Wakely Shield: Young learn hard way

Wairoa players perform their rousing haka during a Wakely Shield rugby match at Tareha Reserve, Taradale. Photo / Duncan Brown

Coach Trevor Spencer knows only too well how children respond when told something to do on the footy field.

Down 12-5 at halftime, he instructed his young charges in the Tims Construction Saracens team to hoof the ball to the remote corners of the ground to keep Omega Builders Napier East camped there if they wanted to win the Wakely Shield rugby match on day three yesterday.

"Like all kids they just don't listen, do they," Spencer said last night after their nail-biting 17-12 victory over Napier East at Tareha Recreational Reserve in Taradale.

Needless to say, the under-50kg young-and-restless boys showed their weight in gold when they gleaned perhaps more in the dying minutes of their match than they probably will throughout the entire week-long competition.

"It took them the last 10 minutes to do that," said Spencer, who echoed the sentiments of fellow mentors in emphasising the gusty nor'westerlies created havoc for any side running into it.

The Saracens made good use of the buffeting wind in the second half after absorbing Napier East's onslaught to book a semifinal match at 1.45pm today against undefeated Cervus Equipment Hastings West, who had a bye yesterday.

He named flanker Cody Johns and No 8 and captain Joel Palmer as his standout forwards while winger Sam Foster and second five-eighths Will Meech were the pick of the backline.

Foster, Meech and winger Angus Ramsay scored Saracens' tries.

"We'll have to play out of our skins with 100 per cent commitment to beat Hastings West tomorrow," he said.

Betta Inspect It Napier West thumped Harrods of Wairoa 36-7, scoring six tries and three conversions from wide out.

Napier West coach Simon Lord singled out blindside flanker Kace Elsworth-Roberts for manning up when things got scrappy and No 8 and co-skipper Jayden Murphy for changing the tempo of the game.

However, Lord named fullback Jahdyn Williams his player of the day for positional play and punching the defending champions on to the front foot every time they had the ball.

"We lost yesterday but it's a good platform for tomorrow's semifinal," Lord said before today's 12.30pm kick off against undefeated Gemco Hastings East who crushed Centraline Central Hawke's Bay 47-5 yesterday.

"It wasn't easy because they started strong and scored the first try," Hastings East coach Kieran Horsewfield said, suspecting CHB got tired.

Horsefield lauded his midfield for distributing the ball out wide where winger Marshall Soanes scored a hattrick of tries.

"In the second half we put a few phases together with a lot more ball to put players on the right end of the field."

He said Hastings East lost to Napier West in last year's final so today's semifinal would carry a sense of retribution.