Four or more tries in a club rugby match

Above: Tomasi Palu strolls over to score one of his four tries for Old Boys University against Hutt Old Boys Marist in the 10th round of the 2018 Swindale Shield. 

There were instances of a player scoring four tries or more in the 10th round of the Swindale Shield, with both Tomasi Palu (Old Boys University) and Tupou Sopoaga (Petone) crossing the whitewash in the same round.

These tries were the first four-try hauls in the Swindale Shield since the fourth round of 2017 when OBU wing Te Wehi Wright scored four against Paremata-Plimmerton. Upper Hutt Rams first five-eighth Hayden Schrijvers scored four tries in the last round of the Hardham Cup last year against Poneke.

This wasn’t the first instance of four tries or more in a match by two individuals in the same round. In the third round of the Swindale Shield in 2009, Brendan Watt scored 5 tries for Marist St Pat’s and Charlie Ngatai scored four for Poneke.

While loose forward Loose forwards have scored four tries or more on several occasions, Palu became the first halfback in Wellington club rugby since that start of 2006 to score four tries in match.

There have been approximately (give or take a handful) 150 Premier and Premier 2 hat-tricks since the opening round in 2006.

In this time there have been two instances of six tries in a match, four instances of five tries in a game and 18 instances of a player scoring four tries in a single fixture.

Most tries in a Swindale Shield, Jubilee Cup and Hardham Cup match 2006-2018 (up to an including Round 10):

6 tries

Mike Kingsbeer (Marist St Pat’s)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 5
Marist St Pat’s 88 – Wainuiomata 3

Tauaosi Tuimavavae (Poneke)
2013 Swindale Shield Round 3
Poneke 102 – Rimutaka 0

5 tries

Brendan Watt (Marist St Pat’s)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 3
Marist St Pat’s 55 – Tawa 3

Julian Savea (Oriental-Rongotai)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 4
Oriental-Rongotai 78 – Old Boys-University 17

Ajay Va’alepu (Northern United)
2011 Jubilee Cup Semi-final
Northern United 29 – Poneke 3

Dean Brunsdon (Northern United)
2013 Swindale Shield Round 11
Northern United 85 – Rimutaka 0

4 tries

Mike Pehi (Hutt Old Boys Marist)
2006 Swindale Shield Round 1
Hutt Old Boys Marist 32 – Upper Hutt 29

Anare Koliavu (Northern United)
2008 Swindale Shield Round 11
Northern United 92 – Avalon 3

Fraser Middleton (Petone)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 1
Petone 86 – Avalon 9

Charlie Ngatai (Poneke)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 3
Poneke 76 – Old Boys University 0

Alapati Leiua (Northern United)
2009 Swindale Shield Round 10
Northern United 58 – Wests Roosters 6

Paulo Aukuso (Oriental-Rongotai)
2009 Jubilee Cup Round 2
Oriental-Rongotai 52 – Tawa 7

Buxton Popoalii (Northern United)
2010 Swindale Shield Round 8
Northern United 59 – Johnsonville 10

Johnny Teleaga (Northern United)
2012 Swindale Shield Round 11
Northern United 75 – Rimutaka 0

Telea Seumanutafa (Northern United)
2012 Jubilee Cup Round 4
Northern United 31 – Hutt Old Boys Marist 18

Te Wehi Wright (Old Boys-University)
2012 Hardham Cup Round 4 
Old Boys University 34 – Northern United B 10

James Kusel (Hutt Old Boys Marist)
2013 Swindale Shield Round 8
Hutt Old Boys Marist 50 – Poneke 22

Siaosi Finau-Lealiifano (Tawa)
2013 Jubilee Cup Round 2
Tawa 55 – Petone 14

Nick Grigg (Petone)
2015 Swindale Shield Round 8
Petone 61 –Paremata-Plimmerton 11

Teariki Ben Nicholas (Old Boys University)
2016 Swindale Shield Round 6
Old Boys University 32 – Wellington 6

Te Wehi Wright
2017 Swindale Shield Round Round 4
Old Boys University 86 – Paremata-Plimmerton 8

Hayden Schrijvers (Upper Hutt Rams)
2017 Hardham Cup Round 10
Upper Hutt Rams 71 – Poneke 14

Tupou Sopoaga (Petone)
2018 Swindale Shield Round 10
Petone 65 – Johnsonville 0

Tomasi Palu (Old Boys University)
2018 Swindale Shield Round 10
OId Boys University 48 – Hutt Old Boys Marist 16