Captain to rescue as Kamo snatch shield

Kamo Under-18s skipper Mac Sykes scored a try in the dying minutes of the Powell Shield final to clinch a sensational comeback to beat Whangarei Boys High School 30-25.
Kamo clawed their way back from a 8-25 half-time deficit at the Toll Stadium on Sunday to trail by just two points but although they dominated possession in the second half, Boys High were determined to hold them out and defended gamely.
After Boys High had forced another error from the Kamo players in their own 22m, they set the scrum but the clearing kick was charged down and one of the star performers for Kamo, second five-eighth Josh Caldwell, picked up the bouncing ball and flicked it to Sykes, who crossed the line to touch down behind the posts.
Whangarei Boys High School surged back in the remaining minutes of the game and had Kamo supporters' smiles frozen on their faces after Ben Berridge burst into their 22m zone but they couldn't capitalise on the break and it was Kamo who raised their hands high in victory.
The Kamo skipper saluted Boys High for their performance after the match and said despite being behind for the majority of the match, his team had never given up.
"Although we were down at half-time, we knew we could still win if we played hard and that's what we did," he said.
It was a fitting end to a very close Northland-wide U-18 competition. Although Kamo had been one of the front-runners, Boys High and Kamo High school had defeated them during the round robin section of the competition.
"It was a good, hard season for the boys and it went right down to the wire in the end but we pulled through. All that hard training paid off," Sykes said.
Kamo coach Graham Dickeson said he had believed the team could win throughout the match - after a particularly good try by No8 Ryan Messenger in the first spell.
"All we needed to do was get a hold of the ball, we had it once in the first half and we scored a really good try ... and that try was all important when the game turned our way in the second half, so the half-time message was pretty easy - get your hands on the ball and don't give up."
An early try to Caldwell helped their cause, and then Caleb McDonald got on the scoresheet but the Kamo kickers were struggling with the wind.
Kane Rudolf narrowed the gap to 23-25 with 17 minutes to go but Boys High lifted their game again until they conceded the final try in such unfortunate circumstances - just minutes away from lifting the title.