Opening round arm-wrestle expected in Jubilee and Hardham Cups

Even after last week’s pressure packed finale to the Swindale Shield, it only gets tougher over the next seven weeks to firstly find the Jubilee and Hardham Cup playoff teams, then to find the winners of each title themselves.

The Jubilee Cup has a familiar look to it, with Wellington the only newcomer in place of the Upper Hutt Rams. Despite this, there have been different winners of the title in each of the past five years, with four of those (Oriental-Rongotai, MSP, Tawa, and HOBM) in this year’s field.

The Hardham Cup returns five of last years, with the Rams and the two B sides – Tawa and Petone - those involved who weren’t last year.

All 16 teams will be looking to get away to a winning start, as although a first-up loss doesn’t put paid to their chances it certainly reduces the odds of title success. Not once in the past 10 years has the Jubilee Cup winner lost their opening round-robin game, while only twice in that timeframe (Tawa 2011 and Upper Hutt 2006) has the Hardham Cup winner overcome that setback.

Premier 1 Jubilee Cup

Newly crowned Swindale Shield champions Hutt Old Boys Marist begin the defence of their Jubilee Cup crown when they cross the Hutt River to take on neighbours and great rivals Petone at the Petone Rec. The Eagles dropped only one game last year (to Wainuiomata) en route to the title, while the Villagers’ two wins were their first in the round since 2011. Although HOBM did drop two of their last three games, they were arguably the form side of the first two months and have set the bar high for the rest of the competition.

HOBM have lost some members of last year’s team, but there still remains a solid core that has been bolstered by the return of 200-game forward Polanga Pedro to the squad while 2007 Jubilee Cup winner and recently announced Wellington signee Jonathan Bentley will run out in the red, white, and green hoops tomorrow for his first start for the club since that day at Westpac Stadium nearly eight years ago. Halfway through the Swindale Petone were in some danger, having only won two of their first six matches, but won their last 5 on the trot to make it through once again. The side has meshed a young and talented backline with an experienced forward pack, led by loose forward Mateaki Kafatolu and with their own 200-gamer in Chris Molenaar, with Jared Kahu providing the link between the two from halfback. The two sides’ first meeting this year was back on Derby Day in mid-April, with HOBM reclaiming the famous McBain Shield by 32-25.

Oriental-Rongotai and Marist St Pat’s both managed to slip past Tawa with victories in the last round of the Swindale, and tomorrow the 2011 and 2012 winners meet at the Polo Ground. Finalists in 2011-13, Ories are the only side to have reached the playoffs in each of the last four years. The Magpies fell at the semi-final stage last year and started this season dropping their first two games; however from that point they won eight of nine, losing only to Wellington in that stretch. MSP topped the points-for tally, and like Ories also dipped out at the semi-finals a year ago. They come in on the back of three straight wins after starting the year with five, but in between came a three-game losing run to HOBM (by the bizarre scoreline of 49-54), Tawa, and a surprisingly flat performance against OBU.

Talent is something neither side are short of, with the possibility that each may see some of their professional contingents at some stage. Ories have a seemingly interchangeable group of personnel, but tighthead prop and captain Whetu Henry and young lock Liam Hallam-Eames are constants while imposing winger Afa Fa’atau is tied for the Premier lead with 10 tries; and have been bolstered further with the transfer in of prop Eric Sione from Norths. MSP have endured some setbacks, with halfback Peter Sciascia out for the season and fullback Andrew Wells missing time while suffering from glandular fever though returns tomorrow, but Isaac O’Connor and Isaia Petelo have been mainstays of the forwards and back respectively, and Fa’atonu Fili remains as reliable a goalkicker as he’s ever been. These two did not meet in the Swindale round, so their last meeting was in last year’s Jubilee Cup round-robin where MSP narrowly prevailed by 26-23.

Out in the Northern Suburbs, Tawa welcome Wainuiomata on to Lyndhurst Park. The 2013 winners wound up fourth in the Swindale Shield, dropping their last two games but with qualification already assured. The will want to make amends for their tame defence of this title last year, where they won just two of their seven games, and certainly will not want this season to follow the same pattern as last year. Wainuiomata left it to the last chance saloon as they look to go one better than the runners-up place they occupied last year, needing to beat OBU last weekend to have any chance at all, which they got when both Poneke and Upper Hutt lost.

Tawa will once again look to their mobile forward pack, led by their robust loose forward group including joint-top try scorer Telea Semanutafua, to lay the platform for their backs to operate from with James So’oialo capable to punishing indiscretions from anywhere on his day. One player they do have available tomorrow and would dearly like to have each week is talismanic prop Taniela Koroi, not only for his leadership but to also bolster their set piece. Wainuiomata have a massive forward pack, anchored by Attila and David Va’a, with recent returnee Greg Lealofi possibly soon to be also joined by Genesis Mamea. The back division has plenty of depth and the potential to score from anywhere, with John Monu returning to the #10 shirt after TJ Va’a – who’s performance at this level will be watched with interest – left last week’s game with an injury . The two sides met just over a month ago at William Jones Park where Wainuiomata ended Tawa’s unbeaten start to the season with a 25-18 victory.

