Ruapehu destroy Utiku

Getting to start on Saturday, Ruapehu forwards Te Uhi Hakaraia, with ball, Keith Donald and Mark Wallace were looking to make a mark, as double tryscoring winger Cory Carmicheal watches in background.

McCarthy's Transport Ruapehu don't want to wait until the final throes of the round robin before they enter this year's Tasman Tanning Premier's Top 4 after they destroyed an undermanned and overwhelmed Utiku Old Boys 88-7 at Rochfort Park on Saturday.

With Ohakune basking in a well-earned sunny afternoon after the weather tribulations of earlier in the week, the home side lived up to the occasion by running riot at better than a point-a-minute in each half, with a shattered Utiku's only respite being a consolation seven pointer inside the last two minutes, which likely ate up enough time to prevent them conceeding a dreaded triple figures.

Ruapehu took the opportunity to blood a couple of youngsters in the forward pack, most notably with stalwart Peter Rowe sitting on the reserve bench, while coach Daisy Alabaster has shown his hand in the midfield by utilising Craig Clare's versatility as a playmaking centre, while Troy Brown focuses on being a hard-running second-five.

Ruapehu didn't run many plays, but they didn't have too as Utiku dropped off an obscene amount of tackles, with double tryscoring flanker Campbell Hart reeking havoc, either bumping defenders aside or shoving them into the turf with his long fend.

Brown, captain Roman Tutauha, double try scoring winger Cory Carmicheal and promising looking fullback Shaquille Waara also brushed aside defenders, as Utiku offered little except isolated runners, turnovers, lost lineouts and free kicks overshooting their mark.

Ruapehu's veteran No8 Andrew Evans was downright brazen with his try late in the fourth quarter as he swept forward from his own half and deliberately ignored support players in space to just smash through some weak cover defence and add his name to the scoresheet.

Word going around the traps is after the half-hearted effort in the first round of games last year, Ruapehu's veterans have got their heads together and made a firm committment to try and give it everything for one more championship season.

Alabaster would not be drawn on that, but firmly emphasised that in this year's nine-team grade, it's Top 4 or bust.

"There's a few young fellas there, we're still trying to build things," he said.

"And we're doing it with home grown."

It was likely Ruapehu will stay with their current No12-13 combination, keeping Steelform Wanganui's incumbent second-five Craig Clare a little further out wide, where he was still able to utilise his smart tactical kicking.

"We're looking for a centre and Craig's it," Alabaster said.

Bringing a four player bench to Ohakune, which has been compounded by the folding of their Senior team for the year, Utiku's coaching staff were already in deep discussion while Ruapheu were still wracking up late tries about how they can lift their battler team.

"The guys that are here are getting to it, but [the others], they're not turning up week to week," said coach Matt Gilbert.

"And we were against an organised Ruapehu who really came at it. Hopefully this will be the wake-up call."

Second-five Hepa Payne and Utiku regular Dylan Ratana, coming off the bench, tried to create play, while Gilbert singled out young flanker Sam Stratton for praise, although acknowledging he took a shellacking after going up against Hart and his cohorts virtually single-handed.

"We just haven't got the cattle to handle that."

When prop Te Uhi Hararaia, young brother of the injured Gabriel, dove over from a tryline ruck after six minutes of play, Ruapehu were away.

Carmicheal claimed his first try from a pin point cross kick, and then he, Waara and halfback Kahl Elers-Green took turns stepping through poor tackles out wide to whaltz over.

Hart left bodies lying everywhere with his first try, while Ruapehu's 35th minute score for Carmicheal came off a lovely set move worked by first-five Josh Fifita, Brown and Tutauha, with Waara then putting his winger over in the corner.

Reserve Brad Scarrow went off the ruck near halftime to put them up 45-0, and then Clare opened the second stanza account by palming the ball like an sevens star to step through the cover defence and go over near the posts.

Rowe came on and immediately took it to the dispirited visitors, making the bust which led to Clare's long pass for winger Robert Hughes, who jogged from the corner flag back to the posts.

Reserve prop Kim McNaught followed up a Tutauha bust to score, then Brown was in on the far side after Ruapehu regathered a kick and chase.

Evans added his crowd-pleasing try and went hunting another, with Hart backing him up to smash over for his double.

Utiku finally got the ball to stick when going through the hands as reserve Guy Heard went under the posts nearing fulltime.

Ruapehu 88 (C Carmicheal 2, K Elers-Green 2, C Hart 2, T Hakaraia, S Waara, B Scarrow, C Clare, R Hughes, K McNaught, T Brown, A Evans tries; Clare 8 con, Hughes con) bt Utiku 7 (G Heard try; D Ratana con). HT: 45-0.