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Otago Daily Times
29-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Yet another intriguing race in the Citizens Shield
You probably know this story by now. It has been another tight race in the Citizens Shield this year and yet again there has been movement up and down the ladder — including a new leader. And while they might be taking a break for King's Birthday this weekend, there are still plenty of talking points from the first seven weeks in North Otago. Athletic Marist has returned to the top of the standings after they beat Maheno 46-33 last weekend. Athies captain Savenaca Rabaka scored twice in that game for his side, who is continuing to build nicely through the season. They held a 17-12 lead at halftime against a nuggety Maheno side in Oamaru and came home strong to score eight tries. Athies are clear at the top of the table with 28 points from their five wins and two losses, and eight bonus points. But Valley are hot on their heels though after a bright weekend for the Weston club. They scored a 20-13 victory against Excelsior in a repeat of last year's final and reversed their fortunes from a loss during round one. First five Isaac Clunie was sublime driving his team around the park and his boot helped put the pressure on early. Valley held a 10-3 at halftime and put in a huge defensive effort to keep Blues out from the line until late in the piece. The Weston side has also welcomed a couple of players from Japanese club Toyota Verblitz again this season after their recent arrival. They welcomed two players last season after coach Barry Matthews struck up a pathway with his friend, and former All Blacks coach, Steve Hansen, who is at the Japanese club. Valley are now on 27 points from their six wins, and just the one loss to Blues earlier, and three bonus points. Blues, who are the defending champions, are now third with their five wins, and two losses, and five bonus points. Old Boys hold on to fourth spot with 22 points, with their four wins, and three losses, and six bonus points. But they had a tight game up the Waitaki Valley against Kurow last week. Old Boys scored in the dying minutes to snatch a 33-32 victory against the Red Devils, who put in a big shift after trailing 19-14 at halftime. Kurow are fifth on the table with right points from their one win and six losses and four bonus points. Maheno, who have been hampered by injuries all season, are winless after seven games, but have five bonus points. Kurow and Maheno are out of the playoff contention with just the three round-robin games remaining, but they both have played some brilliant rugby and put in some big shifts against the rest of the competition.
Otago Daily Times
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Athies ramp it up in second half to romp to 46-18 win
Savenaca Rabaka. PHOTO: NIC DUFF Athletic Marist turned up the heat in the second half to romp to a 46-18 victory in a top-of-the-table Citizens Shield clash on Saturday. They were in second place on the ladder heading into the weekend with their opponents, Old Boys, in first place. The first half certainly lived up to the hype of a clash of titans. Both sides defended well and also showed some attacking flair. Athies were ahead just 10-6 at the break but the floodgates opened in the second half. They scored their first in the opening five minutes of the half. They chewed off metres with strong carry after strong carry, and eventually it was Paia Fifita who bashed his way over. Old Boys won the ball back from the restart and looked to spin it wide. However, Aitauangaa Osamu intercepted the ball and sprinted 60m to score. Athies extended their lead further after a messy lineout in the Old Boys 22m resulted in a breakdown turnover and Savenaca Rabaka pounced on it to score. Epeineri Logavatu was the next to get his name on the scoresheet when halfback Seru Cavuilati spied some space down the blind side and gave it to the big lock. Logavatu stepped out of one tackle and had enough to pace to score. He completed a double not too long after. First five Alfie Coop kicked a 50-22 to give Athies another attacking opportunity. From the ensuing lineout, Logavatu was left alone and ran through a gap. He bust through the final defender and scored. Two late tries to Old Boys prop Sione Tukala off the bench helped close the gap but Athies ran in one more through Saia Fifita to end the match with authority. Despite Athies scoring nearly 50 points, the most impressive part of their win was their defence. Old Boys had numerous attacking opportunities in Athies' 22m but they stood strong each time. There was no secret ingredient, either — they just fronted up and made their tackles. Captain Rabaka was again outstanding and is arguably the form player of the entire competition. The other two games were played on Thursday night to allow the country teams to head away duck-shooting. Excelsior blitzed Maheno 66-23, scoring 40 points in the second half. Valley kept pace with the top teams after an impressive 34-14 win over Kurow. The Red Devils led 14-12 at halftime but the home side could not score another point as Valley turned up the pressure.
Otago Daily Times
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Top two teams to tangle tomorrow
Athletic Marist captain Savenaca Rabaka applies the gas on his way to scoring a try. PHOTO: YAMMIE MCKENZIE PHOTOGRAPHY Athletic Marist have made a mighty fine start to their Citizens Shield season. But head coach Tim Anderson knows his side can lift another level as they head into week four and play the only weekend game tomorrow. Athies had a narrow 22-20 loss to Valley to start the season, but have made it two wins on the trot after recording a big 42-16 victory over Maheno and beating defending champions Excelsior 36-20 in the battle of the carpark last week. "Good start to the season, but we've still got a lot of work to do," Anderson said. "I think we put some good rugby together last week. "It was a really good step in the right direction, but we've got to back it up with a pretty tough contest this weekend." Athies will be up for the challenge against Old Boys — who dropped their first game 26-24 to Valley last week — at Whitestone Contracting No6. There is very little between the two teams — they have both recorded two wins and a loss, three bonus points and sit equal at the top on 11 points. Old Boys hold the advantage and claim top spot on points differential. It is always a big and brutal encounter between two teams packed with Pasifika flair, and they have been among the front-runners already this season. Anderson said his side needed to focus on their core roles first and not worry about whatever Old Boys threw their way. "I think we showed last weekend just by playing footy, we're pretty lethal when we just play footy. "Don't worry about what they're doing, just concentrating on each individual job and they'll be pretty good." The opening weekend of the duck-shooting season has split the games again, with all the country clubs playing last night. Excelsior, who sat third on nine points ahead of the game, headed down the road to play Maheno. Maheno were yet to notch a win for the season after narrowly being beaten by Kurow the week before. Valley, who sat just behind Blues in fourth on eight points, headed up the Waitaki Valley to face Kurow. The Red Devils would have been high after their 42-40 win over Maheno and would have been throwing everything at last year's beaten finalists.
