Juniors take regional title

It was an intense but satisfying final game for the Bay of Plenty U-11 Mixed Coastal touch team when they beat North Harbour in a sudden death drop-off to secure the winning try.

The U-11 Mixed Coastal side - made up of players from around the coastal areas of the region between East Cape, Whakatane, Te Puke and Tauranga - was the only Bay of Plenty team to win their final in the annual Northern Region Junior IPS touch competition held at Rotorua's Puarenga Park at t he weekend.

The team beat North Harbour 5-4 in what coach Moana Waititi described as a "pretty intense" final.

He said the teams were drawn at the end of the final game and had to go into a shoot-out or drop-off, which meant each team lost a player as time passed, to find the winning team.

Waititi said when the teams had four players left on the field, they secured the winning try and took out their grade.

"It was pretty intense... We were fortunate to come out [on top]."

A total of 11 teams represented the Bay of Plenty in the Northern Region Junior IPS touch competition, which caters for U-9-U-13s and 15-17 Mixed teams.

After two days of competition, other Bay of Plenty teams - the U-15 Mixed and the U-11 Boys Elite - battled it out for the top spots in their groups. Both teams came away with a runner-up placings.

Manager for the U-15 Mixed side, Tiwaiwai Teepu, said despite not winning the final match against Northland she was proud of her team.

She said although her team had come up against the same team the day before and beat them by one point, they knew that didn't mean they were guaranteed a win in the final.

"Every day is different," Teepu said. "We went fantastic, it was our first loss for the weekend."

Her team was made up of players from Rotorua, Tauranga, Whakatane, Taupo, Ruatoki and Kawerau with stand-out players including Tyler Edwards-Bidois, Mererangi Paul, Te Ua Keepa and Tamaka Teepu-Kira.

Other Bay of Plenty teams that placed well in the competition were the Bay of Plenty's U-13 Girls team and the U-13 Mixed team, which each took out a third placing at the end of the two-day competition.

Bay of Plenty Touch spokes-woman Ira Te Kani described the competition as a great success.

"It was hugely successful, it's the most teams Bay of Plenty have ever fielded. We've had [positive] feedback from the spectators about the organisation and facilities."