Condor 7s qualifying tournament on Monday

The Kat Simpkins Cup (left) for the Girls and the Christian Cullen Cup for the Boys will be up for grabs on Monday in the Condor 7s Qualifying tournament at Naenae College. 

Once again Labour Day Monday means College 7s at Naenae College, with this year’s Wellington regional qualifier for the National Tournament in a few weeks’ time.

As with last year there are four places – two boys and two girls – up for grabs at the national tournament at Auckland’s Sacred Heart College at the end of November and start of December.

Last year’s Wellington qualifiers performed with credit at that event. Boys winners Scots College again made the Cup final but dipped out to Hamilton Boys’ High School in the decider, while Girls winners St Mary’s College fell in the defence of their crown at the semi-finals stage. Local runners-up Rongotai and Aotea also had good campaigns with the Aotea girls unlucky not to sneak into the top 8 for the Cup draw.

Sixteen teams have entered this year with 10 in the Boys and six Girls sides. Disappointingly though this is a drop from the 19 that competed last year, the 21 in 2016 and the 23 in 2015, and remarkably there isn’t a single side from the Porirua area.

As always, for a number of players it will be the last time they wear their school colours on a rugby field before they move on.

Boys:

On paper you’d back Scots College to defend their title and they’ll be led by two players who made the tournament team at the nationals last year in Roderick Solo and Jack Gray. Fifteens Premiership winners St Pat’s Silverstream would seem the likeliest challenger and likely to adopt a more power-focused approach rather than outright speed.

Rongotai were the surprise package last year, beating Wellington College in the quarters and then thumping St Pat’s Town in the semi’s before pushing Scots all the way in the final. It’s hard to see them doing that again, but few expected them to do what they did last year either. They will have to see off Wellington College in the pool section this time though, with College likely to have Ish Perkins – who has played for the Old Boys-University club sevens the past two weekends – leading their efforts. Town will also be hungry for a return to the nationals.

With none of the other three Wellington-based Premiership schools (Porirua, HIBS, St Bernard’s) entered the notional quality drops off quickly. However Hutt Valley HS, Taita, and Wainuiomata all have some quality and in the shortened format could pull a surprise that would shake the day up.

Hosts Naenae and Wellington College 2 complete the field, and while the latter is ineligible to progress to the Cup section could make life difficult for Silverstream and Town who they are in the same pool as.

The format has two three-team pools and one of four. Pools A and B play the matches in their pool and one crossover game with the top team advancing to the semi-finals. Pool C is a straight round-robin with the top two moving on.

Pool A: Scots, Taita, Hutt Valley HS
Pool B: Rongotai, Wellington College 1, Wainuiomata
Pool C: Silverstream, St Pats Town, Wellington College 2, Naenae

Girls:

There are hot favourites, and then there’s what St Mary’s will be this year.

One of the talking points in the college game this year was the drop-off in numbers in the local Girls game with the Premiership reverting to 10-a-side and fewer teams all around, something which may have hurt St Mary’s in the defence of their national 15’s crown. On Monday the absence of two schools that could have tested them in the very least in Porirua and Aotea will be noticeable.

That said though it’s not quite the powerhouse St Mary’s team of past years. Dhys Faleafaga’s participation in Saturday’s Pride final and NZ contract makes her a questionable starter while playmaker Cheyne Copeland is a season-long absentee due to knee surgery. Even still they seem a lock for one of the two places.

The question is who will claim the other. Wellington East have headed to the Condors in the past and Wainuiomata were the inaugural Wellington girls side to head to the nationals in 2012. Sacred Heart and Queen Margaret are unknown quantities; the former playing this for the first time in several years and the latter are making their debut. The field is rounded out by Premier 2 winners Hutt Valley HS, but as they’ll be a composite side they’re ineligible for a Condors place.

Their format is similar to Pools A and B in the Boys, but with the top two in each pool moving onto the semi-finals.

Pool G: St Mary’s, Sacred Heart, Queen Margaret
Pool H: Wainuiomata, Wellington East, Hutt Valley HS

Pool play gets underway at 9am with the first of the knockout games at 1.20pm. The Girls final is timed to kick off at 3.20pm, followed 30 minutes later by the Boys final.