Former All Black and Whanganui rugby rep Bruce Watt in 1962. Photo / Getty Images
After humiliating North Otago by a record 45-12 last weekend, Steelform Whanganui are in the running to host a Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Lochore Cup rugby final.
But that all depends on results from the eighth and final qualifying round of fixtures this weekend.
The Butcher Boys bounced back into silverware contention
last Saturday by handing out the heaviest defeat of the season for the Old Golds, the Meads Cup champions.
It was the highest winning score in 15 Heartland games between the two top title-winning unions in the championship, and Whanganui's highest score over a reigning Meads Cup holder, heading off the 40-17 win over Wairarapa-Bush on the same ground in 2007.
Whanganui take over third place in the 2021 competition with 25 points, just two clear of Horowhenua-Kapiti and five in front of North Otago and Mid Canterbury.
Unbeaten South Canterbury (maximum 35 points) and Thames Valley (33) are already assured of contesting the Meads Cup final.
The Butcher Boys need at least two points against the TV Swamp Foxes at Te Aroha on Saturday to be assured of a home Lochore final.
Horowhenua will hold that final with an away win over Poverty Bay should the Swamp Foxes beat Whanganui.
Mid Canterbury (20 points) also come into consideration as Lochore Cup hosts with a home win over second to bottom Buller should both Whanganui and Horowhenua miss out on points.
The playoff for a new trophy for fifth and sixth places, however, is a consolation for teams who miss top four placings.
It all points to a crucial final qualifying round of matches.
From a local viewpoint, it will be interesting to see whether Thames Valley risk injuries to key players by saving them for the Meads final.
Whanganui certainly suffered from a torrid 2019 Meads semifinal against Valley in Paeroa before losing the final to North Otago.
The major difference this time is that the Foxes are assured of a place in the final regardless of the Te Aroha result.
The pressure will be on the Butcher Boys in their quest to stage the Lochore final at Cooks Gardens.
Whanganui will create history if they win at Boyd Park on Saturday.
Although the Butcher Boys enjoy a 29-to-eight match-winning advantage over the Swamp Foxes, during the past 98 years the visitors have lost all three previous encounters at Boyd Park.
They were 8-10 in the first clash between the two unions in 1923, 16-20 in 1998 and 8-30 three years later in NPC Div 2 games.
Whanganui, however, have an average winning score of 26-15 over the 37 fixtures, scoring 959 points and conceding 567, including winning 13 of 17 away fixtures.
In Heartland championship matches, the Butcher Boys have lost only two of 11 and both of those were at home on Cooks Gardens — 7-17 in the 2018 Meads Cup semis and 30-36 during the last Heartland qualifying series in 2019.
Whanganui gained revenge at Paeroa later in 2019 with a nail-biting 20-15 Meads semi success when fullback Nick Harding kicked 10 points including converting two tries scored by fellow Border rep, winger Vereniki Tikoisolomone, who scored 13 times that winter and now plays for Taranaki in the first division.
All of Valley's 15 points in that tight match came from Reece Broughton, who landed five penalty goals.
Whanganui were beaten 33-19 by North Otago in the final that year.
Twelve of the 2019 Whanganui squad are in the current competition — backs Josaia Bogileka, Craig Clare, Lindsay Horrocks, Ethan Robinson and Dane Whale plus forwards Dylan Gallien, Gabriel Hakaraia, skipper Campbell Hart, Peter Travis Hay-Horton, Jamie Hughes, Josh Lane and Roman Tutauha.
It will be flanker Hughes' 50th game for the union.
Whanganui and Valley have beaten each other twice in key championship fixtures over the past 33 years — the Swamp Foxes 31-12 in an NPC Div 3 title-deciding round-robin game at Spriggens Park in 1998, and the 17-7 Meads semi at Cooks Gardens in 2018 with the Butcher Boys winning 30-14 in a local NPC Div 3 semi-final in 1993, and 20-15 in the semi two winters ago at Paeroa, the last occasion the two unions have played each other.
Thames Valley elected not to play any fixtures last year and in pre-Heartland outings this season beat North Harbour Development XV 24-21 and lost 17-20 to NZ Universities, a side that beat King Country 50-19.
This year the Swamp Foxes recently beat Mid Canterbury (who upset Whanganui 24-17 with a last-minute try) 52-35 in Te Aroha after earlier disposing of the lower-ranked quartet of Wairarapa-Bush 42-10, East Coast 35-19 and West Coast 27-8 away from home and Buller 30-15 at Te Aroha.
