East Coast's historic win in the 2008 Wairarapa-Bush senior first division rugby competition has earned further kudos.
Leslie Rugby, a Dunedin-based company which specialises in the marketing of quality rugby products and was established by former longtime Otago representative and Scottish international John Leslie, has named them as their Senior Club
of the Year.
A Leslie Rugby newsletter says the final decision was a two-horse battle between the Ngapata club from Poverty Bay, whose premier one and two teams both won their club competitions, and East Coast with the latter getting the nod.
East Coast joined the Wairarapa-Bush union in 1953 and went into the 2008 season never having won the first division title.
In fact, they had finished 10th out of the 11 teams the season before, and with the only team behind them then, Red Star, not fielding a side in this year's competition they started off at the very bottom of the ranking list.
But under the astute coaching of John Pereira and Ritchie Robertson they hit peak form in the playoffs, beating Pioneer in the quarter-finals, Martinborough in the semi-finals and Marist in a grand final which saw them seal victory with a penalty goal just two minutes from fulltime. It was a stirring comeback after they were 15-3 behind early in the second half..
The Leslie Rugby newsletter makes special mention of the contribution made to the East Coast effort by inspirational captain Dion "Rat" Mitchell, who was returning to the club after nine years abroad.
It notes Mitchell was troubled mid-season by a "sore" neck and associated lack of feeling in one arm, not a good scenario for any player let alone a hooker.
Despite X-rays, physio, acupuncture, repeated visits to doctors, chiropractors and osteopaths his condition steadily worsened but he continued to play on only to have new X-rays confirm on the Friday morning before the final that he had three fractured vertebrae, not in his neck but lower in his back.
So come the competition decider Mitchell was not on the field of play but still managed to make an impact though the advice and encouragement offered from the sidelines as a "very authoritative" water boy.
"He now requires surgery, bone will be removed from his hip and grafted to the damaged vertebrae," the newsletter said of Mitchell. But while his playing days are over he will remain closely involved with the East Coast club, having been appointed forward coach for the premiers in 2009.
