It was a lesser final than they wanted to appear in, but Whanganui Boxon are justifiably proud of winning their first Senior club championship in just their second year.
Missing out on the Premier semifinals on a points' countback last weekend, Boxon were determined to still finish the season ona high and did so with a storming second half to hammer the Levin Wolves 40-22 in Palmerston North on Saturday.
Boxon opted to play into a strong breeze in the first half, and were confident of going on with it when they were only 16-14 down at the break.
Coach Stewart Reweti said he was surprised Levin took them on up the centre as opposed to using the breeze for a kicking game. "We kept that momentum for the second half and put that roll on.
"We rolled our forward pack, our front row, in and out. It was the most interchange we did.
Jordan Davis and Stevie Aue grabbed doubles, while captain Steelie Koro, Che Barlow, Matty Rangi, and Pentuakau Turia-Bennett scored the other tries, with Koro adding four conversions.
"It wasn't the grand final we wanted, but you walk away with any silverware and you should be happy," said Koro.
"It's a stepping stone, it sets the bar for coming seasons." Five players will be in the Manawatu Mustangs representative squad for their third game against Taranaki in coming weeks, including the standout Barlow, who was named Back of the Year for the Manawatu League.
Koro and Reweti are confident of retaining most of this squad in 2014, although Reweti has an eye to recruiting now the team has increased their exposure. "The club has well and truly made a mark in the Manawatu."
Their roster could include a number of the Boxon Under 17 team moving up, although Reweti says both he and the Manawatu League would like to see an Under 18-19 grade introduced before seniors, if the numbers are there.
