Hamilton Boys' High School celebrate winning the Sanix Youth Tournament in Japan. Photo / Supplied
Reigning national first XV schoolboy rugby champions Hamilton Boys’ High have a special motivation to retain their top domestic status this season.
As you might expect from a team which won the World Schools First XV Festival in Thailand in November and then the Sanix Youth Tournament in Japan last month, Hamilton Boys’ High have hit the ground running in first XV rugby again this season, despite the loss of some star players from 2022.
They started their Super 8 season with an impressive 64-14 home win over New Plymouth Boys’ High, then last week hammered Auckland Grammar 48-0 in their annual exchange, hinting at how hard they will be to roll this year.
And in that respect Hamilton coach Nigel Hotham revealed his players have dedicated their first XV season to the late Keaton Reti, a rising young squad member who died suddenly in an accident in February.
Reti, a talented No 8, had won the school’s “U15 Rugby Player of the Year” award late last year, and big things were expected from him this season. Instead, this winter Hamilton Boys’ are taking Reti’s photo with them everywhere they go, as a reminder of what might have been.
“It is horrific when you lose a player like that,” Hotham said. “The younger players especially were very close to Keaton and this is very personal for them.
“This year they want to do it for Keaton as much as themselves.”
Hamilton have lost senior stars such as Payton Spencer (now NZ Sevens) and Aki Tuivailala (NZ U20s) from last year’s national title-winning squad, but still have plenty of talent in the ranks.
Flanker and captain Oli Mathis sets the standard for Hamilton Boys’ on and off the field, while Hotham is also tipping a big season from second-five Hiraka Waitai-Haenga, who only made his first XV debut in the top-four semifinal against John McGlashan College last year. Other key personnel are halfback Mac Russ, hooker Tom McCarthy and centre Caelys Putoko.
Against Grammar, with the assistance of a first-half wind, Hamilton racked up 31 points before the break and the contest was effectively over. Grammar barely managed a solitary try-scoring opportunity throughout, despite Hamilton having benched a few of their usual starters.
Despite a proud heritage, as far as first XV rugby is concerned, Grammar have been something of a Hermit Kingdom in recent seasons. They finished a distant ninth last year while they haven’t commented on the state of their first XV for years.
However, Hotham thought Grammar were definitely better than last season (when it was 55-0) despite another one-sided result, and denied taking it easy on them.
“We had to take account of things like sickness and injury and would not disrespect Grammar. This is a very important exchange with a 105-year-old history.”
The schools annually contest the Headmaster’s Bowl, which features the lion crests of both schools on it as well as the scores from every game they have played against each other.
“It goes back to the 1920s when Hamilton Boys’ High would make the trip north by train and then walk from the station to the school.
“And Grammar have had many more wins than we have.”
Grammar host rivals King’s College, who are also struggling, in the 1A competition on Saturday (2.30pm).
Meanwhile, Hotham said there was no secret to Hamilton’s ongoing success, with five national titles since 2008 and now an impressive four Sanix World Rugby Youth Tournament wins.
“We try and keep away from the term ‘rebuilding’. A large percentage of the first XV always comes through the school’s U14 and U15 pathways.
“We have no big scholarship programme so have to attract people who want to come here and then work to develop them.
“We are a school that fields 22 rugby teams every Saturday and we’ve found players tend to develop at different times. For example, the stars at intermediate level are not necessarily the stars at U15.”
And Hotham said it was “an urban myth” that Hamilton Boys’ were well financially catered for with their rugby endeavours.
“At times I feel like a full-time fundraiser,” he sighed. “We don’t have the tradition of some of the big schools from other urban centres with their business links. We’re more off planting trees and working on farms.”
Hamilton Boys’ High struck difficulty this year with half of the team having fund-raised to get to Thailand in November, and then finding they needed to do it all over again with a late invite to Japan.
“But we finally managed to secure $500 sponsorships for 28 boys.”
Hotham said it was difficult to write too much into the Sanix title win in terms of world status. While New Zealand had a good system of sending its national champions, with other countries selection could be a lot more haphazard.
“But what we have noticed is the difference between Japanese teams from when we first attended in 2009 and this year was like night and day. The investment in company rugby has filtered down into high school rugby and their game has really developed.”
