Bay of Plenty Toa halfback Jack Hollinshead fires a pass during the Jock Hobbs Memorial third place playoff. Photo / Getty Images
Bay of Plenty Toa halfback Jack Hollinshead fires a pass during the Jock Hobbs Memorial third place playoff. Photo / Getty Images
One of the hardest challenges in sport is shaking off the disappointment of losing a semifinal and getting up for a third-place playoff.
Bay of Plenty Toa learned that the hard way, finishing fourth in the Jock Hobbs Memorial National Under-19 Tournament after a 34-7 hammering at the hands of Wellington in Taupō on Saturday.
The defending champions put their hearts and souls into the semifinal against Canterbury on Wednesday, which they narrowly lost 16-14. That match clearly took it out of them as they struggled for continuity against Wellington, countless handling errors in the second half proving costly.
The first half was a good arm wrestle, Bay of Plenty halfback Jack Hollinshead running in the opening try of the match after a scintillating run by first five Bailey Gordon.
Wellington hit back with a converted try of their own as well as two penalties to lead 13-7 at halftime.
In the second half, the floodgates opened. Bay of Plenty struggled to hold onto the ball and Wellington took the opportunity with both hands, running in another three converted tries to win 34-7.
Rotorua first five Bailey Gordon makes a run for Bay of Plenty Toa against Wellington. Photo / Getty Images
Bay of Plenty Toa head coach James Porter said it was always hard to play in a third-place playoff.
"The reality is you have to try and find a way to get the boys up for it - there's disappointment and hurt there. Although we tried our best, I don't think the boys really got over that disappointment and it was evident in the second half when it got really tough for them.
"To their credit, they fought right to the last whistle and that's all you can ask for as a coach."
He said the experience would be vital to the development of the young players.
"That's part of life, you win some games, you lose some games. What's important is what happens next and hopefully we do the right thing, get up and fight again.
"There were a few who really put their hands up this week and those names will start to filter through. We've got three who have already been named in the Māori under-18s for next week so they're excited and we're expecting to see a few names on the New Zealand under-20 list as well."
Bay of Plenty Toa players react to a penalty. Photo / Getty Images
Porter was full of praise for the tournament, which saw almost 400 of New Zealand's most promising rugby players come together to compete.
"Every year the coaching gets better, the groups get better. There's analysts here, there's nutritionists here, it's as professional as you're going to find outside of Super Rugby.
"It's an outstanding week for the young men, their development and rugby as a whole. We love it and we're looking forward to next year."
Meanwhile, Canterbury claimed the Graham Mourie Cup with a 26-17 victory over Auckland in the final.
The victory was built on a solid performance by the forwards, with Canterbury prop Fletcher Newell rewarded as Player of the Tournament.
Taranaki were dominant in the Sir Michael Jones Trophy Final. Ricco Falaniko scored two tries, while Josh Jacomb kicked 12 points to finish as the tournament's top points scorer on 52 across the three match days.
