Auckland Nadi Blues celebrate their Hawke's Bay Sevens tournament win in Waipukurau. Photo / Doug Laing
Auckland Nadi Blues celebrate their Hawke's Bay Sevens tournament win in Waipukurau. Photo / Doug Laing
The team that travelled the furthest got the most when Auckland Nadi Blues won a Hawke's Bay Sevens final full of Fijian flair.
Nadi Blues beat Rotorua Fijians 21-5 to claim the Ian Baker Memorial Cup A Grade title at the tournament in Waipukurau on Saturday.
The Auckland-based side beat the last-surviving Hawke's Bay club, Havelock North, 31-5 in the semifinals while Rotorua beat Hawke's Bay Fijians, 40-0.
Host club Central beat Hastings 17-7 in the B Grade final, a second Rotorua Fijians side beat a second Hawke's Bay Fijians side 17-7 in the C Grade decider and Lindisfarne College won the Colts final with a 22-0 win over Clive.
Central Hawke's Bay awaiting their B Grade final against Hastings RS, which they won 17-7. Photo / Paul Taylor
The tournament at Central Park – originally known as the Waipawa Sevens and first held 38 years ago - attracted 20 teams, with 17 in the Open men's competition, and three in the Colts grade, but with just eight clubs represented.
It was the third time in a row the major title had not been won by any of the 22 Hawke's Bay union clubs, and tournament controller and Central Hawke's Bay Rugby and Sports Club chairman Tony Mackie said the result challenged all clubs in the region to both enter the tournament and bring the major title back to the Bay.
Others recalled the days when the tournament was the major turnout for clubs ahead of the club rugby season, which this year starts with the first Nash Cup Premier games on April 2.
Entering the tournament for the first time, and with 2020 winners Rangataua from Bay of Plenty not among the entries, the Nadi Blues became the third winners in a row not from any of the Hawke's Bay union's 22 clubs.
Havelock North were the last surviving local club in the main event at the sevens tournament held at Waipukurau in Central Hawke's Bay Photo / Paul Taylor
It was a big win for the team, who had seven days earlier been beaten 14-12 in the Fijian community Tailevu tournament in West Auckland.
Nadi Blues, representing their Fijian community for more than two decades, hadn't won a tournament in the last 10 years, said captain and Bay of Plenty Sevens representative Vilitati Sabani.
After converting all three of the side's tries in the final, from in front of the posts, Sabani reckoned the toughest opposition on the day came from Havelock North, which a week earlier finished fifth in the national club tournament, also in Auckland.
The Nadi Blues, with players mainly from across Auckland and Counties-Manukau clubs, had been training for the two tournaments since before Christmas.
Playing on a hard ground on a day when the temperature in Waipukurau had been above 26deg, Nadi Blues, whose squad included Samoan Sevens and 15s international Oneone Faafou, outpaced and out skilled the Rotorua side for all of the first seven minutes of the final.
With tries to Josh Raikoti and Faletoa Peni, they led 14-0 at the break, extending it to 21-0 with a try to Ala Levanasiga two minutes later.
The Rotorua side butchered a first chance to get back into the game with a spectacular loss of the ball in the in-goal with three minutes to go, and then missed the easiest of conversions when they finally did score, with Richie Tuivanuavou dotting down with a minute and 10 seconds left on the clock.
There was, however,r something to savour for Havelock North with leader and 26-year-old former New Zealand Sevens player and Hawke's Bay Magpie Trinity Spooner-Neera being named Most Valuable Player.
The Colts MVP award went to Lindisfarne captain Lanson Randell.
Scoring two of his side's four tries in the final, the son of former All Black captain Taine Randell matched a similar accolade in which he claimed the MVP award in last year's Hurricanes Life Members Cup final in the 15-a-side game.
