Above: A top game and a fine first round for Du'Plessis Kirifi, perhaps the most dynamic openside out of Norths since Serge Lilo.
Off the Ball is in association with Rob Law Max, Lovelocks Sports Bar, Motor Doctors and Sarah Kilner Real Estate
Looking at some of the news in briefs, milestones, happenings, statistics and observations from the weekend of rugby just gone and what’s coming up this week.
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Another busy weekend of rugby in the capital, with the first round Swindale Shield (won by Northern United) and Harper Lock Shield (won by Marist St Pat’s) decided within two hours of each other at the same venue of Jerry Collins Stadium.
The second round draws are expected to be released later this afternoon (Monday) on the WRFU’s channels. The Jubilee Cup, Hardham Cup, Ed Chaney Cup and HD Morgan Memorial are the Premier competitions being contested throughout the second part of the season.
The second round John E Kelly Cup Colts competition gets underway this coming weekend as well, while Northern United will be presented with the first round Women’s Rebecca Liua’ana Trophy, having won it with a round to spare on Saturday.
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The rugby resumes today with a Wellington XV taking on Horowhenua-Kapiti in Levin. This is one of several loosely pre-season NPC matches around the country today, with the Hawke’s Bay Saracens playing Wairarapa-Bush in another.
Queen’s Birthday [King’s Birthday prior to 1953] Monday traditionally saw club rugby played at Athletic Park. Several thousand people or more would attend Athletic Park to watch a double- header Jubilee Cup club rugby round.
There are also two school First XV matches this week, one on Tuesday and another on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Scots College hosts Napier Boys’ High School, with the former coming off a 28-23 win over Rongotai College on Saturday and the latter preparing to start their Super 8 competition campaign on Saturday. This match kicks off in Strathmore are 10.30am, with Napier’s second XV meeting the Hutt Valley High School First XV at 12.30pm.
On Wednesday, the third round of the First XV Premiership gets underway with St Pat’s Silverstream hosting Wellington College, kick-off 1.15pm. Silverstream are coming off a 64-12 win over Wairarapa College, while Wellington College lost 26-31 to St Pat’s Town at home last Wednesday. Silverstream also won this game 26-3 last year and also beat Wellington College 17-11 in the final.
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More half centuries at Jerry Collins Stadium this year than Stephen Fleming? There were 95 points in last Saturday's Norths v OBU blockbuster, 96 in Thursday's Axemen v Rams thriller, and then an even 100 as the home team romped to the Swindale Shield over MSP.
Two of those matches were refereed by local incumbent #1 Richard Gordon. While he has a penchant for creating high scoring encounters his games are averaging 76 points scored and an average scoreline of 47-29!
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Most even Swindale Shield in recent years? Every team, bar tailenders Johnsonville, won at least three matches and four sides that will play in the Hardham Cup - Petone, Avalon, Wainuiomata, and Paremata-Plimmerton - beat sides that will contest the Jubilee Cup. Just one Hutt Valley club (Hutt Old Boys Marist) in the ‘top 7’ though.
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Petone finished level pegging with Oriental-Rongotai in seventh equal on 37 points, but Ories progressed to the Jubilee Cup by virtue of their 25-17 win over them in round nine for the Jim Brown Memorial Trophy.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but two matches that Petone will be left rueing are their 19-22 loss to Norths in the opening round on Gala Day and their 27-30 defeat to Hutt Old Boys Marist for the McBain Shield. Both were last-minute losses and either would have put them in the Jubilee Cup. Norhs went on to win the first round and HOBM finished third.
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Tawa ended the first round as Bill Brien Challenge Cup holders, and will defend it next in their first home game of the Jubilee Cup round.
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In 13 matches, first round champions Norths scored 516 points and conceded 342. In comparison, last year OBU scored 496 and conceded 236 points and in 2016 OBU scored 447 and let in 219. In 2010, Norths scored 542 points and conceded 197 (11 games played).
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Norths scored the most tries in the first round with 75, ahead of OBU with 73, Tawa 70 and HOBM 67.
