Part of the large migration of Ngamatapouri players and coaching staff to join Kaierau this season after their small club went into recess, Pakinga shouldered many key responsibilities for the new-look squad, as the reinforcements offset the departure of several leading players from the past five seasons.
Pakinga started at second five-eighths but would slot into first five to cover the absences of fellow Ngamatapouri arrival Brook Tremayne, while also taking on the lead goal-kicker role for the club’s departed captain Ethan Robinson.
He eventually migrated to fullback, where his best game was scoring 10 points in Kaierau’s tight 15-10 win over Marist in their last round-robin fixture.
Also coming on strong in the second half of the competition after not being in the top five of the standings was McCarthy Transport Ruapehu’s standout prop Gabriel Hakaraia, who got the nod for runner-up via random drawing, after also being in a three-way tie on 13 points.
It was the second year in a row Hakaraia has made the top five, with last year being with the Byford’s Readmix Taihape team before Ruapehu returned to the Premier division.
Also making the top five for the second year in a row, and likely content with not winning MVP considering he lifted the Rosebowl Trophy for the third straight year as champion, was Waverley Harvesting Border’s dynamic centre Alekesio Vakarorogo.
O’Leary would not add to his first-round points, but Whanganui Marist RFC would finish as the only club with two players in the top five, with hooker/flanker Alesana Tofa also having a strong second round to tie with Hakaraia and Vakarorogo.
Pakinga winning the award made it two years in a row a Kaierau player has received the MVP prize, following on from halfback Caleb Gray.
He, along with Hakaraia, Vakarorogo and Tofa, have all been named in the Steelform Whanganui wider pre-season training squad, with O’Leary heading overseas.
