Stags' party: disciplined Hikurangi crush tired Moerewa to take title

Victory tasted sweet for the Hikurangi Stags when they crushed  Moerewa Tigers 49-26 to win their first Whangarei City and Districts grand final since 2001.
A well-drilled and disciplined Hikurangi side played relentlessly for 80 minutes to make sure they did not repeat their last grand final performance in 2007 when the Tigers defeated them.
Hikurangi skipper Bevan Hati was ecstatic following his side's decisive  victory.
"It's an excellent feeling to win a grand final," he said.
"It has been a couple of years since we have been in the grand final and to come back and win it against Moerewa - it's sweet."
Hikurangi started as they meant to go on, with lock Jarom Wihongi-Henare running past a stunned Tigers outfit in the first minute to score a try  that Caleb Henare converted.
The Tigers swiftly recovered and replied five minutes later with Vern Wilcox breaking through a disorganised Hikurangi defence. Henry Wiki's conversion levelled the score to 6-6.
Several penalties were forced as the teams settled into the game but it was Hikurangi who scored next when the ever-present playmaker Wihongi-Henare caught a slippery pass from Caleb Henare and crossed the line, taking the score to 10-6.
 Tigers levelled  the score 10-10, with Wilsom Hona running in a try.
Hikurangi began to find their momentum with 10 minutes of the first half left with a step-up in defence and big attacking bursts.
Nopera Teviti's try and Caleb Henare's conversion took the Stags  into the lead once more.
 Stand-off Darren Henare pushed the lead out to 17-10 when he planted a dropgoal from in front of the posts.
Wihongi-Henare snuck in another try before the break  to extend Hikurangi's lead to 21-10.
Hikurangi emerged as an even more dominant side in the second half.
They ran in two soft tries against a tiring Tigers defence in the first four minutes.
Tigers hooker Wiki was the pick of the bunch and strived to keep his team in touch with
Hikurangi and closed the gap to 31-14.
A penalty  and another try from Caleb Henare put Hikurangi further ahead but the Tigers never gave up.
A try from Carlos Shepherd edged Moerewa closer but it was not for long -  Hikurangi still had plenty left in the tank.
With seven minutes remaining, a try by Innocent Tuimavave and conversion from Caleb Henare saw Hikurangi up 43-20 and, to rub salt in the Tigers' wounds, Dean Scheures ran in another easy try, arms pumping.
In the final minutes Wiki found a rare gap in Hikurangi's solid defensive line to score and convert his own try.
But the game was well and truly Hikurangi's.
Moerewa manager James Wilcox was understandably disappointed after his side's fall but he was complimentary of the huge effort from Hikurangi.
"The boys worked so hard.
"But no excuses, 'Hika' took it to us on the day," Wilcox said.
Moerewa's fitness and concentration let them down at crucial points in the game and allowed Hikurangi to mop up the mess.
"They were more hungry - and we got a bit tired out there," he said.
"At the end of the day that's finals football.
"We are just disappointed we couldn't pull it off for our supporters."