Solid season for merged clubs

BREAKTHROUGH YEAR: Last year's Old Boys Marist halfback Beau Dickens was part of the movement of merging two prominent Whangarei rugby clubs.PHOTO/RON BURGIN

AT THE end of 2012, two prominent Whangarei rugby clubs merged as both faced uncertainty over their future. Old Boys' and Marist Rugby clubs combined to become Old Boys Marist. Now, with one season under their belt, and this year's club rugby season kicking off next weekend, the Northern Advocate looks at how the club went in its first season.

Combining about 70 young men from two rugby clubs who historically had a fierce rivalry was always going to be a tricky task - but, all-in-all, it can be considered a success.

Performance-wise Old Boys Marist was bound to succeed, and they did. Its premier and premier reserve sides made the semifinals, and, although neither made the finals, that is still a solid feat. However, if you were to believe the "powerhouse club" tags which were bandied about you would not be satisfied.

As expected, Old Boys Marist had its fair share of teething problems - one of which was players leaving the new club.

Former Old Boys Marist player Troy Netzler was one of those who turned their back on the new club, citing a breakdown in pathways as a main contributor.

Netzler, who described himself as Marist through-and-through, applauded the players for getting on and doing the business, although he didn't have any regrets in shifting to Mid Northern part way through the first round.

"I left pretty much [because] there was a lack of communication or clarity of the coaching and management roles," Netzler said.

"It was pretty clear I wanted to be part of the A team there, but couldn't get a straight answer.

"In terms of the players, and the mix from both clubs, there was comradery there and they all trained hard in the pre-season and the games I was involved with."

Netzler added that the players had been mature about the merger, saying there didn't seem to be separation between the two clubs.

However, he conceded that it was inevitable players would leave.

"The players really pulled together and I didn't feel any 'us and them' [during his brief time with the new club], the guys got on well. I think there was a lot of difficulty with the transition of having that many players and trying to make it as fair as possible. Obviously there are positives to the amalgamation, but there will be falls-off too."

With the teething year under their belt, maybe this year is the time for the "powerhouse club" tags to ring true - the first glimpses of which will be seen next weekend when they open their season against Hikurangi at Old Boys.