Latest news with #Speight'sJug
Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Taieri too slow to catch swift Dunedin
Dunedin 38 Taieri 35 Dunedin came out of the blocks like Usain Bolt and in just over 20 minutes were up 33-0. Dunedin midfielder Tayne Harvey started the action with a colossal hit on fellow midfielder Matt Whaanga, the ball jolted free and ended up in the hands of flying winger Oscar Schmidt Uli and he cantered 70m for the try. Fullback Kyan Rangitutia found space on the blind to put winger Joe Parkinson away on an angled run for the touchdown. The Eels were forced into errors and flanker Jarius Losefa kicked through a charge down and won the race to the ball and Dunedin were 19-0. Dunedin scored the try of the game as they went 90m, and fly half Cam Burgess scampered the last 20m. Then after a Losefa break Schmidt Uli again had too much pace. Taieri finally started holding on to possession and flanker Tom Bolton found himself in space out wide and with a nifty chip and chase gave the Eels a much-needed try. He was back in the action soon after halftime when he made a break to put halfback Jac Morton over. But the killer blow came minutes later when Rangitutia found space to put Schmidt Uli over for his third to extend the lead to 38-14. Taieri's pack took control of the game when Dunedin lost some heavyweights, including 150 game man Hame Toma and lock Josh Tengblad, and the Eels took full advantage. They scored from a lineout drive. They pounded away at the Dunedin line and only resolute defence held them out. Whaanga finally took a quick tap from a penalty to put replacement Caleb Leef over and the lead was down to 10. Dunedin were reduced to 14 when Parkinson was binned for a high shot and Whaanga found a hole on the inside to put fullback Reef Newdick over and the lead was down to three. But with a couple of late lineout steals to big Reuben Palmer the Dunedin defence held and they won the Speight's Jug as the first round winners. For Dunedin Schmidt Uli was the best back, up front lock Palmer went the full 80 and was a tower of strength, won his lineout ball and crucially a few of theirs. For Taieri prop Cam Allan McNeill was their best up front and was powerful with ball in hand. In the backs Whaanga inspired the comeback with some telling breaks that got them oh so close to snatching it. — Paul Dwyer University 48 Harbour 46 The lead changed seven times in a thrilling high-scoring encounter between University and Harbour at the University Oval, in a match honouring the recent passing of All Black, Otago and University rugby player Tuppy Diack. Indeed it was a match Diack would have savoured given its free-flowing end-to-end nature. Diack's No 14 jersey was retired for the match. Right wing Aaron McMurray played in the No 22 and proved a standout, scoring two tries and always posing a threat with the ball in hand. University captain and No 8 Lanson Randell left nothing on the park. He scored twice as well and led a solid forward pack to the breakdown. Harbour's Nathan Hastie may have found a new calling at first five. The Highlanders halfback made the inside back spot his own, scoring a hat-trick of tries within his tally of 31 points for the match. His third try was nothing short of sensational. He burst up the guts from his own 10m line and broke through 10 tackles to score under the bar. He made some clever kicks in behind as well. Harbour led 20-14 at the break and extended that to a 32-14 lead 10min into the second half. But University scored five tries in 20 minutes to snatch a 45-32 lead. Then in the blink of an eye Harbour scored twice and headed into the final few minutes 46-45 up. Rico Muliaina kicked a late penalty to seal a thrilling 48-46 victory. — Wayne Parsons Southern 85 Alhambra-Union 12 Southern ran in 13 tries to destroy Alhambra-Union 85-12 at Bathgate Park. Outside backs Josh Buchan and Harrison Martin bagged three tries apiece in the one-sided romp. The Magpies led 40-7 at halftime. AU enjoyed their best patch during the opening quarter of the second half. The Thode twins William and Oliver scored on either side of the break. But the visitors faded badly. They lack fitness. They cannot seem to catch. They certainly cannot tackle and their offloads went to no-one or worse — the opposition. And they tend to go backwards when they have the ball. AU has conceded more than 500 points in eight games. There is no way to put a positive spin on that. Southern, however, looked a million bucks albeit against a feeble opponent. Mackenzie Palmer slotted into first five and created chaos. Second five Justin Malifa collected a couple of his kicks ahead to either score or set up a try. He proved elusive as did Buchan. The best of his three tries was a brilliant piece of skill. He put in a grubber, scooped it up and sprinted 50m to score. Replacement back Martin skinned Charles Alston twice to score two of his three