Wayne Ormond coaches as way to give back

He is the only Steamers captain to lift the Ranfurly Shield in triumph. Now he is hoping to take Rotoiti to similar heights in Baywide rugby.

At the height of his career, Wayne Ormond was a hard-nosed blindside flanker. A tackle from him was a chiropractor's bread and butter and his ability to scrounge for the ball was like seagulls scrapping over a stray chip at the lakefront.

Now the 35-year-old has taken a new direction in his rugby career - he has added player-coach to his impressive resume.

The Rotoiti coach got his first taste in the role when his side beat Waikite 22-10 in a Banner Round semifinal at the weekend.

It's Ormond's first time as a coach and he told The Daily Post yesterday he was still finding his feet.

"Yeah, it's a total different role but I am [enjoying it]. You're learning different skills and I suppose on the other side is trying to manage players. As a player, you just go out and do your own thing and worry about your own job. But this here, you've sort of got to worry about your players' management."

Rotoiti have a mix of youth and experience throughout, especially in the forwards, where Ormond felt his team's strength lay.

Although his pack wasn't the biggest, what they lacked in size they made up for in speed and agility. No better example of this was in their game against the huge pack from Waikite.

"Well, we scored three tries against Waikite; they've got a big forward pack.

"When I say our forwards were strong, it's probably around lineouts and hopefully mobility around the field," Ormond said.

"That is what we are going to have to use [in this competition], height and mobility. In the front rows, we probably don't have the experience other clubs might have. But in saying that, they're young and keen. Hopefully with that youth, it will get us through the season."

Ormond played 65 games for the Steamers from 1999 to 2005, scoring 11 tries. He captained the Ranfurly Shield-winning squad, a moment he was proud of.

Getting the chance to give back to Rotoiti, who helped give him that opportunity, was a huge motivation for taking up the coaching role at the club.

"It's about giving back to the team I've played for in the past. With my first year [in the role], I think it's like everyone else and try and make the top four.

"But my personal goal is to try and push guys to higher honours and making them better players from when they come into the club."

Ormond said he hadn't given up the chance to lace up the old boots and still had the fire in the belly to get on the paddock as well.

But right now, the next big challenge for the big loose forward was making sure his team were ready for the challenge of the final against Whakarewarewa.

"After the Waikite game, there were a lot of areas that we probably need to work on and I think [the team] was disappointed but that is a good thing. They know themselves there's a lot of work to be done over the season.

"But they are definitely looking forward to this game in a quiet, confident sort of way."

The final will be played at Whakarewarewa on Saturday, with kickoff at 2.30pm.