Hamilton Boys’ High face Palmerston North away at 12pm on Saturday and then a have a Moascar Cup match at home to Rotorua Boys’ High the week after.
Christchurch Boys’ High forwards were just too big, too strong and too good, in their team’s 37-3 win over Christ’s College in the Miles Toyota Premiership, reports Adam Julian.
With two full grandstands (one temporarily constructed for the occasion) and vast a contingent of interested spectators from other schools, and set against a backdrop of clear blue skies, and with no breeze to speak of, Straven Rd was a picture worthy of a canvas.
But the match didn’t reach such lofty heights, despite Christ’s previously unblemished record, and it was over in 20 minutes with 17 points scored in a flash by the hosts.
It wasn’t that Christ’s lacked heart, they were simply over-matched and undersized in the collisions which made it difficult to speed the game up and create the opportunities that have yielded three previous wins.
Christchurch scored six tries and kicked two conversions and a drop goal. First-five Will Haig was authoritative. His 30-metre try swerving into a hole and then rounding the fullback without a hand laid on him was a highlight. So, too, was fullback Bogi Kikau breaching Christ’s midfield defence after hitting the line at pace from a classic scissors move earlier.
No 8 Marshall Blakely was rampant often trampling over smaller blindside defenders to create momentum. Locks George Steel and Jake Frost continued their impressive seasons.
Centre PJ Palamo and openside Frankie Meates were hearty for Christ’s, who didn’t concede any points in a 25-minute period of resistance that had it not happened could have made the score much larger.
Christchurch now head the fixture with 86 wins as opposed to Christ’s’ 43 (and nine games have been drawn) and have retained the Jock Hobbs Memorial Trophy. The former All Blacks captain was a Christ’s old boy and played in the first XV.
READ MORE: Punches, homophobic slurs and abuse: Inside Canterbury’s biggest first XV rivalry
Whanganui Collegiate sit nine points clear at the top of the Central North Island standings after a 36-12 away win over St Peter’s Cambridge, and then a 37-14 victory over Rathkeale College on Tuesday.
Whanganui tries against Rathkeale came from Maurice Ratu Latus, Oscar Mabin, Maurice Mow, Noah Ioasa, Monty Sherfiff and James Hardy.
Meanwhile, Wesley College secured a much-needed 22-14 home win over St John’s (Hamilton) with tries from Suli Pahulu (two), Apai Ma’u Hinkes and David Kama, plus one conversion from Kama.
But perhaps the biggest news out of the Central North Island in the past seven days was St John’s (Hastings) beating St Pat’s Wellington 22-17 in their annual exchange.
This is St John’s first win in this contest in 19 years. Town were Wellington finalists last year but have struggled so far in 2023. Even so, St John’s have had few wins in the past decade so this is a big deal for them.
Saturday’s Auckland 1A draw (home team first, all 2.30pm): St Kentigern v Dilworth; Tangaroa v Kelston; De La Salle v Sacred Heart; Mt Albert Grammar v Liston; St Paul’s v St Peter’s; Auckland Grammar v King’s College.
North Harbour draw, Saturday (home team first, all 12pm): Rosmini v Orewa; Rangitoto v Manurewa; Westlake v Whangarei; Massey v Takapuna. Results: Manurewa 6 Massey 84; Whangarei 29 Takapuna Grammar 32.
Super 8 draw, Saturday (home team first, all 12pm): Rotorua v Gisborne; Palmerston North v Hamilton; New Plymouth v Tauranga; Napier v Hastings. Result: Hastings15 Palmerston North 25.
Central North Island draw, Saturday (home team first, all 12pm): St John’s Hamilton v Feilding High; St John’s Hastings v St Paul’s; St Peter’s Cambridge v Francis Douglas. Tuesday, 13 June, 12pm: Whanganui Collegiate v Lindisfarne College.
Wellington Premiership, Round 3: Mana College v Wairarapa College postponed; St Pat’s Town 7 Scots College 49; St Pat’s Silverstream 61 St Bernard’s College 5; Hutt International 34 Tawa College 15.
• Readers are invited to send their first XV rugby updates, news snippets and hot takes to nzschoolboyrugby@gmail.com.
Christchurch Boys' High won a thrilling match against St Thomas 61-40.