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At the other end of the table, winless Johnsonville conceded 518 points and scored 157. Johnsonville have won two of their past 39 Swindale Shield matches (both last year).
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Overall, a cumulative total of 5,267 points were scored in the 91 games of this year's Swindale Shield, at an average of 57.8 points per game.
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Marist won the first round Premier Reserve competition by beating Norths 46-29 to take out the Harper Lock Shield. MSP won all 13 matches and scored 720 points and conceded 181.
MSP will head the second round Premier Reserve Ed Chaney Cup, which gets underway this coming weekend as the tier below the Jubilee and Hardham Cups.
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Northern United won their seventh first round Swindale Shield title since their first in 2003 but their first since last winning it in 2011.
The Swindale Shield was first played for in 1969. Petone has the most wins (including shared titles) having won or shared it for the first eight years straight up to 1976. The most number of wins by any side has been:
14: Petone (first win 1969, last win 2009)
13: Marist St Pat’s (first win 1977, last win 2014)
7: Norths (first win 2003, last win 2018)
4: Hutt Old Boys Marist (first win 1989, last win 2015)
*Hutt Old Boys winners in 1989, HOBM three times since.
4: Wellington (first win 1972, last win 1985)
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Ories No. 8 Luca Rees scored four tries on Saturday (following on from Petone No. 8 Tupou Sopoaga three weeks ago) to not only be the competition’s top try-scorer but to have 17 tries for the season so far. Three players are in joint second on 10 tries apiece - Petone's Jarrod Adams, Poneke's Nick Robertson, and now-injured Norths utility Esi Komaisavai.
The most tries scored in a single Swindale Shield campaign since our records began in 2005 are:
18: Buxton Popoalii (Norths) 2010
17: Alapati Leuia (Norths) 2009
17: Luca Rees (Ories) 2018*
13: Paddy Hughes (Wellington) 2016*
12: Michael Sage (Poneke) 2017*
11: Tupeni Kamakorewa (HOBM) 2012
11: Sinoti Sinoti (Norths) 2008
11: Francis Seumanutafa (Norths) 2007
*13-round competition
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Hutt Old Boys Marist first five-eighth Glen Walters has scored 177 points so far this season, with Tawa’s James So’oialo on 145 and OBU’s Dale Sabbagh on 140.
The most points scored in a single Swindale Shield campaign since our records began in 2005 are:
206: James So’oialo (Norths) 2010
192: Brandyn Laursen (HOBM) 2013
177: Glen Walters (HOBM) 2018*
172: Jason Woodward (Upper Hutt) 2011
171: James Proctor (Ories) 2009
*13-round competition
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After a week off, Ayesha Leti-Li’iga returned to the Oriental-Rongotai Women’s side on Saturday and scored another 4 tries in their 79-5 win over OBU. This took her season tally to 19 tries in six games played and she is already threatening her single season record of 26 tries that she set last year.
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Billy Proctor (Marist St Pat’s) scored two tries this morning in their World Rugby U20 Championship 42-10 win over Wales. Scores: New Zealand 42 (Billy Proctor, Bailyn Sullivan, Tom Christie, Tevita Mafileo, Xavier Roe tires, Harry Plummer 4 con, 3 pen) Wales 10. Their next game of the tournament is against Australia on Friday morning, 7am NZT.
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Gareth Anscombe had a top game for Wales in their 22-20 win v South Africa this weekend. The Blues could do with him.
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161 Black Ferns are set to receive their Test caps, a great thing.
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Poneke’s Grant Nisbett is gearing up to commentate his 300th All Blacks Test in Wellington Saturday week. fter being made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to sports broadcasting.
"It's pretty humbling. Nobody sets out to win these types of things. I guess it's a recognition of longevity and maybe a bit of ability as well," he said. No one has watched more All Blacks rugby in person, a feat previously noted by Nisbett's mate Keith Quinn who called nearly 200 tests himself. Nisbett's first televised call was the All Blacks' 10-9 win over France in Christchurch in 1984, and his 300th will be against the same opponents at Westpac Stadium, after Saturday's series opener in Auckland. Read more here