“Ngatapa (last Sunday’s opposition) helped us to prepare for Hikurangi, by bringing the battle to us up front in Game 2; that’s why cleaning out at the ruck was our main focus this week,” said Tuapawa, whose crew started strongly against the Maunga.
By the end of the game, the hosts’ back division had freedom of movement, if not a free hand.
Harrison said his younger players now knew what was needed to be competitive at Barry Cup level.
“They’ve had that experience, which is a positive.”
Harrison is pleased to see two players from outside a sub-union’s catchment and an allowance for four “origin players” included in this season’s Barry Cup rules; he was also “very happy” with the refereeing standard of Poverty Bay officials Oliver Holst, Fred Barwick and Tony Watson.
“Physically, I was happy with how we matched up,” Harrison said.
“We were beaten by Waikohu’s speed and fitness.”
Holst applied good advantage from the moment Hikurangi knocked the ball on at the kick-off, allowing three minutes of play before the first whistle.
Home team halfback Mario Counsell tap-kicked the ball off a penalty award 15 metres from Hikurangi’s goal-line before the posts, and No.8 Tristan Morton’s try came in the sixth minute of play. Centre Ethine Reeves, Waikohu’s MVP (most valuable player), converted for 7-0.
Nine minutes in, the Barry Cup holders were given the first scrum-penalty of the match five metres on their own side of halfway, 10m off the right touch, and captain and hooker Geoff Pari scored the first try of his double in the 12th minute; Reeves converted, Waikohu led 14-0.
Men who knew what was at stake unhesitatingly made good, hard tackles — as when Waikohu halfback Mario Counsell brought Hikurangi openside flanker Trent Proffit down in the 19th minute.
The Joe Keelan-led Hikurangi showed strength and resourcefulness; in the 26th minute, Waikohu’s monster tighthead prop Jarryd Broughton surged on the goal-line — as he did against Ruatoria in Game 1 — but this time, the visitors held him up 15m in from the left corner.
Just three minutes later the hosts were probing the right side of the ground in Hikurangi’s 22, fullback Andrew Tauatevalu going to right wing KC Wilson, who went to Reeves, the ball then making its way back up the same chain for Reeves to score. There was no conversion at 19-0.
In the 33rd minute, from a scrum set 20m off the left touch, 10m into Waikohu territory, Reeves stormed over halfway to draw and pass against Hikurangi first five-eighth David Manuel, two on one, for left wing Matt Ruru to score . . . though Proffit kept Ruru wide.
Time for one more act of heroismThere was time for one more act of heroism before the break: Hikurangi halfback Neihana Ratahi-Brown’s try-saving, goal-line tackle on Pari in the 40th minute. Waikohu led 24-0 at halftime.
Counsell caught the ball from the restart, the ball then went through four phases and three sets of hands before Reeves, on the left, chip-kicked towards the right corner: reserve No.8 Tulsa Kaui scored the first of his two tries back to back for Waikohu in the 44th minute.
In the 51st minute, Kaui scored again; Reeves had converted both tries in Kaui’s double for 38-0. Then 54 minutes in, reserve left wing Te Mana Barbarich scored (43-0) and five minutes after that, loosehead prop Toru Noanoa had his try converted by Tauatevalu for 50-0.
After 63 minutes of play, second-five Kelvin Smith provided a touch of class on the run, stepping off his left foot into the 22. Smith’s try was converted by Reeves (57-0).
In the 65th minute, Wilson scored in the right corner for 62-0 after an inspired 60m run, and in the 68th minute Waikohu — on their own goal-line — came up with a try to encapsulate Barry Cup rugby. Reeves hit the ball on the fly, kicked ahead, got the ball back and gave the last pass inside to reserve lock Shaun Ward, who scored for 67-0; Tauatevalu converted for 69-0.
In the 71st minute, Tauatevalu hurtled off the right sideline to score, then convert, for 76-0. Pari completed his double in the 74th minute, the captain’s second try being converted (83-0) by reserve first-five Chris Stevens.
Tauatevalu scored the 14th and last try in the 77th minute — that try not being converted.
The Men of the Mountain played hard and never relented, though the hosts had perhaps a 60-40 percent advantage in territory and 70 percent possession.
Hikurangi blindside flanker Tanetoa Parata was busy — he and teammate lock Te Maera Warmenhoven made hard tackles. Warmenhoven would have scored, just before Ward’s try, had Kaui not brought him down on the goal-line.
No.8 Rhys Walker won good line-out ball for the Maunga and was named by Harrison as the visitors’ MVP for his strong, tireless match-effort. The 88-0 scoreline speaks to Waikohu’s good conditioning and preparation but doesn’t do Hikurangi justice.
Barry Cup rugby now takes a break for a fortnight with Game 4 against Matakaoa at 2.30pm on Sunday, September 1, at Te Karaka Domain.