The fourth match is in the city at Hataitai Park with Wellington hosting their putative neighbours Old Boys-University. Tomorrow represents another step in the years of hard work done by the provinces oldest club, returning to the Jubilee Cup for the first time since 1995 and from being on the verge of oblivion only a few short years ago. OBU have had no such off-field dramas, but once again found themselves in the position of needing to win games at the end of the Swindale Shield to qualify. Now in and restored to a full complement, they’ll fancy their chances of a maiden Jubilee Cup success.

The Axemen conceded the fewest points in the Swindale, but also scored the fewest of the eight sides. They have been superbly marshalled by halfback Adam Deck, who leads the Best and Fairest table, while Vaea Fifita continues to be a handful for opponents. The Goats points-for tally was exceeded only by MSP, so this could be a clash of contrasting styles. There are interesting matchups all over the park in this game alone but two of note are between Fifita and Teariki Ben-Nicholas in the loose and in midfield between Fijian Penjamini Nabainivalu and Wes Goosen; while Hurricanes prop Ben May starts for OBU and will be a handful. Wellington won the side’s Swindale encounter 17-16 back on Anzac Day, also at Hataitai.

Premier 2 Hardham Cup

There are plenty of sub-plots in this years’ Hardham Cup. Can Poneke and the Upper Hutt Rams rebound quickly from last week’s disappointment? Can Norths find consistency from match to match and avoid the slow starts that have plagued them? Can Johnsonville, Avalon, and Paremata-Plimmerton upset any of those top-three sides as well as avoid slip-ups against the two promoted ones; and can those two, Tawa and Petone, take any of the Premier side scalps?

Those two promoted sides have the benefit of starting their campaigns at home with 1pm kick-offs. Harper Lock Shield champions Tawa B put their unbeaten record for the year on the line when they host the Upper Hutt Rams in the early game at Lyndhurst Park. Tawa were largely able to coast to their title but face a stern test of their credentials, while the Rams lost their last three Swindale contests and only just snuck past Norths in the final moments the week before that. Tawa’s side has a smattering of Premier experience, while the Rams have regained the services of national Sevens rep Murphy Taramai in recent weeks, but that has coincided with the loss of influential fullback Jordon Simpson Hefft. Josh Hunt, normally a loose forward, starts in midfield for the second consecutive week.

Harper Lock Shield runners-up Petone B start with Avalon on the Petone Rec. The Villagers went into last week’s game against Tawa knowing that their fate was out of their hands and confirmed only at fulltime in their Premiers’ match. Though they lost three matches in the Harper Lock (to each of the other top four sides) they still took 10 bonus points, nine of them four-try bonuses, and have plenty of experience particularly in midfield with Premier Centurions Cam Incledon and Willie Tufui. Avalon went winless in the Swindale Shield, but probably deserved at least a draw last week against Norths, with that result coming on the back of improved performances against Petone’s Premiers and Ories in the weeks prior. One problem that coach Scott Waldrom has been forced to address is a mounting injury toll with the four players forced off last week - captain Cameron Cross, midfielder Ben Peni, and forwards Ata Langilangi and Akuila Alatini all absent tomorrow, with much now depending on loosies Logan Blake and Daniel Sione-Leota.

The other two games pitch Swindale sides against each other. Out at Ngatitoa Domain Paremata-Plimmerton welcome Poneke, with the hosts looking to at least arrest the points avalanche that’s seen them concede at least 60 points in their last four outings, if not notching their first win of the year. The unlucky side to finish ninth, Poneke will look back at the narrow losses against Norths, Ories, and Petone with a degree of ‘what if?’. They will however go about the task of defending the Hardham Cup and have oodles of experience, with Samoan 7’s Greg Foe in destructive form, though their other x-factor player of recent weeks, midfielder Willis Haloholo is away with the Hurricanes in Napier. Pare-Plim name a settled side having had captain Tane McMillan-Parata and veteran back Ryan McLean return last week, with one change being Johnathan Sabo named at #10 with usual pivot Blake Neve moving onto the wing. The two sides met at Kilbirnie back in round 5 of the Swindale, with Poneke prevailing 36-21 on that occasion.

The final game is at Helston Park, with Johnsonville playing host to Northern United in the only matchup of sides that both won last weekend. The Hawks overran Pare-Plim, while Norths had to work hard to subdue a resilient Avalon side. Injuries and availability have hampered the ability of Johnsonville coaches Mason Lawrence and Logan Ili to name a settled side, but the arrival of former Norths veteran Rob Aloe in the pivot role with Roy Kinikinilau occasionally outside him as he will be tomorrow, has considerably stiffened their side in the past month. Norths have their own young starlet in the playmaker role these days in Jackson Garden-Bachop and his controlling influence is clear to see, but the Porirua side will be without one of their hardest-working servants of recent years, with Dean Brunsdon having relocated to Australia. Johnsonville are still searching for success against Norths, but two of the last three meetings have been close; 16-15 in last year’s Swindale and 26-24 at Porirua Park a little over month ago.