The Power Farming Cup is ready for kick-off this weekend. Pictured is some of last year's action. Photo / Power Farming
The Power Farming Cup is ready for kick-off this weekend. Pictured is some of last year's action. Photo / Power Farming
Junior club rugby teams from across the Waikato are amped up for the start of the Power Farming Cup this weekend.
The Power Farming Cup, now in its second year, was founded by Morrinsville-based farm machinery business Power Farming after the Gwynne Shield and the Bowers Cup were discontinued.
Across four consecutive Sundays, 12 teams, made up of players from 26 Waikato clubs, will compete across three grades: Under 45kg, 45-60kg and over 60kg, with the latter being a new category this year.
Power Farming director Brett Maber says the new division makes the tournament more inclusive.
“Now all intermediate kids, regardless of size can participate,” Maber says.
The Power Farming Cup has a special grading system that not only takes tries and conversions into account but also looks at a team’s sportsmanship, fair play and sideline behaviour.
The Morrinsville Herd were crowned the champions in the U45kg category of the Power Farming Cup last year. Photo / Power Farming
“It [doesn’t] take away any of the competitiveness on the field and also gives coaches the opportunity to set a focus on other parts of the game other than just winning,” Maber says.
Just over 450 kids have signed up for the tournament this year, including 75 in the over 60kg category.
The Power Farming Cup 2023 was officially launched at Marist Rugby Club last week and Maber says all parties involved were excited.
“A couple of clubs [told us they] had organised four or five pre-season games ahead of [the Power Farming Cup] as training which is pretty cool.
“The kids are super excited to play in front of their mates and families [on the weekend], a lot of the kids were little brothers who watched their older brothers play last year and are now playing themselves.”
Some action from the inaugural Power Farming Cup last year. Photo / Power Farming
Maber says he is also hyped for the tournament, especially after seeing the success of the inaugural tournament.
“There were some fantastic rugby skills and awesome camaraderie. You could see the big kids cheer on the smaller kids and because they were coming from different clubs, they were forming new friendships - and the parents did the same, so it was also about bringing the communities together.”
The inaugural Power Farming Cup champions in the U45kg category were the Morrinsville Herd and the 2022 champions for the U60kg category were the South Waikato Stags.
This year, the teams will compete for the Goord Cup (under 45kg), the Gwynne Shield (45-60kg), the Kukri Cup (over 60kg) and the Clarke Family Cup (most sportsmanship points). All games are 40 minutes long.
Round one will kick-off at 10am on Sunday, July 30, at Hamilton’s Marist Park with Morrinsville Herd vs Northern Eels, Eastern Eagles vs Southern Bears and Western Sharks vs Cambridge Colts.
Round two on August 6 will take place at Memorial Park in Cambridge, round three on August 13 will be at Matamata’s Bedford Park and round four on August 20 at Southern United Rugby Football Club in Tokoroa.
