Border, seeking a record fourth successive championship title this season, scored eight tries including a hat-trick from new winger Luke Myers, and beat McCarthy Transport Ruapehu 46-24 in Ohakune last weekend.
If the Kaiwakas are able to repeat their 18-15 first-round success at Dallison Park it will be the only time they complete double success over Border since the South Taranaki club returned to the local union in 2011. Border has won 19 of 24 games since then.
Byford’s Readimix Taihape, 45-10 first-round home victors over Ruapehu, travel to Rochfort Park for the return fixture on Saturday with Marist sitting out the premier bye.
Final Mitchell Cup points – Kaierau 15, Border 14, Taihape 9 (19 points differential), Marist 9 (minus 6), Ruapehu 1.
Top seniors Celtic (24pts – 228 pts diff) are away to third-placed Bennett’s Taihape (17 – 125) on Saturday and also travelling are Kelso Hunterville (16 – 86) v Kaierau (20), Black Bull Liquour Pirates (17 – 104) v Utiku OB (16 – 60), Border (0 – -279) v Tamatau Haha Ratana (16 – 22), McCrea Scanning Counties (5 – -127) v Castlecliff Hotel
Mustangs (0 - 267) on the Racecourse and J J Walters Marton (4 – -77) v AGC Marist Knights (15 – 32).
Scored against ABs
The only player to have scored a try against the All Blacks at Spriggens Park has died with the sudden death of 72-year-old Ohakune lock Robin Pearson.
He played 38 times for the Butcher Boys between 1972-76 highlighted by his memorable try in a spirited 21-39 loss to the All Blacks in the national team’s one and only appearance in Whanganui, played 51 years ago on May 23, 1972.
“New representative Pearson and the promising John Knofflock were a reliable pair of locks” was how the NZ Rugby Almanack summed up the two main Whanganui locks that season.
Fullback Bob Barrell, later to become an All Black trialist in 1976, converted Pearson’s try and landed five penalty goals against the ABs.
The Whanganui team comprised Bob Barrell (Marton OB); Rangi Paki,(Ohakune), Buff Milner (Waiouru), Ray Southam (WHSOB); Geoff Neilson (Bulls), Warren Swain (Tech COB), Doug McKenzie (Tech COB); David Bydder (Marton OB); Maurice Rush (Ohakune – Capt), Robin Pearson (Ohakune), John Gray (Marton OB), Inky Wilson (Ohakune); Sandy McNicol (WHSOB), Tom Spry (Karioi), Len Clode (Raetihi).
Whanganui made a great start to the 13-match 1972 season with selectors Brian Murphy, Ron McPhun and Ray Parr producing a team that upset Taranaki 21-19 at Rugby Park on Anzac Day and Wellington 6-4 here as lead-ups to the All Black clash.
Pearson, who made his first class debut on Anzac Day, played in 10 of the union’s 13 fixtures. Whanganui won eight matches with the squad also including players of the calibre of backs Bob Griffiths and David Selby (Kaierau) plus forwards John Transom (Waverley) and Snow Chase (Taihape Pirates).
Came 1973 and Pearson and Rush were the only two players named in all 17 fixtures in the union’s heaviest ever rep schedule.
Ian Strachan replaced Parr on the selection panel with Barrell landing all 17 points (a hat trick of tries, penalty and conversion) in a 17-3 repeat Anzac Day victory, one of seven wins that year.
Whanganui beat the touring Victorian side 22-12 and travelled to the South Island three times with defeats including a heavy 65-16 loss to Canterbury and 30-6 in a Ranfurly Shield challenge against Marlborough.
“Pearson, 21 years of age, and 6ft 4in (Curly) Coleman, 20 years of age (to become a 1974-76 All Black trialist), were a promising pair of locks, the former showing up in strong driving play,” were NZ Almanack comments.
In 1974 the Almanack claimed “Pearson and Knofflock were solid workers”, a season when the Butcher Boys won only four of 13 games with Pearson playing nine times including 16-9 locally on Queen’s Birthday Monday morning against Taranaki.
His last two appearances for Whanganui were Anzac Day losses at New Plymouth in 1975 (12-16) and 1976 (9-18).
But with 1972 and 1973 Anzac victories and the 1973 Queen’s Birthday success Pearson had helped Whanganui claim three “Ferdinand” scalps.
During his working life Robin Pearson drove trucks, including with his own company at one stage, and later also operated the coffee caravan at Bulls.
There were more than 250 mourners at his recent funeral in Palmerston North headed by a very large contingent from Ohakune and Raetihi.
Whanganui reps attending included 20-cap 1981-84 All Black and 118 local-cap 1976-86 halfback Andrew Donald, Bob Barrell (1976 NZ trialist and 139-game 1963-77 rep), Tom Spry (1968 NZ trialist, 1971 North Island and 34 times 1970-73 local caps), John Transom (65 rep games 1968-75), Grant Mitchinson HB (53 local caps 1974-78), Bruce Cranston (51 rep games 1981-86), Nick Cranston (29 matches 2009-13 – who was Pearson’s god-son and was a pallbearer), former King Country rep John McIlroy (ex-Raetihi player who was second five when Colin Meads’ 1966 Wanganui-King Country combined team upset the British Lions 12-6 before a crowd of 16,000 on Spriggens Park) and new WRFU vice president Alan Proude.
Mitchell Cup Champions
Kaierau has taken over as the leading Paul Mitchell Cup winner since the turn of the century with a sixth title success at the weekend.
The maroon and golds head off Ruapehu and Ratana with five reigns each, Pirates three, Border twice and Marist and Taihape once each.
Seventeen trophy victors have emerged unbeaten during the first round series since 2000 although three have included a drawn fixture.
The highest average winning scores have been 66-9 by Kaierau in 2005 and 50-7 from Ruapehu in 2010, both during eight-team competitions.
Cup champions and average winning scores since the turn of the century –
2023 – Kaierau (3 wins,1 loss 12-15 v Taihape away). 33-16.
2022 – Taihape (4 wins). 45-15.
2021 – Border (5 wins). 42-13.
2020 – Kaierau (4 wins, l loss 18-36 v Border away). 36-9.
2019 – Ruapehu (7 wins). 45-14.
2018 – Pirates (6 wins, I draw 19-all v Kaierau home). 21-12.
2017 – Border (7 wins, 1 loss 22-30 v Marist away). 39-17.
2016 – Taihape (7 wins). 36-14.
2015 – Pirates (6 wins, 1 loss 18-19 v Taihape away). 30-17.
2014 – Pirates (7 wins, 1 loss 20-25 v Kaierau away). 26-13.
2013 – Ruapehu (7 wins, 1draw 16-all v Pirates away). 43-9.
2012 – Ruapehu (7 wins, 1 loss 13-16v Pirates home). 29-12.
2011 – Ruapehu (7 wins). 41-13.
2010 – Ruapehu (7 wins). 50-7.
2009 – Kaierau (7 wins). 40-12.
2008 – Marist (7 wins). 39-6.
2007 – Kaierau (7 wins). 38-15.
2006 – Ratana (7 wins). 25-10.
2005 – Kaierau (7 wins). 66-9.
2004 – Kaierau (8 wins). 40-12.
2003 – Ratana (7 wins, 1 draw 15-all v Taihape away). 25-9.
2002 – Ratana (7 wins, 1 loss 16-17 v Taihape away). 39-7.
2001 – Ratana (9 wins). 43-8.
2000 – Ratana (8 wins) 34-11,