tries. Openside Harry Taylor was everywhere again. He won a lot of lineout ball and led the forward effort. — Adrian Seconi Kaikorai 43 Zingari-Richmond 22 Kaikorai took some time to get rolling at Montecillo Park. Zingari-Richmond have some big ball runners and they put them to good use. But the Demons have Ben Miller and the veteran fullback scored three tries, including one on either side of halftime. That created some breathing space for the visitors. They had been under pressure. Powerhouse No 8 Tofatuimoana Solia barged over early and Jerome Buckley-Faatoia, who had a strong game, got across the line as well. But Miller scored just before the break to give Kaikorai a 19-12 lead and he dotted down again shortly after the resumption. Impressive loose forward Lucas Casey added another five-pointer midway through the second spell and Rico Fisher scored as well to settle the contest. The game got loose and the Colours scored a couple of tries in the final quarter of the game. Solia and Buckley-Faatoia were among their best performers. The Kaikorai front row put in an improved display this weekend. They were routed by Southern last week but made the adjustments, although hooker Ben Hellriegel got 10 minutes in the bin. Miller put in a consummate display. He missed a few conversions but his tactical kicking game was solid and he popped up where he was needed in the backline. Halfback Dylan Pledger made a big impact when he came off the bench. — Adrian Seconi Round 9 The scores Dunedin 38 (Oscar Schmidt Uli 3, Jarius Losefa, Joe Parkinson, Cam Burgess tries; Burgess 4 con) Taieri 35 (Tom Bolton 2, Jac Morton, Caleb Leef, Reef Newdick tries; Samuel Waitia 5 con). Halftime: Dunedin 33-7. Southern 85 (Josh Buchan 3, Harrison Martin 3, Justin Malifa 2, Lotu Solomona, Josh Timu, Harry Taylor, Wyndham Patuawa, Bede Dodd-Edgar tries; Patuawa 6 con, Mckenzie Palmer 4 con), Alhambra-Union 12 (William Thode, Oliver Thode tries; William Thode con). Halftime: 40-7. Kaikorai 43 (Ben Miller 3, Henry Cleaver, Lucas Casey, Rico Fisher, Tori Randell tries; Miller 4 con), Zingari-Richmond 22 (Tofatuimoana Solia, Jerome Buckley-Faatoia, Isaac Dolan, Flavius Roberts-Vili tries; Buckley-Faatoia con). Halftime: 19-12. University 48 (Lanson Randell 2, Aaron McMurray 2, Jake Evans, Rico Muliaina, Warren Loulanting; Muliaina 5 con, pen), Harbour 46 (Nathan Hastie 3, Toni Taufa, Ben Fakataha, Aleki Morris-Lorne; Nathan Hastie 5 con, 2 pen). Halftime: Harbour 20-14. Standings P W D L F A B Pts Dunedin 8 6 0 2 272 132 6 30 Taieri 8 5 0 3 270 174 8 28 Southern 8 5 0 3 323 173 8 28 Green Is 8 5 0 3 269 199 7 27 Harbour 8 5 0 3 235 255 6 26 Kaikorai 8 5 0 3 300 209 5 25 University 8 4 0 4 296 269 6 22 Z-Richmond 8 1 0 7 201 370 4 8 AU 8 0 0 8 126 511 1 1
Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Poor handling of transgression
Well, first round for the Speight's Jug, as I've now found out, and Dunedin is the proud recipient of that. I apologise for saying last week it was for the Gallaway Trophy, but in my defence it has always been played lately for the ''round robin'' part of the season. Dunedin came out as though they were on steroids and were up 33 to zip after 20 minutes and things looked bleak for the Eels. They got an absolute serve from ''Yards'' Young at the break and nearly stole the game, going down by only three. Varsity and Harbour banged on 94 points in 80 minutes and Hawks led by one with seconds to go. Who'd be a coach as one of the Harbour boys indulged in a ''tip tackle'' in front of the posts and Varsity delivered a crucial win to remain in contention for the six. Southern posted 80+ on poor old AU to add to their season of misery. The Magpies end up third on the table on countback. Predictably, Kaik proved too strong for Zingers to comfortably sit in sixth spot. This comp is as tight as a drum with 8 points covering the top seven teams. I think nobody goes unbeaten in the next round. We got it wrong The Green Island vs Taieri game from two weeks ago is in the headlines for all the wrong reasons — a citing and suspension. Social media as per usual has bubbled over. I've had a lot of comment from club coaches, officials, supporters (unsolicited) on the goings on. I'm not here to re-litigate the event, that's for judicials and appeals boards. I've seen the video on numerous occasions and we just got this wrong. The incident while not deliberate, was reckless and should have been sorted at the judicial hearing Wednesday week ago. It was a difficult one as the officials missed it thus there was no card. Green Island cited the Taieri player post game. Following the judicial meeting, the player was handed a one-week suspension. Green Island were rightly not happy and appealed to the NZRU. As I write this column (on Thursday afternoon) no decision has been forthcoming. If the Taieri player had received a sentence commensurate with the transgression, say a four-week