was also the score at the end of the first 10-minute period of extra time.
With one minute to play in the second period of extra time, Haerewa landed a penalty goal for 20-17 and the win.
Haerewa's goal-kicking was a major factor in the result. His 10-point tally was one of the best pressure-performances of the weekend.
Ruatoria City's goal-kicking lock Nathaniel Fox, with a conversion and penalty goal, again demonstrated his amazing touch with the boot off a two-step approach.
Logan said: “This season has been very memorable. It's a shame that it had to be shortened due to Covid-19, as a lot of work had been put in behind the scenes. But it's not just about the men. This year we also had Junior Advisory Board and women's teams for the first time. So overall — looking at our club as a whole, in the year of Ruatoria City's centenary — it's been a success.”
1 v 4: Tihirau Victory Club 20 (Hoani Te Moana, Te Manu Herewini, tries; Ngarangi Haerewa 2 con, 2 pen) Ruatoria City 15 (Neihana Ratahi-Brown, John Brown, tries; Nathaniel Fox con, pen) at Te Kura Mana Maori o Whangaparaoa. HT: 15-0 (TVC).
2 v 3: Pango Productions Uawa 17 (Myles Lardelli-Muir-Tawa, Paddy Allen, tries; Carlos Kemp 2 con, pen) Pango Productions Waiapu 38 (penalty try, Jorian Tangaere, Willie Bolingford, Te Hei Turei, Perrin Manuel, tries; Hamuera Moana-Baker 4 con, pen) at Uawa Domain. HT: 21-10 (Waiapu).
NPEC club rugby MVP (most valuable player) awards: Manaia Nyman (TVC), Team (Ruatoria City), Paddy Allen (Uawa), Hamuera Moana-Baker (Waiapu).
