Coaches praise attitude of victorious Rotorua Boys' High sevens players

The Rotorua Boys' High School under-15 team won the Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology North Island Secondary School Sevens. Photo / Supplied

There was plenty of raw talent on display during Rotorua Boys' High School's journey to a North Island Secondary Schools under-15 win.

But what pleased their coaches most was the mental strength and positive attitude they showed during their unbeaten run to the title in Tauranga last week.

Rotorua Boys' co-director of rugby Deon Muir said it was an "outstanding result".

"Myself and [co-director Ngarimu Simpkins] decided to take them away for those couple of days and see what the future looked like in terms of the younger group coming through. We're obviously really happy, we've got some good, talented boys there.

"Getting them in the right frame of mind to play in a sevens tournament is probably the biggest struggle with our younger players. We got that right and they played well on the field," Muir said.

During the round robin, Rotorua Boys' beat Te Wharekura O Mauao 10-7, New Plymouth Boys' High School 38-10, Hamilton Boys' High School 12-7 and Manukura 12-7.

In the final they were up against Manukura again. Trailing 12-0 at halftime they faced an uphill battle in the second half, but showed great maturity to come back and win 14-12.

"We had two high scores, against New Plymouth and Tauranga, but all the rest were really close. The boys dug deep in that final, it was awesome in terms of the character they showed.

"In a pressure situation like that, when you're down and having beaten them previously, it can be hard for them to get their heads in the right place. They showed a lot of maturity to come back and get 14 points to win the game. Our kicker kicked a conversion from the sideline to get those two points that won the game and there were some defining moments throughout the second half, crucial turnovers and some big tackles that swung momentum our way.

"It was a good insight into what our future looked like and to have our first XV coaches involved with them was really valuable. We only have them at academy time and especially for me, being new, it was a good chance to get to know these boys and see what they're about."

Rotorua Boys' High School players Cassius Cowley, Bless Perese-Elliot, Tamakaimoana Whareorere and Ngakohu Walker were named in the team of the tournament.

Rotorua Boys' were also in fine form last week, winning a pre-season game against Dilworth School 45-0.

They travel to Fiji this week to play a Fijian secondary school academy team and a Fijian high school first XV.

"We want to get the culture of this team on point. At the end of the day you can have all the talent in the world, but it's the culture and the environment you create that wins championships."

The first XV start their Chiefs Cup campaign on April 28.