suspension, the matter would have been done and dusted. Nobody has won out of this, justice for the injured player and our guilty player is being tried four times. Twice by the judiciary, once by media, and by social media. The judiciary system in Otago in my view works pretty well as a rule but we've let ourselves down here. Also the ''secret squirrel'' process used for judicial inquiries makes no real sense. We need to look at what happened and make sure it doesn't recur. The second round The only people who have trouble with the scoring system for the split round of the Prem Competition are the ODT sports reporters and a few supporters. So this is the last time I'll explain it, so read carefully. We've had the first round and every team had a bye which no points were awarded for. In the split round over five weeks, there is two pools, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 2, 4, 6, 8 based on where you finished the round robin. You play across pool, so the first pool will all have a bye and initially no points are allocated for that. At the end of the round 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 points will be allocated to our first pool depending where they finish in the second round. The teams in pool 1 with top team first are Dunedin, Southern, Harbour, Varsity and AU. Simple really, and no correspondence please. Rugby, racing Sunday The last big meeting for the season for Otago Racing Club is on at Wingatui on Sunday starting at 11.30am. All sports clubs are invited to the event and to take part in the Punters Club and associated activities. Just get a hold of Noelle today, she is taking late entries on 022 035 8373 or gm@ There are great prizes and it's always a great day. I hear five rugby clubs are in, including Taieri, GI and West Taieri plus a few other sports clubs. Get involved I'll see you out there. Topp Cup on the farm It's that time of year again when the rugby comps in South and Central Otago are put on hold for the Mighty Topp Cup. This is where the best of South and Central Otago go to war in the annual tribal year it's being played in Alexandra at Molyneux Park. The Topp Cup is at 3pm with the Development game played as the curtain raiser at 1.15pm. There are kids' games late morning and a junior colts and women's development game thrown in. So if you're passing, drop in for a gander. There is no love lost between Central and South Otago when it comes to the Topp Cup. More fauna on the Taieri We all know there is fauna on the Taieri in the shape of Eels but there was another intruder behind the bar in the Taieri Club on Saturday afternoon. A few of the lads were having a beer during the game (shame on you!) when they noticed screaming from the bar and Fred the barman was wielding a softball bat with malice. As the fracas subsided, it came to light he was hunting a nefarious rat although he may have claimed it was just an extraordinarily large mouse. One question? How tough does it get out there on a Saturday night if he's got a softball bat behind the bar? The late mail I hear Southern's other stalwart lock Corban Agar plays his 50th game this weekend — good on ya mate. I also hear the DCC called off practice on council grounds last night because of rain. Calm down team, it hasn't rained for three months! I know it's wet at the Edgar Centre but the grounds are crying out for some of that! This weekend Destroyed Mayor Jules with a perfect 60 points (all games and margins) so he has had a forgettable year — bad luck mate. On to Otago Volts' best ,Thorn Parkes, who is starting out with a –10 differential, so he'll be an also ran come Monday. GI are at home to Varsity out at the Toolbox and chances are the track will be heavy. This game will be very tight as Varsity may have some ''NZU'' players back and GI will have a few Landers out. Green Island are the favourites but I'm smelling an upset as Varsity (12-) are their bogey team. Taieri (13+) are at home to Harbour for the second time in six weeks and the Eels are travelling well despite the narrow loss to the Sharks — they get up comfortably. Dunedin (13+) beat Zingers by 70 a few weeks ago, so go in as favourites. They've got a lot of experience out injured but should prevail. In the last game Kaik (13+) will be all over AU like a cheap suit. Down on the farm I suffered the worst loss of my career to Clark (Yam Fingers) Frew, so still struggling to sleep. Anyways, on to Ernie Muir, one of South Otago's favourite sons. Played rugby and cricket down there forever and was still reffing until recently — much to the horror of visiting teams! We go head to head on Topp Cup games, so I have my work cut out. In the big game I'll take Central (12-) at home in Alex but with no real conviction. In the Development game I'll also take Central (12-) but I'm positive they win. In the women's game, I'll take AU (13+) to beat Central because they need to win something!
