Hora Hora's Mark Bennet has a run with the pill during his side's 19-13 win over the Western Sharks. Photos / Michael Cunningham
Hora Hora's Mark Bennet has a run with the pill during his side's 19-13 win over the Western Sharks. Photos / Michael Cunningham
A bold, last dash, effort saw Hora Hora rekindle some of last year's winning form in a fiery, 19-13, victory over the Western Sharks.
Despite the win, Hora Hora coach Doug Te Puni admits his 2014 premier champions are still lost in the shadow of their former selves.
"It's hard to emulate last year," Te Puni says.
"As a club we're struggling [with] numbers, [and] guys not back from last year - but, I think, it's more the boys realising they're not coming back and turning to themselves, grabbing the ball and actually doing it."
Saturday's win over the third placed Western Sharks side was a big result for the ailing Hora Hora side.
After a mixed bag of results so far this year, Te Puni is aware his side have plenty of rebuilding to do if they are to appear in a playoffs berth later in the season.
"This year we've actually got to work a bit.
"We're glad of the win, yeah, but we've got a hell of a lot of work to do.
"We've got a lot of young guys who are keen and are actually beginning to believe in themselves."
Capitalising on Hora Hora's lack of discipline, in the early stages of Saturday's encounter, the Western Sharks claimed a steady six-point lead with two successful penalties.
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In spite of this, Hora Hora's outside backs proved threatening as they continued to probe the Sharks' defensive line.
A hearty effort resulted in a try for Hora Hora shortly before halftime and, with the successful conversion, they took the lead, 7-6, going into the break.
The second half saw the tempo pick up yet again.
Hungry for the win, and to build on to their top three position, the Sharks struck first with a blazing run down the right hand flank to score the first try.
They continued to dominate on attack but their defence slipped and let in a try by Hora Hora but an unsuccessful conversion kept the Sharks ahead by one point.
With seconds left on the clock, the Sharks led 13-12.
However, poor discipline resulted in time in the sin bin for players from both teams.
Inside the last minute it was anyone's game, but a win for the Sharks wasn't to be.
Dougie Te Puni, on the receiving end of some swish backline ball, secured the win for Hora Hora with a try on the fulltime whistle.
Looking to next week, Hora Hora will continue to build on their "whanau atmosphere" as they host Hikurangi.
"We're probably one of the most physical clubs in the competition when we're switched on," Te Puni says.
"That's the team phrase; we ticker up, we're whanau and we just go hard."
Results
Southern Districts Premiers Hora Hora 19 Western Sharks 13 Mid Northern 31 Otamatea 11 Mid Western 36 Old Boys Marist 8 Waipu 34 Kamo 14 Wellsford 31 Hikurangi 15
Southern Districts Reserves Mid Northern 22 Otamatea 14 Old Boys Marist 34 Mid Western 22 Kamo 47 Waipu 12 Wellsford 47 Hikurangi 5 Hora Hora 34 Western Sharks 24
