Waikanae captain Tyrone Parson holds aloft the Ramsbotham Cup.
The accent was firmly on the "Kāpiti" after the Horowhenua-Kāpiti club rugby finals day at Levin Domain at the weekend, with the union's two southern-most clubs taking home the silverware.
Waikanae won the Ramsbotham Cup with a 37-32 win against Shannon in the senior competition, while Paraparaumu beat Levin Athletic 26-21 in the senior reserve grade to win the Bill Muir Cup for the first time since 2008.
Waikanae had to withstand a determined Shannon team which had not won the Ramsbotham Cup since 1991, showing their class by turning what possession they did have into points.
It was Waikanae's first championship win since 2017 and coach Simon Fifield's second in eight years at the helm, although they had been beaten finalists on three other occasions in that time.
It was Waikanae's fifth title since entering the senior competition in 2002.
Waikanae's win was set up by two early tries, the first coming less than two minutes into the game.
It came from a quick throw into the front of the lineout from captain Tyrone Parson, who was given the ball straight back in clear air to gallop 30m and set up a try for fullback Louis Northcott - clearly a rehearsed move.
Another try followed, also converted by first five-eighth Siaosi Aliva, which gave Waikanae the perfect start with an early 14-0 lead.
From then on, a brave Shannon were forced to play catch-up rugby. The Maroons fought for every scrap of possession and attacked Waikanae relentlessly for much of the second half, but in the end, it was stoic Waikanae defence that won the day.
Shannon were gallant in defeat and left nothing on the paddock. But for the bounce of the ball, it could have been a different result. They were also on the receiving end of the hefty penalty count.
At one stage Shannon closed the gap to within five points at 30-25 in the second half and were urged and willed on by their hordes of loyal supporters. There was a sea of maroon on the eastern side of the ground.
It wasn't to be. But the Shannon team could hold their heads high knowing they had emptied the tank.
There were some gutsy performances in the Shannon team, notably in the forwards from youngsters Slade Salton, Dallas Wiki and McKenzie Tansley, while the backline ran hard, led by Arana Murphy, Logan Broughton, Sean Pape and Keaton Kawana.
Prop Zac Third never stopped and ran hard to score both Shannon's late tries with classic low drives.
Waikanae had the luxury of having former sevens international Warwick Lahmert as a steady hand at halfback, playing alongside his younger brother and captain Aaron at flanker, while further wide the hard-running fullback Northcott proved hard to contain.
Waikanae were rewarded with having eight players selected in the Horowhenua-Kāpiti representative training squad following the match: Aaron Lahmert, Imanueli Bese, Kolinio Koto, Louis Northcott, Sam Gouk, Scott Cameron, Taine Hāta, and Tyrone Parson.
Shannon players Treden Winterburn, Slade Salton, Logan Broughton, Bradman Franks, Keaton Kawana were also picked for the training squad.
Meanwhile, Paraparaumu's win in the Bill Muir Cup was set up with a first-half blitz led by flying winger Max Hoskings, 19, who showed real gas and a clean pair of heels and scored two early tries, while Mitchell Burns had a strong game at halfback.
First-five and captain Jake Thomson had his kicking boots on and added the rest through two conversions and four penalties.
Athletic fought back and were starting to look likely but were denied a try late in the game as Paraparaumu's defence held firm, led by senior players like Reihana Haerewa, Benji Phelps and Adam Thompson.
Paraparaumu senior reserve coach James Cooper was in his first year at the helm and donned the boots a couple of times during the year, too.
HOROWHENUA-KĀPITI TRAINING SQUAD:
Darren Falaniko, Ryan Shelford, Thomas Barnsley (Paraparaumu), Callum Watts-Pointer (Norths), Carlos Third (Feilding Yellows), Mikaele Felix (Sydney Wildcats), Sase Va'a, Te Atawhai Mason (Kia Toa), Tautau Kapea (United Matamata Sports), Scott Cameron, Louis Northcott, Aaron Lahmert, Immanuali Bese, Kolonio Koto, Sam Gouk, Taine Hata, Tyrone Parson (Waikanae), Taylor Tane, Trevor Owens, David McErlean, Mikaere Harvey (Foxton)
Sam Gibson, Joel Winterburn, Jack Tatu-Robertson, Hamish Buick, Leon Ellison, Lewis Marshall (Rahui), Treden Winterburn, Slade Salton, Logan Broughton, Bradman Franks, Keaton Kawana (Shannon), Jordan Tupai-Ui, Henry Fonoti, Willie Paia'aua (COB), Connor Paki, Kale Eriksson, (Foxton).
Players injured/unavailable: Alex Brunskill, Dallas Wiki, Faleulu Matua, Himiona Henare, John Fuimaono, John MacNeilage, Liam Tooman, Morehu Connor-Phillips, Ngarongo Selby-Rickett, Sean Pape.