Valley maintained their winning record for 2021 with a 28-11 win against Horowhenua-Kapiti in Levin and last weekend won 50-15 at home over struggling King Country.
The Foxes have enjoyed a comfortable draw, missing playing South Canterbury, North Otago and neighbours Poverty Bay.
They have four loan players — Waikato first-five Todd Doolan who has scored 90 points this year (4 tries, 14 conversions and 14 penalties) and centre Harry Lafituatua, Auckland right winger Joe Clarke and Bay of Plenty No. 8 Matty Axtens.
The Swamp Foxes have scored 364 points including 34 tries headed by four tries each from Doolan and prop Josh Kaho and three each from left winger Tevita Malafihi and lock Cameron Drumgool.
They have conceded 213 points for a differential of 151 with an average match score of 38-16.
By comparison, Whanganui have scored 251 points (29 tries) and conceded 122 points, a differential of 129 points, and an average score of 36-17.
Centre Kameli Kuruyabaki has scored five tries, winger Aleksio Vakarorogo four with three each from Canterbury utility forward Mathew Taula Fili and loose forwards Jamie Hughes and Semi Vodesese.
Ethan Robinson (47 points) and Dane Whale (34) are the main goalkickers.
The mention of former Butcher Boys captain John Staines in last week's column brought back memories of another dual Whanganui-Canterbury representative who played locally in the late 1950s.
He was Hunterville-raised All Blacks first-five Bruce Alexander (B.A.) Watt who started his first-class career with Whanganui in 1957 and made his Canterbury debut in 1959, the year that Waiouru loose forward John Staines arrived in Whanganui.
Staines, who died recently at the age of 82 in Australia, led the Butcher Boys to close encounters with Taranaki (11-17 Ranfurly Shield challenge) and against the touring British Isles side (6-9) within the space of four days.
Bruce Watt, who died in Tawa earlier this year, also aged 82, played 21 games for Whanganui in 1957-58 including a Ranfurly Shield challenge against Wellington (5-34) in his first season and against the touring Wallabies (9-11) in 1958 when the NZ Rugby Almanack claimed: "Watt went well at second five, bustling his opponents and running with purpose."
B.A., who had his clubmate Grant Downs at halfback and elusive Maurie O'Connell at second five, helped Whanganui win six of nine games in 1957, including the scalps of visiting Taranaki (14-13), Manawatu (12-8), Otago (19-5) and Southland (24-6) and also beat Manawatu (8-6) in PN.
He moved out to second-five for most of 1958 when O'Connell was not available, scoring 47 points that season including three tries.
Watt joined the Christchurch Football Club when he transferred south and made his Canterbury debut, the first of 117 appearances in the red-and-black jersey, in 1959.
He retired in 1968 after 197 first-class games, 29 for New Zealand between 1962-64 including an unbeaten record in his eight internationals.
Watt scored two tries in his first test (20-6 v Australia in Brisbane) in 1962 and helped the Kiwis beat the Wallabies 3-0 in Dunedin later that season, England 21-11 at Eden Park and 9-6 on Lancaster Park in mid-1963, and on the 1963-64 British Isles tour beat Wales 6-0, England 14-0, had a scoreless draw v Scotland and he slotted a vital drop goal in the 6-0 victory over the Welsh at Cardiff Arms Park.
He celebrated his last international with a 14-5 victory over Australia at Carisbrook.
B.A. was a fitness fanatic, based around an Arthur Lydiard aerobic style, conducting the Christchurch club's PT sessions.
He took to marathon running including memorable runs on the team bus returning from matches on the West Coast when he would instruct the driver to check the speedo, strip down, and run up and down the aisle until the distance was completed.
After his retirement, Watt played occasional games for the Cantabrians and Centurions. Returning from one game in Blenheim with a fellow player in his aged Morris Minor, they arrived at a closed country hotel on a Sunday night,
B.A. said he would "sort it out" but returned somewhat dejected — "The buggers won't let us in, but I'll fix that." He rummaged in the back of the car, put on his All Blacks blazer, strode back to the hotel and was greeted with open arms. He drank free beer for the rest of the night.
Marton born Bruce Watt, captain of the Wanganui Tech College 1st XV for three years, coached regional junior teams in Marlborough and Nelson Bays and was a South Island under-18 selector from 1972-75.
He was also a talented cricketer, representing Rangitikei at Hawke Cup level.
• Oops — In last week's article on the death of John Staines it should have read NZ Maori rep Jack Karatau — not Bill Eriksen. Karatau was a NZM rep in 1956 and Eriksen an All Blacks trialist in 1957-60.