Interview with Rotorua Boys Blue head coach Scott Mayhew.
Rotorua Boys' High School side Rotorua Boys Blue were crowned champions in the premier Bay of Plenty Secondary School Sevens tournament final.
They retained the title they won last year in an impressive display to win 31-7 over Tauranga Boys in the under-19 Boys Cup final at the Rotorua International Stadium on Saturday.
They were leading 17-7 at half-time thanks to tries from Michael Vaneo, Hayze Perham and Kaleb Trask with one Trask conversion.
Rotorua Boys' High School player Kaleb Trask in action today. Photo/Ben Fraser
And despite losing two players to the sin bin after cynical fouls in the second half, the Rotorua side pushed on with Perham and Te Ra Whata diving over for tries and two more Trask conversions.
Rotorua Boys Blue head coach Scott Mayhew said a solid defence and structure were the winning factors on the day.
"We knew that Tauranga and other teams would bring a lot of flare and individuality but we just trusted our defence and stayed together as a team," he said.
"It wasn't great to lose a couple of players but I knew the boys had it in them to dig that deep.
"Fitness wise we are not where we need to be at the moment but we do practice with four or five quite often in defence so we are used to it but we will hopefully not do that at the Condors."
Mayhew picked Perham as one of the stand out players in the final and also praised the forward pack.
"Hayze was very impressive getting the tries but our whole forward pack both on the bench and in the starting line-up were really good for us," he said.
"Tauranga were very good. We knew that they worked hard and their four and five would be very handy with a lot of late cuts so we had to muscle up there and they also had quite a strong off loader so we had to make sure to get round him and cut them off."
Rotorua Boys Blue reached the final by beating Te Whare Kura o Mauao 38-0 in the first semifinal while Tauranga Boys beat Western Heights 38-5 in the second.
For reaching the last stage of the tournament both sides qualified for the Condor Sevens held in Auckland in early December.
Rotorua Boys' High School player Michael Vaeno. Photo/Ben Fraser
"We absolutely have high hopes at Condors. We will be working hard to meet our goals so have a couple of days off until Wednesday and then refocus again," said Mayhew.
"We will have a good crack at it for sure.
"And Tauranga pressured very well and will go good at Condors."
Meanwhile, Rotorua Girls' High School side - Rotorua Girls were beaten 22-0 against Tauranga Girls in the under-19 Girls Cup final.
SECOND PLACE: Rotorua Girls' player Brianna Cardon (pictured playing earlier in the tournament) and her side were beaten by Tauranga Girls in the final. PHOTO/BEN FRASER.
A lack of match fitness and handling errors from Rotorua Girls allowed their opposition to establish a solid 17-0 advantage going into the break.
And a strong second-half performance, especially at the breakdown, from Tauranga helped establish a solid platform for them cruise over the finish line.
Tauranga Girls took home the under-19 Girls Cup on Saturday. Photo/Supplied.
"I knew we were in with a good shot because we played good rugby throughout the tournament," Tauranga coach Jeff Robb said.
"In the end it was about self belief and playing to structures. We made sure to spread the ball wide and create holes.
"The team also pressured Rotorua, shutting them down and competing at the break down."
Standout players for Tauranga in the tournament included playmaker Hope Garner and midfielder Bree Meyer.
Both final girls side's like their final male counterparts also qualified for the Condor Sevens.