Otago Daily Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Round ends with virtual final
Green Island halfback James Arscott attempts to clear the ruck during a Dunedin division 1 game against Taieri at Peter Johnstone Park at the weekend. PHOTO: LINDA ROBERTSON Club rugby fans will essentially be treated to a final tomorrow. Round one wraps up and the competition is tight at the top. The defending champions Green Island (27 points) lead the standings, but they have a bye. So that means whoever wins the heavyweight clash between Taieri (26 points) and Dunedin (25 points) at Peter Johnstone Park will move into pole position and claim the Speight's Jug as the first-round winner. Harbour (24 points) play University (17 points) at the University Oval in another important fixture. University are outside the top six and they will not want to slip further behind. They are still missing Ricky Jackson, Steve Salelea, Jeremiah Asi, Mac Harris and Mika Muliaina, who are on duty for New Zealand Universities. That is a talented chunk of players. The other two games could be one-way traffic. Kaikorai (20 points) will head to Montecillo Park to play Zingari-Richmond (seven points), who have been labouring this season. Their only win was against the winless Alhambra-Union (one point) in the opening game of the season. AU play Southern (23 points) at Bathgate Park. The Magpies are fresh from an impressive 31-15 win against Kaikorai. They should have too much strength up front for the visitors. They demolished Kaikorai at scrum time last weekend. After the round, the teams will be ranked into two pools. The teams which placed 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 will play crossover games against the teams which placed 2, 4, 6 and 8. As all teams in the odds pool receive an extra bye, additional points will be added at the end of the regular season based on their finishing position in the pool. Points will be allocated as follows: the highest ranked team will get five points, the second-ranked team gets four points and so on. The last-placed team gets one point. Hopefully, that is as clear as home brew. When you have an odd number of teams playing an odd number of fixtures, it all gets a bit murky.
Otago Daily Times
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Steamers only team to remain unbeaten after ‘Duck-shooting Derby'
The Clutha Steamers are the only unbeaten team in the Southern Region premier competition after the latest round. Duck-shooting weekend took precedence as usual with two Thursday night games, a Friday night game and just one Saturday encounter. The annual "Duck-shooting Derby" between fierce rivals Crescent and Clutha was played on Saturday in front of a packed house at Kaitangata. Clutha claimed a 22-19 win after the game was deadlocked at 19-19 for the majority of the second half. Crescent started strongly with the wind behind them and marched out to a 12-0 lead before Clutha hit back with a try late in the half. Crescent led 12-7 at the break but should have perhaps made more of the wind behind them. The second half was a scrappy affair but both sides had their fair share of chances to add points to their tally. The defensive efforts from both sides were huge, but Crescent managed to take the lead with 20 minutes to go. Clutha responded to level the scores before a late penalty gave them a chance to hold on and claim the points, bragging rights, and the Speight's Jug and Centennial Cup. West Taieri gifted Toko their first loss of the season under lights at Outram on Thursday night. The hosts won 22-17 after being behind 17-14 at halftime. Toko's set piece put plenty of pressure on West Taieri, who were not used to being on the back foot, particularly at scrum time. This dominance allowed Toko to operate in the right areas of the field and score two good first-half tries. West Taieri held on to possession better in the second half and made the most of the few opportunities given to them by a determined Toko side. A late try to replacement forward Bug Tisdall sealed the win for West Taieri, who retained the McIntosh Cup and took important points to keep in touch with the leaders. Clutha Valley won their third game on the bounce to give their semifinal chances another leg up. The defending champions beat Lawrence 32-28 despite being on the back foot for large periods. The Friday night spectacle had added spark with hundreds of people turning out to watch a fantastic battle. The first half was an even contest with neither side managing to get away from the other. Valley started well with two early tries before Lawrence took the lead with three quick tries. Valley hit back just before the break to take a 22-21 lead into halftime. Lawrence hit their straps in the second half and looked to have taken their first win of the season before Valley came back into the contest and scored a late try to give them a one-point lead with minutes left. A late penalty sealed the deal before some committed defence kept Lawrence at bay on the final whistle. Heriot beat Owaka 31-27 on Thursday night at Swamp Hen Park. Owaka led 14-12 at halftime and were ahead 27-24 with less than five minutes remaining. Heriot showed their resilience and fought to the end with a late try to No 8 Tyson Adams to get the win. — Francis Parker
Otago Daily Times
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Duck-shooting means round spread over three days
Duck-shooting weekend brings its own challenges for local rugby competitions. The Southern Region competition is spread over three days. Two were being played last night, there is one tonight and the round finishes with a game tomorrow. Friday night in Lawrence sees the home side hosting Clutha Valley with the Miller Cup on the line. Lawrence have not had the best start to their season and are sitting bottom of the table after five rounds. Clutha Valley are on a two-game winning streak after wins over Owaka and Heriot respectively. Lawrence tend to excel under lights at home and will be a tricky prospect in this one. Tomorrow features the annual "duck-shooting derby" between old foes Crescent and Clutha. The Centennial Cup and the Speight's Jug are on the line as well as massive competition points. Crescent are in third position, six points behind Clutha, who have maximum points after five bonus-point wins. There is sure to be a huge crowd in attendance at the Landfill as two big boys of the competition go to war. Last night, Owaka were hosting Heriot, and West Taieri were at home to Toko.
