Rugby: Makene looks to sevens before shift

Caleb Makene wants to make the Hawke's Bay Sevens nationals team before transferring to Canterbury. Photo / Warren Buckland

Call Caleb Makene another one who got away if you like.

But the Napier Boys' High School 1st XV rugby captain who cracked the New Zealand Secondary Schools team this year and will transfer to Canterbury in February plans to leave Hawke's Bay in style. That includes making the Hawke's Bay Sevens team for the Rotorua-hosted nationals in January.

Makene, 18, will get an early indication as to where he's at in the quest when he plays for the Tafai Ioasa-coached Hawke's Bay Sevens team in their first outing of the season tomorrow - a Bill Brown Park, Palmerston North-hosted hit out tournament.

"Hopefully I get enough game time to stake a claim for a spot in the Central Region tournament back at Palmy next month. If I can perform well there I could get the nod from Tafai for Rotorua," Makene said before the 16-strong squad for tomorrow trained at Hastings Boys' High School last night.

Makene has been playing Sevens for the past three years. He relishes the pivot and wing roles - "anywhere there's space," he said.

He is enjoying the coaching of 2006 Commonwealth Games Sevens gold medallist and multiple World Series title winner Ioasa offers. "It's good to be playing alongside the likes of Trinity and the Paewai brothers again after playing with them when they were at school," Makene said referring to former All Black Sevens rep Trinity Spooner-Neera and former NBHS 1st XV teammates Jesse and Kalin Paewai.

Makene has signed a two-year deal with the Canterbury Rugby Union and will join the union's academy when he arrives in Christchurch. He will also start a four-year Environmental Planning and Policy course at Lincoln University.

"It was a tough decision to leave the Bay but my parents and I decided that second option, study, was crucial. Correspondence was an option but that's pretty hard ... Waikato University was also an option," Makene explained.

Equally comfortable in either of the first five-eighth or fullback positions in the 15-a-side game, Makene, said he intends to follow the advice of his New Zealand Secondary Schools coaching staff and focus on establishing himself in one of those positions when in Christchurch. The first Canterbury rep team he aims to make is the under-19s.

In addition to his Sevens squad and personal training sessions, Makene has also been in NCEA Level 3 exam mode and still has two more to tick off.

Ioasa, 34, who played premier rugby for the Central team he also co-coached this season is thriving in his new coaching role. "I've played against a lot of my players so I know what they are capable of. My main concern is fitness ... I know I have to get the squad fitter so they can work hard on defence. My experience in Sevens tells me good defence is what wins games," Ioasa said.

" The bulk of the squad have come off Magpies or Hawke's Bay Development campaigns and Sevens is a different nature. I've told the boys it's only going to get harder when it comes to fitness."

Four of his 20-strong training squad are unavailable for tomorrow. Ioasa has yet to decide whether he will take 12 or 14 players to the December 6 Central Region tournament.

Shannan Chase is the only Magpie who played in the ITM Cup final who will be in action tomorrow.

The Hawke's Bay Sevens squad for tomorrow:
Andrew Gardner, Caleb Makene, Jesse Paewai, Trinity Spooner-Neera, Ash Robinson, Shannan Chase, Joseph Penitito, Pouvi Fatialofa, Kalin Paewai, Ted Walters, Taniela Ofa, Matt Murtha, Ben Hamelink, Matt Hill, Dan McIntyre, Tane McGuire.

Games at Bill Brown Park, Palmerston North: 10.30am v Manawatu; 12.10pm v King Country; 1.30pm v Taranaki.