South Canterbury’s record Heartland Championship run has stretched to 35 wins after a 33-19 win over King Country at Geraldine on Saturday.
The ‘‘Green and Blacks’’ are the only unbeaten team after Whanganui edged out Thames Valley 16-14.
Wairarapa Bush got their first win of the season with a 39-24 win over Poverty Bay, while West Coast snuck past Buller 20-17 in Westport to win the Rundle Cup.
South Canterbury have the maximum 20 points courtesy of four bonus point wins, and have opened a four-point lead at the top of table over Whanganui, while Thames Valley, Mid Canterbury and East Coast are in a three-way tie for third two points further back.
The semifinalists for the Meads Cup will however become clearer on Saturday as the top teams face off, with East Coast hosting Thames Valley and Whanganui travelling to Ashburton to take on Mid Canterbury.
South Canterbury should not have too many problems taking care of North Otago at Temuka Domain.
The Old Golds have managed only one win this season so far, but will be looking for an upset as coach Scott Barnes has plenty of knowledge of what South Canterbury will bring, having coached Celtic in club rugby this season.
The fact the Hanan Shield and the Bill Direen and Phil Gard memorial cups are on the line also adds some spice.
On Saturday at the Rakapuka Reserve, South Canterbury got away to a flyer, playing into a strong wind, with the hard-running blindside Tangi Savelio scoring after four minutes and halfback Willie Wright converting.
King Country then showed they had not come all the way south just for fun, and found themselves 14-7 up after 25 minutes with tries to left wing Patrick Hedley and hooker Liam Rowlands, with Hedley converting both.
South Canterbury then drew level after prop Taufa Hala’ufia crashed over from close range and Wright added the extras.
On the stroke of halftime, South Canterbury were in again after a clever offload from Wright set fullback Dan Patterson scampering away to score, with Wright again converting.
King Country were dealt a blow when impressive No 8 Kaleb Foote suffered what looked like a season-ending shoulder injury.
The second half started as a replay of the first, with Savelio again scoring early to put South Canterbury up 26-14.
King Country again responded quickly with right wing Baven Brown scoring after a brilliant bust by fullback Latrell Smiler-Ah-Kiong to close the gap to seven points.
That lifted King Country, who could sniff the upset may be on, and they played some good rugby, but a yellow card to Apete Matai slowed their momentum and they could not break through again.
Instead South Canterbury sealed the win in the 73rd minute when Patterson scored off another Wright in-pass.
The game would have been a frustrating watch for South Canterbury coach Nigel Walsh and his assistants, with the number of handling errors and missed opportunities.
King Country to their credit defended very well at times, adding to South Canterbury’s frustrations.
For the second week in a row Wright stood out with his playmaking, giving those around him plenty of opportunities.
Left wing Peala Matakaiongo looked dangerous, as did Patterson.
Up-front former All Black Hika Elliot carried the ball well into contact, as did lock Solomone Lavaka.
The loose forward trio of Savelio, Finlay Joyce and Siu Kakala all worked hard.
Results (round 4). —
South Canterbury 33, King Country 19; Mid Canterbury 39, Horowhenua Kapiti 14; East Coast 24, North Otago 18; Wairarapa Bush 39, Poverty Bay 24; West Coast 20, Buller 17; Whanganui 16, Thames Valley 14.
Championship points.—
South Canterbury 20, Whanganui 16, Thames Valley 14, Mid Canterbury 14, East Coast 14, West Coast 11, Horowhenua Kapiti 9, King Country 8, North Otago 7, Wairarapa Bush 6, Buller 5, Poverty Bay 4.
Tasman grab Log o’ Wood
It was fifth time lucky for Tasman, who upset Hawke’s Bay 25-24 to grab the Ranfurly Shield for the first time in their history.
The Nelson and Marlborough provinces combined back in 2006 to form the Makos.
The last time the Shield was held in the top of the South Island was 50 years ago, when Marlborough held it until they lost it to South Canterbury.
Timaru Boys’ Colts triumph
Timaru Boys’ High School’s under 15 team have triumphed in the South Island Schools tournament for only the second time in 25 years, beating Nelson College 36-31 in the final.
Last time Timaru Boys’ took the silverware was back in 2006.
In pool play they beat Southland Boys’ 29-12, pre-tournament favourites Shirley Boys’ 17-12, Rangiora College 29-7 and Marlborough Boys’ 20-7.
In the semis it was a comfortable 36-12 win over Waitaki Boys’.
Timaru Boys’ team was Parker Anderson, Jack Houston, Tim Bartlett, Quinn Potatau, Bayley Rattray, Naca Vuidravuwalu, Ollie Loader, Will Anderson, GP van Heerden, Damien Tucker, Max Cameron-Greig, Miles Henriksen, Louis O’Sullivan, George Johnson, Taine Nimo, Tioti Barao, Ezra Cockburn, Jonah Heke, Tanieli Tuli, Sam Buckingham, Harry Milliken, Flynn O’Sullivan, Cairo Ngatokao, Boston Davis, Sione Tusani; coaches Kris O’Sullivan, Kris Houstoun, Werner du Plessis.
