Rugby: Whanganui up against South Canterbury on Saturday

The stage is set for an enthralling Heartland rugby match between Steelform Whanganui and South Canterbury at Cooks Gardens on Saturday.

It is the halfway stage in the eight rounds of qualifying in the 2022 Bunnings Warehouse championship, with six-times Meads Cup winners Whanganui holding a one-point lead over defending champions South Canterbury.

It is only the third time the Butcher Boys have recorded a maximum 15 points from the opening three qualifying games.

It was achieved in 2008, the year Whanganui won the Meads for the first time with a 27-12 local final victory over Mid Canterbury, and repeated in 2016 culminating with a tense 20-18 title win against visiting Buller.

Although there were comfortable five-point wins away against West Coast (43-19) and East Coast (34-18) and locally v King Country (41-3) those unions are currently ranked 12th, 9th and 8th respectively.

Whanganui have managed 17 tries in the three outings.

South Canterbury, who went through unbeaten with nine victories last season, have started the year with 15 tries and sit a point adrift of Whanganui after managing just two tries against last season's runners-up Thames Valley, winning the opening day encounter 23-17 at Temuka.

There was a 36-17 win over 2021 Lochore Cup runners-up North Otago in Fairlie after scoring nine tries in a 53-20 success against Horowhenua-Kapiti at Levin.

South Canterbury have scored 112 points against opposition currently ranked 3rd, 4th and 7th and conceded 54 pts.

Against lower-ranked teams, Whanganui have managed 118 pts and conceded 40.

Present points: Whanganui 15, South Canterbury 14, North Otago (plus 72 differential), Thames Valley (plus 8) and Buller (minus 28),10, Mid Canterbury (plus 26) and Horowhenua-Kapiti (plus 1) 9, East Coast (minus 32) and King Country (minus 34) 5, Poverty Bay 4, Wairarapa-Bush 2, West Coast 0.

This weekend Whanganui host South Canterbury, Horowhenua-Kapiti v King Country, North Otago v Mid Canterbury, Poverty Bay v East Coast, Thames Valley v Wairarapa-Bush and West Coast v Buller

Switched unions
Whanganui will be taking plenty of interest in Canterbury utility loan forward Mathew Taula-Fili at Cooks Gardens on Saturday.

He took the field as a substitute for Whanganui in a 14-28 loss to South Canterbury in Timaru last season but has joined the neighbouring green and blacks this winter as a loan player.

Playing mainly from the back of the scrum, including in the 22-16 Lochore Cup final victory over North Otago at Cooks Gardens, he appeared in Whanganui's last five 2021 matches, scoring three tries including in his debut at Levin.

He has played as a lock for South Canterbury this season.

Other loan players include goal-kickingTasman first five Sam Briggs, who scored a century of points last year, and Canterbury second five Zac MacKay.

Add in NZ Heartland reps Willie Woods (halfback), midfielders Zac Saunders and Paula Fifita, loose forward Nick Strachan and props Tokoraata Fakataua and Vaka Taelaga and South Canterbury will field a strong all-round team.

Whanganui will certainly need to be in top form to preserve an unbeaten home Heartland record in games against South Canterbury.

Hat-trick exponents
Only two opposing players have scored a hat-trick of tries in the 400 Heartland championship matches Steelform Whanganui have contested since 2006.

And one of them, winger Sireli Buliruarua, is in the defending South Canterbury Meads Cup champion squad that play the Butcher Boys at Cooks Gardens on Saturday.

Buliruarua collected his three tries when the green and blacks beat Whanganui 28-14 in Timaru last season in the sixth qualifying round.

The other winger, Halavini Leatigaga, scored the other try, with Tasman loan first-five Sam Briggs converting all four tries.

The trio played major roles in South Canterbury, winning a first Meads Cup title with the wingers scoring 10 tries each and goal kicker Briggs contributing 115 points.

They are key members of the back brigade again this year.

The only other player to record a hat-trick against Whanganui was North Otago's Chris Taianoa in a 27-15 home victory in 2013 .

Whanganui have provided four players with four tries each at Heartland level — Tyler Rogers-Holden (2019 v East Coast), Cameron Crowley (2008 v East Coast) and Pati Fetuia (2006 v Thames Valley) all on Cooks Gardens, and Te Rangatira Waitokia (2016 v Poverty Bay in Gisborne).

There have also been 14 Whanganui hat-tricks recorded including two by Fetuia plus his bag of four, two by Fraser Middleton, a four by Crowley and hat-trick to Johnny Mow in the same fixture in 2009 plus hat-tricks from future All Blacks Stephen Perofeta (2015) and Waisake Nahola (2009)

Whanganui 3 or more Heartland tries
Four tries
2019 — Tyler Rogers-Holden (67-24 v East Coast, Cooks Gardens).
2016 — Te Rangatira Waitokia (52-30 v Poverty Bay, Gisborne).
2008 — Cameron Crowley (71-6 v East Coast, Cooks Gardens).
2006 — Pati Fetuia (65-18 v Thames Valley, Cooks Gardens).
Three Tries
2019 — Vereniki Tikoisolomone (38-15 v Horowhenua-Kapiti, Levin).
2017 — Timoci Seruwalu (79-7 v Wairarapa-Bush, Cooks Gardens).
2016 — Michael Nabuliwaqe (74-6 v West Coast, Cooks Gardens)
2015 — Stephen Perofeta (55-23 v Poverty Bay, Cooks Gardens).
2014 — Samu Kubunavanua (38-24 v Wairarapa-Bush, Cooks Gardens).
2011 — Sam Scown (76-8 v Horowhenua-Kapiti, Cooks Gardens), Ace Malo (69-12 v West Coast, Greymouth).
2009 — Fraser Middleton (46-6 v East Coast, Cooks Gardens) and (59-14 v South Canterbury, Cooks Gardens), Waisake Nahola (48-13 v Poverty Bay, Cooks Gardens).
2008 — Johnny Mow (71-6 v East Coast, Cooks Gardens).
2006 — Asaeli Tikoirotuna (65-18v Thames Valley, Cooks Gardens). Pati Fetuia (46-8 v Mid Canterbury, Cooks Gardens).and (49-37 v North Otago, Oamaru).
Opposing Teams (Three tries)
2021 — Sireli Buliruarua (South Canterbury 28-14, Timaru).
V 2013 — Chris Taianoa (North Otago 27-15 Oamaru).