Whanganui backed to win on Saturday

Stephen Perofeta during a New Zealand All Blacks Training Session on August 25, 2022 in Christchurch. The Whanganui-born All Black was on the field for 50 seconds in Saturday's game against Argentina in his test debut. Photo / Getty Images

Although Steelform Whanganui will start firm favourites to beat Ngāti Porou East Coast in Saturday's third round 2022 Heartland championship match in Ruatoria the light blues are playing better rugby this season.
They struggled for nine years, suffering an embarrassing 54 defeats before beating Buller 50-26 last year and ending with three scalps to finish with their best record since upsetting Whanganui 29-27 in the 2012 Meads Cup final.

This campaign Coast toppled Mid Canterbury 36-34 in the second round of the Bunnings Warehouse sponsored qualifying series in Ruatoria last weekend after losing 14-32 away to Horowhenua-Kāpiti in round one.

The Butcher Boys have dropped just three of 29 games against East Coast (average score of 43-10) and have averaged 46-13 in the 10 Heartland fixtures, losing twice away in 2012 — 17-25 and 27-29 in the Meads final.
Whanganui, who beat Coast 30-10 in the final at Cooks Gardens a year earlier, had control of the 2012 final with a 27-3 lead just after halftime.
But running on a flood of substitute players, and a few iffy rulings by the Auckland Māori referee saw the Coasters dramatically come back to snatch the game by two points.

Nine times Whanganui has topped a half century of points including the past three meetings — 57-24 here in 2019, 56-10 at Tolaga Bay in 2018 and 74-6 at Ruatoria in 2016.

Nineteen-year-old Marist centre Shaun Crowley scored four of Whanganui's 15 tries in a record 75-0 victory at Ruatoria when Jim Wallace's 1981 reps finished third behind Wairarapa and Taranaki in the North Island Division 2 championship.

Wanganui HSOB halfback Fraser Stewart, in his only rep outing that year, managed a hat-trick of tries, Tech COB second five Glenn Willacy and Waverley winger Derek Brooks two each and one each from Marist fullback Tom Fearn, Waiouru winger Nick Josephs and lock Mike Hughes plus Waverley prop Brent Dallison, Willacy kicking six conversions and Pirates' first-five Kerry O'Hara a drop goal.

There was also a North Island Division 2 home win against Poverty Bay 34-10 and away v King Country 13-4 and Thames Valley 28-12 while Willacy landed three penalty goals in a 9-45 loss to the South Africans.

Wanganui managed 10 tries — two each from Te Rangatira Waitokia and Simon Dibben and one each by Kameli Kuruyabaki, Tremaine Gilbert, Gavin Thornbury Craig Clare. Ace Malo and Cole Baldwin plus five Clare conversions and two from Steve Crosbie — in the 74-8 romp on the last visit to Ruatoria in 2016.

After collecting five-point wins In Greymouth (43-19 v West Coast) and on a muddy Cooks Gardens last weekend (41-3 to retain the Sir Colin Meads Memorial Log against King Country) Whanganui should collect another maximum pointer to stay in the top bracket of contenders for the Meads Cup play-offs.

North Otago tops
Thanks to scoring 10 tries in a 71-10 home thrashing of Buller last weekend, the North Otago Old Golds retain the early lead after two qualifying rounds in the Heartland championship.

Coupled with five tries in the season opening 35-5 night televised win against the Wairarapa-Bush Stags in Palmerston North, the Old Golds are away to a flying start, scoring 106 points and conceding 15 for a points differential of plus 91 points.

Whanganui, who beat North Otago 22-16 in last year's close Lochore Cup final at Cooks Gardens, mainly thanks to four penalty goals from Ethan Robinson, is level pegging on championship points with 10 from two five pointers.
The Steelformers have scored 84 points, including 12 tries, and conceded 22 points for a differential of plus 62 points.

Last season's Meads Cup finalists, champions South Canterbury and runners-up Thames Valley, hold third and fourth positions.
South Canterbury won 23-17 when the two sides met in Timaru on opening day and last weekend scored nine tries in a 53-20 victory against Horowhenua-Kāpiti in Levin.

Thames Valley, the 2018 overall champions after upsetting Whanganui's four-peat title hopes with an upset 17-7 semi-final victory on Cooks Gardens, picked up six tries in a 36-21 home win over West Coast at Te Aroha last weekend.
Missing a bonus point in the first round drops the defending champions to third place while the Swamp Foxes are four points off the pace and just one clear of Horowhenua-Kapiti, East Coast and Buller.

This weekend North Otago (10 pts) and South Canterbury (9) have a vital game in Fairlie, Whanganui (10) is away to East Coast (5) and Thames Valley (6) play in King Country's (4) official centennial match in Taumarunui.

In other third round matches Buller (5) host Poverty Bay (4) as do Mid-Canterbury (4) v West Coast (0) and Bruce Steel Cup neighbours Wairarapa-Bush (0) and Horowhenua-Kāpiti (5).
Whanganui's major clash of the qualifying series is against South Canterbury at Cooks Gardens in a fortnight (September 10).

