Rugby: Waikato repel ferocious challenge

By Wynne Gray

It will take an excellent rugby side to prise the Ranfurly Shield from Waikato's bunker this season. Taranaki asked as many questions as any challenger could and still came up short of the nation's revered Log o' Wood.

The scoreboard finally read 33-15 to the holders, a margin that would appear quite significant unless you were in Hamilton on Saturday to appreciate the brutal ferocity and tight-fisted drama of the latest challenge.

In the washup, the balance of the Waikato pack, where Mark Cooksley was a lineout magnet and captain Deon Muir a pulverising advance force, and a slim margin of backline nous from the steady Todd Miller and Matthew Cooper, helped the home team gain the edge.

It was a ding-dong slog, though.

All the expected pre-match hype, parade and provincial banter was on show at Rugby Park, including one truck float which had Ferdinand (the Taranaki mascot) suspended on a rope and an accompanying sign: "Another hopefull (sic) Shield challenger hanging around waiting for a hiding."

The signwriter would have reassessed that prediction after the match, and certainly after an opening quarter where Taranaki showed why they are one of the tough nuts of provincial rugby. A backward step is only something you might contemplate at an after-match dance.

The amber and blacks, sporting a smart new visiting jersey, rarked up Waikato from the start. They played it close, but flat out and tough, steaming into the Waikato forwards. There was plenty of attitude, which accounted for some of the turnovers in the tackling trenches.

Soon after the furious start Waikato coach Kiwi Searancke wondered whether he had overcooked his side during scrum training. He concentrated on that area after some staggers last week and some early Saturday wobbles made him question whether he had asked too much of Waikato at practice.

"But they responded, they settled after what had been a hell of a start to the game," he said. "But we would expect that because of all the passion that comes with the shield."

That passion glowed like the Waitomo Cave worms in every player and throbbed throughout this classic slugfest until the PA announcer and referee Colin Hawke had to wait for the ground to clear before Mark Urwin could attempt a final-minute conversion.

With the packs hammering each other for little advantage other areas had to be exploited. And a bit of luck helped, too.

Waikato got it when a Roger Randle kick delivered a wicked corkscrew bounce in-goal to elude defenders and find Todd Miller's grasping touchdown for the opening try. The Waikato fullback made it two in the 35th minute when Randle's pace gave him an overlap, but the holders were only 12-3 in the lead at the break.

A nifty move called Kaponga, after backs coach and former All Black Kieran Crowley, put Mepi Faoagali over from a blindside run just after the restart, and then the turning point with a similar backline move.

After a couple of switches, halfback Richard Jarman could not hold a low pass with the line a short dive away.

"That would have kept us in the hunt and forced Waikato out of its comfort zone," rueful Taranaki coach Colin Cooper said later. It was a small sign Taranaki have yet to nail the ruthless backline edge to their forward grunt.

After that let-off, Matthew Cooper smacked a couple of penalties and late tries from breakaway Nick Holten and an 80m intercept from Glen Jackson pushed Waikato out to a bonus-point victory. A final try from Urwin closed the gap for Taranaki, but did not give them a bonus point that their valour, skill, tenacity and endeavour deserved.

It should, though, have told the Hurricanes selectors that players like the Slater brothers, Paul Tito, Campbell Feather, Urwin and Kerry Eynon bring consistent passion to go with the skill and desire to be topline Super 12 players.

If the shield challenge left plenty of damage in Hamilton, this Saturday's game in New Plymouth between Taranaki and Wellington should be an epic battle for some of those Super 12 positions.