Tawa win Ed Chaney Cup final with wholehearted performance

They’ve got the Swindale Shield and the Jubilee Cup. Now they’ve got the Ed Chaney Cup (celebrations above)

The Tawa Rugby Football Club has got every reason to celebrate long into the night at their prize giving this evening at leafy Lyndhurst Park after their second XV captured the Ed Chaney Cup this afternoon in front of several hundred vocal fans at Ngatitoa Domain.

Tawa played with tremendous heart and determination to hold off home side Paremata-Plimmerton 14-6 and thus add the Senior 1 title to their overflowing trophy cabinet. They became the fourth different winner of this grade in as many years, after Old Boys University (2010), Petone (2011) and Wellington (2012).

Centre Maka Ioane scored a great individual try 10 minutes before halftime and goal kicking halfback Nick Butterworth kicked a 48-metre penalty about 10 minutes before fulltime to give Tawa the win in an extremely competitive match.

For Paremata-Plimmerton, it was their second successive close loss in the Senior 1 final after missing out to the Wellington Axemen last year.

Trailing 6-14, and needing to score twice, Paremata-Plimmerton put themselves into prime position to score points and set up a grandstand finish. But fullback Ryan McLean missed two consecutive penalty kicks that effectively signaled the end of their challenge.

Tawa worked their way up field, and after conceding a slew of cynical penalties at the? breakdown, Tawa finally lost a player to the sin-bin. But it was too late for the home team.

Ultimately, it was Tawa’s superiority up front and in the set pieces that won them the day, their scrum solid throughout and their much more accurate lineout keeping Paremata-Plimmerton out.

For their part, Paremata-Plimmerton, who were led by workhorse? No. 8 Tane Parata McMillan ?and blindside flanker Regan Edwards, played well in the second half when they got going, but crucial errors cost them all match; summed up by lineout woes and McLean’s two missed penalties towards the end. ?

Tawa locks Mike Rodgers and Toa Madar were two of the best in the final. Tawa captain Madar said afterwards the win was all about self belief.

“We’ve had it tough here - we’d been to this ground twice before this year and failed here twice. Last time I was here I said I hated these guys, now I love them!”

Tawa had dominated possession and territory in the first half, but Paremata-Plimmerton hung tough and defended gallantly. For all their pressure Tawa only led 8-6 at the turnaround.

Centre Ioane sliced through on the half hour mark to score a well-taken set-piece try off a lineout and Butterworth kicked a 26^th minute penalty. But Paremata-Plimmerton also repelled several waves of attack and fullback McLean kept them in the contest with penalties at the start of the match and again right on halftime with just about their only opportunities of the first 40 minutes.

Madar said there was no panic at halftime. “We said at the break that we just needed to keep playing well. We knew that we were always in control and it was about maintaining pressure and possession.”

Madar praised halfback Butterworth, who was busy at the base of the scrum and kicked superbly. “He was off last week,? but I’m glad he had some practice during the week and he was great today. “

“We’ve got prize giving tonight, so it’s awesome to go back to the clubrooms with the silverware and share with all the other boys as well.”

Tawa coach Logan Ili added afterwards that the win was a reflection of the hard work the team had put in all season and he praised his side for digging deep and finishing the season off on a high.

Scores:

Tawa 14 (Maka Ioane try; Nick Butterworth 3 pen) beat Paremata-Plimmerton 6 (Ryan McLean 2 pen). HT 8-6.

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Upsets in Lower Grades

There were further celebrations for Tawa in the U85 kg Division 1 grade, with the Tawa Titans team knocking off the crack MSP Blues team in the last round of round-robin matches today.

The Tawa Titans unseated the previously unbeaten Blues side 14-11. Both teams are still safely through to the semi-finals next weekend. More to come from this grade.

There was a boilover in the major Senior 2 semi-final inside the Cage at Ian Galloway Park with home side and top qualifier the Wests Roosters undone in extra time by fourth placed Johnsonville.

Scores were locked up at 14-14 at the end of the regulation 80 minutes, ahead of Johnsonville going on to take the contest out 20-17.

Wests had led Johnsonville 14-9 heading into the last 10 minutes of regulation time before Johnsonville came back to score an unconverted try to lock the scores up and force and extra 10 minutes each way.

It was still locked at halftime of extra time, at 17-17, before Johnsonville kicked the winning three points to send themselves into the final and complete a stunning turnaround in fortunes after they were seemingly down and out a month ago.

Johnsonville will meet Old Boys University in next week’s final, after OBU defeated Avalon 19-3 in their semi-final.

Johnsonville were also celebrating the success of another of their teams today, their U85 kg side defeating Avalon 14-6 in the final of the division 3 grade.

Stokes Valley won the U85 kg division 2 silverware, defeating Hutt Old Boys Marist 17-7 in their final.

The Colts division 2 Vic Calinai Memorial Cup ?semi-finals were held today with Old Boys University Black pipping Hutt Old Boys Marist 11-7 and Tawa accounting for Upper Hutt 30-15. OBU Black and Tawa will meet in next week’s final.

Next week’s Reserves Division 1 grade final will be between the Marist St Pat’s Internationals and the Poneke Ruffnuts, after MSP steered clear of the Old Boys University Bergs to win their semi-final 30-0 and the Poneke Ruffnuts beat Johnsonville 36-15.

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