LEAGUE - Panthers watch their hopes slip away in a sea of mud

Portland Panthers' hopes of a place in the Whangarei Rugby League playoffs next weekend drowned in a sea of mud at the Portland Recreation Ground on Saturday.
They lost to a hungrier Hikurangi Stags side 22-8 but the game never reached the heights expected, with so much riding on it, and instead submerged quickly into farce thanks to a waterlogged pitch.
It was Hikurangi's last game in the competition but Portland would have sneaked into the playoffs with a win. Portland led the competition for much of the season but, after losing some key players early in the second round, faded to lose their last six games and drop out of contention.
Knock-ons and dropped ball dominated proceedings on Saturday but it was the visitors who made the best of the shocking conditions to take the game to their opponents.
Michael Salase got Portland on the board after Hikurangi had got the better of them early on, with tries to standoff Joe Rau and Karl Kripner, and Bevan Hati restoring their eight-point buffer to make it 12-4 at half-time.
Portland made a bright start to the second spell, with Ratana Cook capitalising on a Stags' mistake from the kick-off to score in the corner.
Hikurangi's determination to pass the ball wide despite the obvious risks paid off for them and Brent Old scored in the corner, increasing the lead to 16-8.
Rau then shut the door on a Portland comeback with 10 minutes to go by slipping through the defence to score near the posts, leading to the only successful kick of the match by Te Ariki Walker.
Moerewa benefited from Portland's miserable exit, progressing through to the playoffs despite losing 8-26 to Ngawha Saints on Saturday.
The result confirms the prison team's status as minor premiers for the 2008 season - a great effort - considering it was their first year in the competition but one certainly aided by the fact that they didn't have to travel.
Takahiwai finished one point behind the Saints on the competition table.
They will perhaps rue their decision, made at the beginning of the season, not to play Ngawha in the round robin _ not because they dropped a possible four points in defaulted games but because they have no idea what they're getting into when they play the prison team in the preliminary semifinals next Saturday at Jubilee Park.
The winner of the match will go straight through to the grand final on September 6, while the loser will play the winner of the match between third-placed Kaikohe Lions and Moerewa for a place in the final.
Takahiwai finished off Northern Wairoa's bright season on a sour note with a 52-22 win on Saturday, while Marist completed their season without a win by defaulting to Kaikohe.