Tauranga Boys' Aidan Spratley on his way to opening the scoring. Photo / Peter White
Tauranga Boys' Aidan Spratley on his way to opening the scoring. Photo / Peter White
Tauranga Boys’ College rugby supporters are celebrating a historic win.
There have been some outstanding victories by Tauranga Boys’ First XV on their home ground at Nicholson Field over the years – but surely none better than Saturday’s quite remarkable 37-0 thrashing of Hamilton Boys’ High in the Super 8 final.
That margin of victory set a new record in Super 8 rugby finals as Tauranga Boys’ College lifted the famous shield, the epitome of secondary school rugby prowess, for just the second time following the previous success in 1999.
The match was attended by one of the biggest crowds seen at the school for years with the field superbly laid out by groundsman Richard Earl and Tauranga Boys’ big band adding well-received musical notes to the atmosphere.
Hamilton had won 14 Super 8 titles since 2005 and started aggressively with their monster tighthead prop Liam van der Heyden destroying the opening Tauranga scrum.
But it was the only moment of dominance for the Waikato school as Tauranga props Ioapo Kupita and Nickolai Te Huia dug deep, and splendid halfback Charlie Sinton cleverly worked out how to feed the ball into the scrum to ensure a constant quick feed.
Tauranga Boys' College celebrate winning the Super 8 title on Saturday. Photo / Peter White
The opening 17 minutes were a game of cat and mouse as both teams tried to find space through two resolute defensive lines.
Tauranga’s loose forward trio of Jay McQuoid, Ketai Zinyowera and Aidan Spratley powered into their tackles to send the Hamilton attacking runners backward at a rate of knots.
Fittingly, it was outstanding No 8 Aidan Spratley who opened the scoring with a sharp burst through the defence to score. Mason Verster converted and then added a penalty to open up a handy 10-0 lead playing into a stiffening breeze.
Right on halftime, Hamilton looked certain to finish off a fine move with a try in the corner only for wing Kele Lasaqa, who was a constant threat all match with ball in hand, to pull off a heroic tackle to snuff out the move.
Tauranga’s coach Aidan Kuka is a highly motivating character and his words at the break worked a treat with Kele Lasaqa making another slashing break to set up an opportunity first-five Verster took full advantage of to score under the posts.
Charlie Mason stretched the lead to 20-0 with his accurate goalkicking before two slick tries to second-five Judah Draiva finished the match as a contest.
Hamilton crumbled under the pressure, making unforced errors they never usually make, but it was all down to the unflinching defensive pressure exerted by the fired-up Tauranga team.
There was time for one hugely popular try to left winger Kele Lasaqa before Charlie Sinton kicked the ball out to end the game and Nicholson Field was invaded by hundreds of supporters.
Captain Charlie was rightly proud of what his team achieved against Hamilton in the final and all season.
“I am just proud of the effort on defence. It is something we emphasised all year but especially this week about going forward with intent in the tackle,” said Charlie.
“We do pride ourselves on our defence, particularly in the middle of the field and definitely down on our own goal line.
The Tauranga players were well aware of the history of Super 8 and how long the school has had to wait for its second title.
“It has been in the back of the boys’ minds for the whole of the year. After 25 years it is nice to have it home,” said Charlie.
The Super 8 First XV title follows the outstanding win in the Super Rugby Second XV final played the day before, with Tauranga outpointing Hamilton 36-17 to claim just their second Super 8 title after winning in 2009.
That double success means so much for coach Aidan Kuka who has transformed the rugby programme at Tauranga Boys’ College since 2021.
“It is something I have carried with me over a few years of coaching. I like to have an extended squad where both (first and second) squads train together and that has paid off for us this season,” said Kuka.
“The players deserve the success they have had and today they really put their bodies on the line.”
It has been quite a week for Tauranga’s boys in blue but there is still more to come.
This coming Saturday, August 17, from 12pm at Nicholson Field, Tauranga Boys’ will host perennial rivals Rotorua for the right to represent Bay of Plenty schools against most likely Hamilton, in a key game to decide who plays under the Chiefs banner at the national top four play-offs.
Results, Saturday, August 10, 2024
Tauranga Boys’ College 37 (Judah Draiva 2, Aidan Spratley, Mason Verster, Kele Lasaqa tries; Mason Verster 3 conversions, 2 penalties)
