Rugby: Meech critical of low-grade returns

Former Magpie Hilton Meech has called for better results from Hawke's Bay's lower-grade rep rugby teams. Photo / Paul Taylor

The "underbelly" of Hawke's Bay's representative rugby scene requires a major overhaul claims former Magpie Hilton Meech.

"I've got no problems with the ITM Cup squad. Our Magpies did a great job to not only win the Ranfurly Shield off Counties-Manukau but to retain it for the summer after four defences. It's the underbelly I'm concerned about," Meech said.

The president of the Hawke's Bay Saracens Club, an adjunct of the Hawke's Bay union which uses former Magpies to foster development, Meech said the union could have done more to achieve better results from the Hawke's Bay Development side which played under the Saracens name, the Hawke's Bay Tuis women's NPC squad and the Bay's under-19 team.

Meech, who played 72 games for the Magpies between 1962-'72, was disappointed former Magpies and successful Maddison Trophy-winning coaches with Havelock North, Simon Halford and Murdoch Paewai missed out on the coaching job for the Development team which had three losses during the season under Nash Cup-winning Taradale coach Blair Cross and Hastings Boys' High School 1st XV mentor Jack Wiggins.

"I don't know much about Blair and Jack. But I know they are both back coaches and it's not often you get a backs' coach who succeeds as a forwards' coach ... someone like Laurie Mains is one in a thousand," Meech said referring to the former All Blacks fullback and head coach.

"Considering the players used in the Development team they should have done better."

The Tuis returned to the NPC after a season's absence and recorded one win, 39-10 against wooden spooners Bay of Plenty. Their next best result was a 16-10 loss to Otago and their worst defeat was a record 93-0 loss to Auckland.

Meech believed the Tuis weren't fit enough at the start of their campaign and should have started training as a squad in March. He also claimed the Tuis would have been better served by a head coach running a training squad from March and into the NPC than playing under the control of player-coach Chanel Huddleston who didn't have her appointment confirmed until May.

The under-19s finished 12th at their Taupo-hosted nationals after recording one win and two losses at the tournament and several heavy defeats in buildup matches. Meech claimed this was another Bay team which should have began training in March, instead of July, as teams in the same age group from more successful unions did.

Commenting on Meech's claims Hawke's Bay Rugby Union CEO Mike Bishop said he believed the Development team had a "solid" season. "It was the first time for a year or two we had a Development side and several of those players progressed to the Magpies ranks during the season."

Mike Bishop.

Bishop agreed the Tuis season could have been better but the side improved and the best example was the win against Bay of Plenty on McLean Park in their second outing.

Bishop pointed out his union would have preferred an under-20 national tournament but believed the Bay's under-19s did "pretty well" under the coaching of 2013 Maddison Trophy-winning Napier Technical coach and former Chiefs and Magpies prop David Briggs and his assistant Steve Woods. Their only win in Taupo was against the Auckland B team.

"It's a tough tournament when you are playing big city teams, with bigger lads selected from a higher populated area so they were reasonably solid," Bishop added.