College sport: Kelston spring MAGS upset

Charles Lan (Rosmini College) in action against How-Shin Tsao of Westlake Boys High during their senior boys A grade game at North Harbour. Tsao won 21-19 to help Westlake to a 7-1 victory. Photo / Brett Phibbs

There is no place for faint hearts in the Auckland SS 1A rugby championship.

In third round upsets defending champions MAGS were beaten 19-5 at home by KBHS who went away with the points and the coveted Moascar Cup.

Out east, AGS too went down - beaten 30-24 by St Kentigern who have stormed to the top of the table. They lead by a point from Sacred Heart who won a nail-biter 15-13 over St Peter's to join St Kentigern as the only other unbeaten team after three hard-fought rounds.

Elsewhere, King's made hard work of it before getting home 8-5 over newcomers Onehunga High. Over the fence, Otahuhu held out Tangaroa 12-6 while De La Salle could only share the points in a 6-6 draw away to Tamaki.

With their win - by the biggest margin of the round - KBHS moved into the top four, behind MAGS on points differential.

The two points AGS had docked after the first-round altercation at Tangaroa are hurting. They are back in seventh place already, seven points out of the lead.

There will be no rest for the AGS players who meet Hamilton BHS in their traditional fixture this morning before travelling to play MAGS on Saturday.

They will find a MAGS team hurting after being beaten for the first time in more than a year - going down to long-time rivals KBHS.

GOLF

Pinehurst's Lydia Ko, back from her worldwide travels, continued in the same brilliant winning form by claiming the girls' gross at the Auckland SS strokeplay championship at Huapai.

Playing at her former home course and in ideal golfing conditions, the world No1 ranked amateur shot a two-under 67.

The talented 14-year-old became the youngest to win the New Zealand women's golf championship last month and is the first to hold the Australian and New Zealand titles simultaneously.

However, despite her obvious talent, Ko started her round slowly.

"I started solid with birdie, par, but then wasn't getting anywhere," said Ko.

"Then I decided I needed to make an improvement in the back nine, so I went birdie, par, birdie and it was good from then."

Ko put her name on the coveted trophy alongside equally talented previous champions Cecilia Cho and Larissa Eruera.

She is now looking ahead to her next big events.

"I'm going to the British Amateur, and want to play well in that," she said. "And also play well in the Charles Tour events."

Two shots behind Ko was Kristen's Julitta Lam with a solid one-under 69, followed by Wenyung Keh (Botany Downs) with an even-par 70.

The girls' net prize was won by Lynfield's Jocelynn Katu from Sai Ma (Auckland International) and Caryn Khoo (Pakuranga) after countback after a three-way tie on 71.

Manurewa's Nick Voke won the boys' gross with a two-over par 71, followed by Rosmini's Michael Li (72) and Westlake's Jason Gulasekharam (73).

Voke acknowledged that the course was playing long, which may provide an explanation for the relatively high scoring.

"It played quite long. Quite a lot of shots were plugged in the rough and the fairway as well. And there was not much carry," said Voke.

"But the greens were nice and firm, with nice true roll, which was good."

Voke has strong ambitions to continue winning tournaments and to get selected for the Srixon Academy.

"I want to enter as many tournaments on the order of merit as I can and hopefully make the development Srixon Academy at the end of the year."

There was another three-way tie - on 69 - in the boys' net. Leonard Powell (St Kentigern) emerged victorious after the countback from Brian Park (Rangitoto) and Nicholas Heatley (King's).

- Nathan Calis

ORIENTEERING

Record numbers turned out for the Auckland SS individual championships with the changing weather conditions and the labyrinth of tracks in and around the Woodhill Forest mountain bike park providing a fair test for a field of almost 300.

MAGS' Kieran Woods claimed the senior boys' (under-20) championship - his second title this year after winning the sprint finals six weeks earlier.

The lead changed during the race with both Frazer McDiarmid (King's) and Ben Reynolds (WBHS) taking control but then losing it with navigational mistakes.

In the end, Woods, who is still eligible to compete in the under-17 grade, kept his cool to win by just over a minute from McDiarmid and Reynolds.

There was the same drama in the senior girls' race. Cosette Saville (Pukekohe) took an early lead and at halfway had a handy two minutes over Rebecca Gray (St Cuthbert's) and Renee Beveridge (St Dominic's).

At the finish Beveridge cleared out to win comfortably - seven minutes ahead of Hannah Lockie (Massey) who ghosted past Gray to take second. Saville was fourth. It was Beveridge's second Auckland SS senior title.

Tane Moore (Massey), the national M16 long distance champion, held off a strong challenge from Sam Peat (King's) to win the intermediate (under-17) crown by just 17 seconds.

Jacob Rennie (Rosmini) had a consistent race for third four minutes back.

Diocesan teammates Helena Barnes, the national W16 long distance titleholder, and Lauren Holmes, were too strong for the rest of the field with Barnes winning by just under a minute from Holmes with 11 mins back to Kate Hopkinson (Carmel).

After a very slow start, Callum Cleary (Pukekohe High) won the junior boys' title and Diocesan chased the trifecta in the junior girls, but in the end were upstaged by newcomer Kayla Fairburn (St Cuthbert's).

In the school's competitions King's claimed the boys' crown by a point from WBHS and Diocesan easily accounted for the girls' competition winning by 10 points from St Cuthbert's.

RUGBY

North Harbour: A fierce haka face-off set the tone as TGS took on Glenfield at home. Glenfield, newcomers to the heat of the 1A championship, were fired up as they chased their second win of the season.

Both sides traded penalties midway through the first half before the home cleared out for a convincing 47-18 win.

TGS look much improved and ready to attack the top teams. Although outclassed, Glenfield are a team with potential and should be watched as they gain experience at this level of rugby.

The other 1A games were very one-sided affairs with Massey putting away Rangitoto 45-10, WBHS thumping Orewa 69-3 and Rosmini comfortably beating Mahurangi 40-7. WBHS beat Glenfield 31-5 in the first of the midweek fixtures.

In 1B Whangaparaoa continued their winning way with a 34-15 win over Birkenhead.

Northcote won a tight encounter over Long Bay 10-0, Kaipara thumped KingsWay 50-18 and Kristin edged Hato Petera 12-5.

- Toby Hurley

SOCCER

After a couple of scratchy 2-1 wins, MAGS hit their straps as they celebrated a return to their home ground - and a new playing surface - with a 4-0 win over St Peter's after leading 3-0 at halftime.

With three rounds gone MAGS have a two-point lead over rivals AGS.

The deadlock was broken when MAGS keeper Patrick George directed a goalkick into the St Peter's half. Jordan Vale got on the end of it and set up Joseph Dan Tyrell who finished in style.

Vale bagged the second, after being set up by Nathan Atherton. Vale added the third just before halftime, and completed his hat-trick midway through the second half.

Auckland Grammar came from 2-0 down after 11 minutes to beat bottom side WBHS 3-2 with a stoppage time winner from Stewart Mackay.

A young St Kentigern side visited Sacred Heart and came away with an encouraging 2-2 draw, snaffling the equaliser seven minutes from the end.

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