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Otago Daily Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Steamers still unbeaten after strong win over Valley
The top four are beginning to create a sizable gap from the chasing pack as the Southern Region competition nears the business end. All the top four sides claimed away wins at the weekend. Some had it easy, but others were made to work hard for their success. The unbeaten Clutha Steamers moved to a 10-game winning streak with a 50-20 win over Clutha Valley at the Balclutha Showgrounds. The home side did not have it all their own way in the first half and actually trailed as the match approached halftime, but a late try gave Clutha a 19-15 lead at the break. Clutha turned around their lethargic start by putting on a clinic of attacking rugby in the second, scoring some nice team tries. Clutha Valley ran out of steam and were not given much of a chance to show their worth in the second half. Toko held on to second place with a clinical 36-26 win over Heriot in the West Otago cold. The first half was an extremely tight affair, and the physicality was immense with both teams running into contact regularly, probably to try to keep warm. The match was tied 14-14 at the break before the visitors made the most of their chances in the second half. Heriot were guilty of some crucial handling errors in the second half and their poor discipline allowed Toko to stay in the right areas of the field and then score points. West Taieri kept in touch with the top two with a 49-14 win over Lawrence at Simpson Park. Lawrence paid the price early for some poor first-up tackling as West Taieri ran out to an early lead. West Taieri's forward pack made inroads, and their backline looked sharp, especially in the outside channels. Lawrence showed glimpses of structure but could only crack the defence once in the first half, and West Taieri led 28-7 at halftime. The second half was equally frustrating for the home side as they continued to give away possession and gift West Taieri territory and possession. This made the visitors' job easy as they ran in another three second-half tries, flanker Conner Jenkins sealing a hat-trick. Crescent converted an 85th-minute penalty to beat Owaka 37-34 at Swamp Hen Park. The first half of the match featured Crescent flexing their muscles with some strong carries and metres made up the middle, and the visitors led 28-17 at halftime before Owaka mounted an all-out assault in the second half. The home side held on to possession for the majority of the half and scored some nice tries. Both teams were guilty of giving away penalties, and the score was 34-34 deep into referee's time before Crescent were awarded the winning penalty. — Francis Parker
Otago Daily Times
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Crescent control first half
Crescent produced the result of the weekend with a 24-14 win over West Taieri at Kaitangata. Crescent scored two tries inside the opening 10 minutes to assert their control before allowing West Taieri to score one of their own to narrow the gap. West Taieri's discipline let them down badly in the first half as Crescent kicked four penalties with fullback Kairus Booth's radar on point. Crescent went into halftime 24-7 ahead and in control of their own destiny. West Taieri had a mortgage on territory and possession in the second half but came up against a massive defensive effort from the home side. West Taieri attacked for large portions of the half and never really gave Crescent a chance. The only thing stopping the visitors from scoring regularly was a passionate and committed Crescent defence. West Taieri lost battering ram Conor Lawson to a red card in the second half which slowed down their attack. They managed to score one try for their troubles, but it was not enough. Clutha kept their unbeaten run alive and locked away the Art Bloxham Cup for the summer with a hard-fought 22-16 win over Owaka at Swamp Hen Park. The first half was a battle of attrition as the home side looked the more promising on attack. They failed to make their dominance count and were guilty of throwing silly passes on attack which allowed Clutha to clear their lines. Clutha led 7-3 at halftime. The second half saw Clutha hold on to possession better and make metres from broken play. They scored three second-half tries, but Owaka stayed in the match through the boot of second five Sene Te'o. Owaka scored a try at the death to narrow the gap, but the damage had already been done. Heriot capped off their 140th Jubilee celebrations with a strong 37-27 win over Lawrence which saw them lock away the West Otago Shield. Heriot went to width early, found space and room to move in the outside channels. Lawrence's forwards put in an honest shift in the first half and got their side into strong positions. The halftime score was 20-10 to Heriot in front of a packed house at Death Valley. Heriot opted for a more direct approach in the second half as their forwards showed their physical abilities. Lawrence began to tire and Heriot finished with vigour to secure maximum points on their big day. Toko has leapfrogged West Taieri into second place on the ladder with a less-than-convincing 20-10 win over Clutha Valley at Milton. Toko was lethargic at best in the first half and were lucky that Valley did not offer too much on attack. Valley scored the opening try and kicked a penalty to lead 10-0 before Toko hit back before halftime. The 10-5 halftime score seemed to scare Toko in form and they found their stride in the second half with three tries while keeping the visitors scoreless. By Francis Parker
Otago Daily Times
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Clutha on top as round two begins
West Taieri flanker Logan Moore braces for a scrum during their Southern Region game against Clutha Valley at Outram on Saturday. PHOTO: KAYLA ANN PHOTOGRAPHY The Southern Region premier club competition starts its second round this weekend with most teams still in the running for a top-four spot. Clutha sit comfortably on top of the table after a near-perfect first round. Clutha were unbeaten in round one and have 34 points out of an available 35. They locked away the South Otago Banner and Springbok Horns last weekend in their win over Toko at Milton. Clutha head to Swamp Hen Park this weekend to take on an Owaka side who managed to secure their first win of the season last weekend against Lawrence. The Art Bloxham Cup is on the line with Clutha going into the match as heavy favourites. The Heriot Rugby Club celebrates its 140th jubilee this weekend with an action-packed weekend of rugby planned. The Heriot premier side have hit a purple patch of form and now have two wins on the bounce and sit just outside the top four. Their last-gasp win over Crescent last weekend showed a resilience that perhaps has been lacking in recent seasons. Heriot take on Lawrence in the main event tomorrow, with the West Otago Shield up for grabs. Lawrence are the only side not to record a win in round one of competition. Crescent are in the middle of a form slump with two losses in a row. The Kaitangata-based side lost a close match in Heriot last weekend which saw them lose track of the teams in front of them. One of those sides, West Taieri, travel to Kaitangata tomorrow in what promises to be a massive clash of two potential semifinalists. West Taieri are coming off a successful jubilee last weekend but know their hard work has only started. Toko host Clutha Valley in the last match of the weekend with Toko favourites to keep their spot in the top four after only their second loss of the season last weekend against Clutha.
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
