With the distinct possibility of hosting a Meads Cup semifinal, Steelform Whanganui will be hell-bent on collecting maximum points off Horowhenua-Kapiti at Cooks Gardens on Saturday.
It is the eighth and final qualifying round of the 2023 Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Championship, and a five-point victory this weekend would give the Butcher Boys a chance of a home semifinal.
Whanganui are in second-equal spot with Thames Valley after beating the Wairarapa-Bush Stags 36-18 in Masterton last Saturday, and the Swamp Foxes being pipped 34-33 by North Otago at Maheno.
Although the Butchers have a superior points differential (+72 to +21), the Valley qualify ahead of Whanganui because of a 36-33 win at Cooks Gardens on opening day.
Whanganui have managed five-pointers (four or more tries) against “Nua” in the past five years and the Levin-based side are bottom in the 12-union competition.
Whanganui (18) and East Coast (19) have conceded the least tries this season.
Unbeaten South Canterbury headed Mid Canterbury 50-35 in a high-scoring match in Christchurch at the weekend and travel to play eighth-placed Poverty Bay this weekend.
Fifth-placed North Otago (22 points), away to West Coast (16 points), can qualify in the Meads Cup with success at Greymouth.
It all makes for an exciting final Heartland qualifying round.
Locally, the two near-neighbouring unions clash in their 83rd match over a lengthy 120-year time span, and it is fitting that there is a trophy at stake - the Bruce Steel Memorial Cup.
This has been contested since 1965, with the Butcher Boys ahead eight victories to two in trophy games involving the unions.
Wairarapa-Bush are the other Steel Cup participant. The more robust first division Manawatū union voluntarily withdrew from the annual series in 2012, handing over to the Heartland unions.
Georgia Adams making a run for the Whanganui women's team. Pic / Kate Belsham
Manawatū had dominated the trophy fixtures during the first 47 years, winning 103 of 110 cup fixtures. There is an agreement that the union will be re-admitted to the Steel Cup series should it play in the Heartland grade in the future.
Carterton publican William Steel presented the trophy in memory of his son, Bruce, who was a prominent player with the Ōroua, Masterton and Featherston clubs. He died from cancer at the age of 29 in 1964.
William Steel was the youngest son of 1920-25 All Blacks winger Jack Steel, a winger who twice captained New Zealand during his 38-cap international career.
Jack Steel, who later became a West Coast publican, was killed in a car accident at 42.
Also on the New Zealand tour of New South Wales in 1920 were Horowhenua’s first All Black, Harry Jacob, and Wanganui (as they were known then) wing forward Moke Belliss. The team beat a combined Wanganui-Horowhenua-Manawatū XV 39-0 on the Palmerston North Show Grounds.
Apart from winger Jacob the only other Horowhenua-affiliated New Zealand rep is utility Joe Karam, who played 10 times for the All Blacks between 1972-75 under Wellington colours.
Karam later made media headlines when he campaigned for 15 years before success in having David Bain freed from prison and cleared of charges of murdering family members.
In addition to Karam, two other notable Horowhenua backs who have represented New Zealand from other unions after playing against Wanganui are Carlos Spencer and Christian Cullen.
Before moving to Auckland and capping 44 times for the All Blacks between 1994-2004 and scoring 383 points, Spencer helped Horowhenua beat the Butcher Boys 30-22 in an NPC Division 3 semifinal at Levin in 1992 and 15-9 at Spriggens Park in the 1993 final.
Cullen, in the Horowhenua side that lost 19-8 to Wanganui at Levin in 1994 before becoming a Manawatū All Black in 1996, scored 266 points during his 60 New Zealand appearances through to 2003.
Cullen helped the Central Vikings beat Wanganui 42-6 at Cooks Gardens in 1997 in his one season with the Vikings before switching to Wellington the next year and then overseas to Muster (2003-07).
And Horowhenua can also proudly hold some claims to current World Cup front rowers Dane Coles (who became the oldest playing All Black - 36 years and 279 days - against Namibia) and Codie Taylor, who both played age-grade rugby in the Levin union.
Whanganui have lifted the Steel Cup eight times in 34 trophy fixtures and Horowhenua-Kapiti thrice in six fixtures.
In the two successful Horowhenua challenges against the Butcher Boys, James So’oialo landed five penalty goals in a 15-8 home victory at Levin in 2017 and Perry Hayman kicked 14 points in a 34-23 win at Cooks Gardens in 2014.
Whanganui have averaged 32-20 in 10 Steel Cup outings against Horowhenua and 35-19 in winning 12 of 14 Heartland games.
■ The Chesters Plumbing & Bathroom Whanganui women’s team were pipped 19-14 in Taupō on Saturday by King Country side the Trailblazers, in the inaugural North Island Heartland Series championship final.
