MSP and Petone book home semi-finals in Jubilee Cup quagmire

Marist St Pat's and Petone will host this year's two Jubilee Cup semi-finals, following wins on Saturday over Old Boys-University and Northern United respectively in conditions across the playing fields of Wellington and the Hutt Valley that can best be described as a mudbath.

Torrential rain on Saturday morning helped cut up the already soft grounds around the region and made for a good old fashioned hard slog in the mud across most Premier and Premier Two sixth round venues, leaving a busy week ahead around the region for drycleaners.

Swindale Shield champions MSP and in-form Petone emerged as winners from these trying conditions to both qualify for home semi-finals with a week to spare,
MSP defeating Old Boys-University 26-0 at the Basin Reserve and Petone overcoming Norths 17-9 at home and opening up a seven-point gap to their third placed Porirua rivals.

Next week MSP will be playing Hutt Old Boys Marist in a rematch of last year's final
where a win will see them retain the Andy Leslie Trophy, awarded to the top qualifier at the end of the second round.

In the two other Jubilee Cup results, Poneke held on to fourth place and ended Upper Hutt's challenge for the playoffs with a gallant 18-5 win over them at Kilbirnie Park and Oriental-Rongotai also officially ended HOBM's title defence with an a even more hard fought 10-0 victory at the Polo Ground.

Ories' win over the Eagles gave the high flying Miramar team their third win of the second round and propels them right into semi-final contention next week if Poneke lose to Norths at Kilbirnie Park and they defeat Upper Hutt at Maidstone Park.

The best Upper Hutt can now finish is fifth, a win for them next week and a loss for Poneke will draw them level with Poneke but Poneke will qualify ahead of them based on this win.

This effectively leaves three teams - Norths, Poneke and Ories - playing for the last two semi-final spots in next week's final round, in another exciting finish to Wellington's premier amateur sporting competition.

Ories halfback Peme Leiataua became the hero for Ories in his 100th Premier game for the club, breaking open a tight game with a converted try early in the second half.

In a titanic battle between two even teams, it was a HOBM mistake that led to Leiataua's match winning try after first five-eighth Troy Emery dropped a slippery ball in front of his line and he duly pounced. Both before and after this HOBM were right in the game, with only a James Proctor penalty separating the teams at halftime and the visitors pressing hard to the end.

The ball resembling a cake of soap also led to Poneke fullback Marika Kau sprinting 45-metres for the try that sealed the show down the road at Kilbirnie Park, an Upper Hutt pass off a counterattack juggled and spilled forward into Kau's waiting clutches seeing him fly away and extend Poneke's lead from 11-5 to 18-5.

A sterling defensive effort and three well-taken tries gave a Petone team featuring Neemia Tialata at prop their eight-point win over Norths, missing six Vodafone Wellington Lions players, including three of their props, all away in Blenheim at a week-long Lions training camp.

With both his brothers away at this camp Norths first five-eighth Leon Ellison kicked two penalties for a 6-0 lead midway through the first half, before Petone fullback Willie Moala followed up a grubber kick to score a converted try and to give Petone the lead.

This was followed by a second try before the break to No. 8 Shaun Mahoney scoring from an attacking lineout and then a second try to Moala after halftime, running off the shoulder of Lotu Filemu. Ellison kicked a third penalty, but any more points for a possibly crucial bonus point proved unattainable.

At the Basin Reserve, MSP comfortably beat OBU and reversed their week one loss to them and their only loss of the 2008 season. MSP scored one try in each half of play to openside flanker Craig Simeon and lock Jurrell Te Kahu in his first premier start, while prolific first five-eighth Fa'atonu Fili kicked three penalties, two conversions and a dropped goal for a personal tally of 16 points.

At Kilbirnie Park, Poneke ran out deserved 18-5 winners over Upper Hutt in extremely trying conditions. In a good old fashioned slog in the mud, Poneke adopted a committed no frills approach to the situation based on patient defence, urgency to the loose ball and forcing the opposition into mistakes - the sort of stock standard game the red and blacks have been playing for about 125 years.

Upper Hutt made the mistake of being too expansive and not sticking to similar tactics, despite their left winger Sam Williamson striking the first blow when he flew on to a short pass by Daniel Beckett after the hard working halfback had made a break up the blindside from a ruck.

But Poneke's reply was one for the purists, rumbling up field through a series of pick and drives and keeping the ball alive through numerous phases and allowing centre Eito Tamua to dart through a ruck and score out wide.

A similar surge up field started by a quick tap penalty by No. 8 Chris Brightwell led to a penalty to first five-eighth James Pointon and the lead for the first time after 30 minutes. This was followed by a turnover and an attack that led to a penalty, only for Pointon's kick to hit the post and bounce back into the field of play and Upper Hutt to just manage to scramble out of danger.

The halftime lead was quickly extended by three to 11-5 when Pointon kicked his second penalty following a fast start to the second half by the home team, ahead of Kau scoring the key try of the match, albeit somewhat fortuitously.

Kau scored only moments after Upper Hutt had been hot on attack on his teams' try line, only desperate defence and an eventual dropped ball and hack ahead into space saving the situation. But disaster struck for Upper Hutt, who in endeavouring to run the ball back through the backs spilt the ball forward to Kau whose speed did the rest.

With the ground now cutting up badly and Poneke committed to protecting their lead there was now minimal hope of Upper Hutt coming back over the final quarter.

Meanwhile in the Hardham Cup, Tawa have qualified first and booked a home semi-final with a week to spare following their 15-5 win over Northern United B at Lyndhurst Park, pulling away with two tries in the second half to centre Makae Pokere, on debut, and prop David Fa'atafa, his third try in four games.

The win for Tawa puts them out in front by seven on the points table to second placed Wainuiomata on 19 points, who also sealed their place in the semi-finals with a clinical 27-0 four tries to nil win over Marist St. Pat's B at Evans Bay Park.

In the other two results, Avalon battled to a dour 9-0 win over Johnsonville at Helston Park and the lights came on for the Wests Roosters for the first time this season, beating Rimutaka 56-5 at Maoribank Park in easily the widest winning margin of the weekend.

The Roosters chose a good weekend for a big win, moving to 16 points and into fourth on their own and setting up a huge game next weekend against Wainuiomata at William Jones Park.

Should the Roosters lose at Wainuiomata then it will set up anxious times waiting on the results from both the Northern Untied B and MSP B games, both of whom can grab the last playoff place if they win in round seven against Johnsonville and Avalon respectively.

Only Johnsonville and Rimutaka remain out of the reckoning for the Hardham Cup semi-finals.

Congratulations to Northern United, who beat Old Boys-University 15-8 in the final of the Victoria Tavern Women's Premier One final at Fraser Park, pulling away after the interval after leading 5-3 at the break. Neither team gave an inch in the early game, with Marist St. Pat's and Oriental-Rongotai fighting out a 0-all draw in the final of the Division Two Women's competition.

In other grades, it's tight in the race for the HD Morgan Memorial Trophy for Senior Two honours, the points table showing six of 10 competing teams all on four wins from six games played and Tawa holding a one point lead at the top to Paremata-Plimmerton in second. The Ed Chaney Cup for Senior One spoils is shaping as a two horse race between Old Boys-University and Stokes Valley who both won their sixth round games.

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