The victorious Rahui team, winners of the 2023 Ramsbotham Cup.
The victorious Rahui team, winners of the 2023 Ramsbotham Cup.
Tears were shed as another classic edition of Horowhenua-Kāpiti rugby played out at Levin Domain on the weekend in the Ramsbotham Cup final between Rahui and Shannon.
The game will be remembered just as much for the fine 23-22 Rahui win as it will be for the determination Shannon showed in the final 30 minutes of the match.
The Maroons were never ahead on the scoreboard - until the 77th minute - despite dominating possession and territory for large swatches of the second half and throwing everything they had at the Rahui defence.
Scrum time in the Ramsbotham Cup final between Rahui and Shannon at the Levin Domain. Photo / Paul Williams
Any follower of Horowhenua-Kāpiti club rugby would struggle to remember a better game. Both teams played themselves to a standstill.
Shannon were led from the front by lock Dallas Wiki, No 8 Logan Broughton and captain Coby Devry, Rahui by halfback Leon Ellison, No 8 Joel Winterburn and fullback Morehu Connor-Phillips.
The Rahui brick wall finally broke with just two minutes and 16 seconds left to play, when Shannon forward Jesse Halls finally found an opening and crashed over under the posts. There were scenes of absolute delight among players and the hordes of Shannon supporters.
Shannon celebrate what looked like the match-winning try against Rahui at the Levin Domain. Photo / Paul Williams
By the time Jared Deal slotted what looked like the match-winning conversion for Shannon, the Levin Domain scoreboard was showing there was little time left in the game.
But there was one final twist to an epic match between two sides who contributed equally to what was a brilliant game of rugby. Both forwards and backs from either side had adopted open, running rugby.
The Rahui restart went deep. With time up on the clock, Shannon were awarded a penalty and kicked for touch, expecting to close the game out with the referee’s whistle set to blow for fulltime. But it didn’t - injury time had to be added on - and a lineout was set. Shannon ball.
Rahui lock Ngarongo Selby-Rickit lept high at the front of the lineout and got a hand to the ball, tapping it down on their side, and it was gathered in by No 8 Joel Winterburn.
They went to the openside, to the centre of the field, first using Selby-Rickit as a runner and then, when setting up for another runner, the referee’s arm again went up and the whistle blew. He had got a call from his touch judge that Shannon were offside at the ruck.
He marched back to the spot, about 37 metres out, and signalled the Rahui penalty. Up stepped young Rahui winger Alazay Roache to take a kick that would win the championship. It was over towards the corner where hordes of Shannon supporters were positioned.
The kick was high and right initially, but curled in to sail between the middle of the posts. Shannon and their many supporters were distraught, Rahui ecstatic.
It was another classic Horowhenua-Kāpiti club rugby final, continuing in the vein of previous years that had seen finals go to the wire.
Shannon No 8 Logan Broughton. Photo / Sarah Pape
Waikanae beat Shannon 37-32 in a thriller last season, while the 2021 final between College Old Boys and Paraparaumu was dubbed “the longest game ever played”.
That match went into extra-extra time to find a winner - 137 minutes and 37 seconds of play. The lights at the Levin Domain had to be turned on. Paraparaumu won that match 36-33 with a penalty in golden point extra time.
In 2020, Rahui beat Shannon 26-25 with a Hamish Buick penalty on fulltime, while in 2019, Foxton just held on to beat Waikanae 31-25 after leading 24-0 at halftime.
Unfairly weighing on the shoulders of the brave Shannon team was the fact their team hadn’t won the Ramsbotham Cup since 1991. They had upset Foxton in the semifinals last week just to make the final.
Shannon centre James Woodmass is consoled by suppporters after the narrow loss to Rahui in the Ramsbotham Cup final at the Levin Domain. Photo / Paul Williams
On the other hand, Rahui thoroughly deserved the victory as they hadn’t dropped a game and had been the form team all season. They were humble in their win, with captain Morehu Connor-Phillips acknowledging the effort of their opposition in his post-match speech.
Rahui halfback Leon Ellison opened the scoring with a try in the first half, with Roache showing his class with the boot in adding two penalties - just reward for plenty of behind-the-scenes practice. Shannon’s first-half points came through three penalties to McDermott-Smith.
The teams traded penalties in the second half only for Shannon to close the gap with a well-taken drop goal to Jared Deal after a period of sustained pressure.
A jubilant Rahui team celebrate their last-minute win against Shannon.
SCOREBOARD: Ramsbotham Cup - Rahui 23 (L Ellison try, A Roache 6 pen), Shannon 22 (J Halls try, J Deal drop goal, con, A McDermott-Smith 3 pen)
Bill Muir Cup: Levin College Old Boys 29, Rahui 28.
- Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ on Air.
