Hawke's Bay Ranfurly Shield hero on extra-time decider: 'A nonsense'

All's well that ends well - Magpies group after the final, final whistle. Photo / Ian Cooper

The man at the centre of what has been the Hawke's Bay Magpies' most-famous Ranfurly Shield save was this afternoon still at a loss as to when the shield was secured in the latest match on Sunday.

"To be honest, I still don't know," said Hawke's Bay Rugby Union life member and 1966-1969 Shield era hero Blair Furlong told Hawke's Bay Today, the day after the first extra time win a Ranfurly Shield history dating back to 1902, and Hawke's Bay's first extra-time win in its 137 years of first-class rugby.

"When you find out can you let me know?" said Furlong, who kicked the famed last-minute dropped goal that gave Hawke's Bay a 12-all draw against Wellington to keep the Shield in the Bay in front well over 20,000 at McLean Park, Napier, at the end of the 1967 season.

On Sunday, Furlong was back at the park, in a Covid-19 Delta "bubble" with fellow life member and 1960s hero Ian MacRae witnessing the confusion as Tiaan Falcon, one of his successors at first five-eighths, landed a last minute penalty to draw 33-33 with Bay of Plenty, and had to go through it all again to win the game with a "golden point" penalty in extra time.

Tiaan Falcon celebrates kicking a penalty on full time with Ereatara Enari to send the game to extra time. Problem was, they hadn't secured the Shield. Photo / Ian Cooper

But he was without the assistance of the commentators, or anything like the crowd 54 years of yore, with about 1200 people at the ground as the Hawke's Bay Rugby Union and the Napier City Council worked to make sure as many as possible could be accommodated within the rules and safety considerations of pandemic restrictions.

In the confusion he thought the Magpies had retained the Shield with the draw, and the extra time was to decide the Bunnings Warehouse NPC competition points.

That would have been "a nonsense" he said, and if it was the case that the draw was not in favour of the Shield holder then that was "rubbish."

"If you can't win the game in 80 minutes you don't win the Shield," he said.

Magpies coach Mark Ozich also conceded some confusion "in the box" from where he was watching and that there was not a surety about whether the Shield had been secured with the draw at the end of ordinary time, although aware first class competition rules had been changed two years ago to allow for extra time.

"We just went for the worst-case scenario," he said. "To win."

Hawke's Bay Rugby Union CEO Jay Campbell said the unions had been told that extra-time in a Shield match would come into play as a result of changes made for NPC rugby two years ago.

Problem was, he reckoned, was that it was the first time it had happened, and that with "so much else going on" people hadn't been aware.

Meanwhile, the Magpies next match is away against Wellington next weekend, but the remainder of the programme, including a scheduled shield defence against competition leaders Tasman, was dependant on what Covid alerts are in place.