Previous Wanganui V East Coast results
1976 — Ruatoria Wanganui 54-3 NI Series
1977 — Wanganui Wanganui 31-4 NI Series
1978 — Tokomaru Bay Wanganui 25-10 NI Series
1979 — Wanganui Wanganui 51-0 NI Series
1980 — Tolaga Bay Wanganui 44-3 NI Series
1981 — Wanganui Wanganui 75-0 NI Series
1982 — Ruatoria Wanganui 27-9 NI Series
1983 — Wanganui Wanganui 65-3 NI Series
1984 — Tolaga Bay Wanganui 28-4 NI Series
1988 — Tikitiki Wanganui 42-9 NPC Div 3
1989 — Wanganui Wanganui 64-9 NPC Div 3
1992 — Te Araroa Wanganui 36-10 NPC Div 3
1993 — Wanganui Wanganui 63-15 NPC Div 3
1994 — Tokomaru Bay Wanganui 29-8 NPC Div 3
1995 — Wanganui Wanganui 33-15 NPC Div 3
1996 — Te Araroa Wanganui 14-13 NPC Div 3
2001 — Ruatoria East Coast 31-24 NPC Div 2
2004 — Wanganui Wanganui 29-28 NPC Div 2
2005 — Ruatoria Wanganui 34-13 NPC Div 2
2007 — Wanganui Wanganui 28-0 Heartland
2008 — Wanganui Wanganui 71-6 Heartland
2009 — Wanganui Wanganui 46-6 Heartland
2011 — Wanganui Wanganui 30-10 Meads Cup Final
2012 — Ruatoria East Coast 25-17 Heartland
Ruatoria East Coast 29-27 Meads Cup Final
2014 — Wanganui Wanganui 44-7 Heartland
2016 — Ruatoria Wanganui 74-8 Heartland
2018 — Tolaga Bay Wanganui 56-10 Heartland
2019 — Wanganui Wanganui 67-24 Heartland
Matches played — 29
Wanganui won 26 Lost 3 Pts For 1245 Pts Ag 292. Average score 43-10
Heartland — P 10 W 8 L 2 For 463 Ag 125 Av score 46-13

Perofeta makes history
Stephan Perofeta has made history by becoming the briefest playing Whanganui-born All Black with his 50 seconds on the field in his test debut against Argentina in Christchurch on Saturday night.
Over the years 33 Whanganui district-born players have represented New Zealand while playing for this union or have worn the Silver Fern from another union.
Nine of the 16 Whanganui All Blacks were locally born and the remainder won national honours from other unions.
The most famous was Andy Haden who played 117 times for New Zealand including 41 tests as an Auckland player.

Whanganui-born All Blacks are –
John Blair – Wanganui NZ Front Row 1897 9 (0); Cyril Brownlie – Hawke's Bay. NZ loose forward 1924-28 31 (3); Jack Brownlie (Makirikiri) – Hawke's Bay. NZ loose forward 1921 1 (0); Maurice Brownlie – Hawke's Bay. NZ loose forward 1922-28 61 (8); Ron Bryers (Raetihi) – King Country. NZ Lock 1949 1 (1); Brett Cameron – Canterbury NZ First Five 2018 1 (1); Arthur Bullock Douglas -Wanganui NZ Winger 1932-34 16 (5); Ron Cribb – North Harbour. NZ No 8 2000-01 15 (15); Scott Crichton – Wellington. NZ prop 1983-85 7 (2); Patrick Crowley – Auckland. NZ loose forward 1949-50 21 (6); Andrew Donald – Wanganui NZ Half Back 1981-84 20 (7); Bolla Francis – Auckland. NZ loose forward 1904-10 18 (10); Harry Frazer – Hawke's Bay. NZ lock-prop 1946-49 15 (5); Keith Gudsell – Wanganui NZ Five Eighths 1949 5 (0); Andy Haden – Auckland. NZ lock 1972-85 117 (41); John Jacob - Southland NZ Winger 1894 2 (0); Mickey Kiernan – Auckland NZ HalfBack 1904-99 8 (1); Peter McDonnell – Wanganui. NZ Winger 1895 1 (0); Hugh McLean – Wellington-Auckland. NZ loose forward 1930-36 29 (9); Archibald McMinn (Marton) – Wairarapa-Manawatu. NZ loose forward 1903-05 10 (2); Francis McMinn (Turakina) – Manawatu. NZ hooker 1904 1 (1); Charlie Oliver – Canterbury. NZ second five 1928-36 33 (7); Glenn Osborne – North Harbour 1995-99 NZ Utility Back 29 (19); Bill Osborne – Wanganui NZ Mid Field Back 1976-82 48 (14); Pat Potaka – Wanganui NZ Three-Quarter 1923 2 (0); Stephen Perofeta – Taranaki NZ Utility Back 2022 1 (1); Charlie Seeling – Auckland NZ Loose Forward 1904-08 39 (11); Edward Steere (Raetihi) – Hawke's Bay. NZ lock 1928-31 21 (6); Peina Taituha – Wanganui NZ Utility Back 1923 2 (0); Ivan Vodanovich – Wellington. NZ lock 1955 3 (3); Bruce Watt (Hunterville – Canterbury NZ First Five 1962-64 29 (8); Graham Whiting – King Country. NZ prop 1972-73 31 (6); Doug Wilson – Canterbury. NZ five eighths 1953-54 14 (2).