The Mangakino Hawks have produced a dominant performance to finish the Bay of Plenty Nines Tournament unbeaten.
They beat guest team Hamilton 11-7 in the final, at Rotorua International Stadium on Saturday, to lift the McLeod Cup, named in memory of the late Peter McLeod - a man who played integral roles in both the creation of the Auckland Warriors and the success of Rotorua International Stadium.
The two-day tournament, played on Friday evening and Saturday morning - ahead of the Warriors versus Melbourne Storm pre-season NRL match - attracted six teams; Mangakino, Pikiao, Ngongotaha, Hamilton, Taupo and Pacific.
In 2017 the Mangakino side, captained by Bay of Plenty representative Johnson Peri, were bitterly disappointed when they were knocked out of the Baywide premier competition by eventual winners Pikiao and they started this year's nines tournament as if they had a point to prove.
On day one they beat Ngongotaha 14-8, Pikiao 29-11 and Pacific 8-0. On day two they beat Hamilton 26-4 and Taupo 21-12 to book a spot in the final.
The final was much closer than when the two teams met in round robin play. Hamilton opened the scoring with a five-point try - scored in the 'bonus zone' between the posts by Te Puhi Rudolph.
Mangakino hit back with a five-point try to Peri, who hit a gap in the defensive line after a sustained period of possession in the Hamilton half.
The finalists went toe-to-toe in the second half, with neither able to break the deadlock until, in the last minute, Mangakino received a penalty 5m out from the tryline. They took a tap and shifted the ball right where Keanu Dawson spun out of a tackle and dived in for the match-winning try.
In a poignant moment for all involved, the McLeod Cup was presented to the winners by Peter McLeod's daughter Fiona, who has inherited her dad's love for the game.
Peri said he was impressed by the effort his team put in to the tournament.
"We played a really good tournament, we worked hard for it and I think it showed out there today. Definitely our defence, we're quite strong in attack anyway, so our defence really paid dividends this weekend."
He said Mangakino had started pre-season training earlier than ever before this year, in an attempt to be better prepared for the season.
"It's definitely paying off for us. This tournament is definitely a good thing to have, it would be nice to see a few more teams from Waikato, it's a good challenge."
Mangakino coach George Samuels said his team had been "amazing" all weekend.
"That last game, they really had to grind it out, energy was down. We've had some pretty good wins and today they left it all out there. To work hard and come away with a win is probably more satisfying for me than blowing them off the paddock."