Rugby: Mid Northern fight back to claim trophy

Mid Northern openside flanker Joe Romanos breaks free of some Otamatea defenders. Photo / Robert O'Hara

A spirited try inside the last quarter was a fitting gesture to the Mid Northern reserve team's 18-16 come-from-behind win over Otamatea in the Bayleys Southern Districts Reserves final.

Otamatea built a healthy lead in the initial stages of play, however a fighting comeback from Mid Northern inside the last 20 minutes left Otamatea trailing by two points for the remainder of the match.

"They played well all year so we were hoping they could finish it off well," Mid Northern coach Des Going said of his team's win.

"They just had to drill it out and we won in the end."

A solid first half from Otamatea put them in a steady position leading into halftime, however Mid Northern returned with vigour and intensity to out-perform Otamatea in many facets of the game.

"We just told them to just go back and settle it down because they were rushing it and [they] just had to relax," Going said of the atmosphere in the halftime huddle.

The halftime rev-up and some additional words of encouragement from Mid Northern's premier coach Craig Edwards did the job as the returning side wiped the slate of their average first half clean.

A converted penalty by Jordan Le Vavasour and a try edged Mid Northern ahead 18-16 in the second half.

Otamatea had the chance to steal the lead back via a penalty kick near the end, however it wasn't to be as the kick drifted astray to keep Mid Northern ahead.

Laying on a hefty defensive effort in the remaining minutes, Mid Northern prevented Otamatea from having a sniff and secured the Southern Districts Reserves trophy for the 2015 season.

"I was nervous right through the game, I was getting stressed too," Going said.

"We're lucky we won, [it] could've been anybody's game."