Norths grooving again: Parekura Lalaga

Parekura Lalaga leads his son PJ out on to Jerry Collins Stadium for his 100th Premier match on Saturday.

“I definitely see glimpses of 2010 and that’s really exciting,” Norths captain Parekura Lalaga warns when comparing Northern United’s present form with their last Jubilee Cup winning side.

On Saturday, Lalaga celebrated his 100th game as Norths joined Old Boys University at the top of the Swindale Shield with a round to play after an extraordinary 50-45 win over the Goats at Jerry Collins Stadium. At one stage Norths led by more than 20 points in their first win over OBU since 2014.

“She was crazy on Saturday. We were lucky to close it out. We knew OBU would play for 80  minutes plus. It was great to see some of things we trained for come off, but it wasn’t easy,”Lalaga observes.

Rookies Kienan Higgins and Esi Komaisavai scored five tries between them, but the youngsters are still learning.

“It’s great to have the young guys with all their enthusiasm and flair, but a lot of them haven’t been through what we went through on Saturday. When things got tight on Saturday the senior players and I tried to offer some words of inspiration without talking too much. It was a test of character they had to come through,” Lalaga stresses.

Lalaga commenced his junior rugby for North’s aged nine. He was a Wellington age group representative at 13,16,18 and 20.

In 2008, Lalaga captained the Mana College First XV to the National co-education title and two years later he scored a try in the Jubilee Cup final won by Norths 24-5 over Poneke.

Lalaga’s next two seasons were disrupted by injury and by 2015 he had moved to Australia while Norths languished in the Hardham Cup.

“There were a lot of reasons why we fell away, but I think the biggest issue was player retention. A lot of our guys went onto become professionals and we didn’t plan for that as well as we could off,” Lalaga rues.

“Those were definitely tough times, but I don’t regret going through the Hardham Cup,” Lalaga continued.

“I’m Norths through and through. My Dad played for Porirua and my brothers for Norths. We’ve come through the tough times and are on the rise again.”

In 2017, Norths won seven of their first eight games to ensure a place in the Jubilee Cup for the first time since 2012. However dropping seven of their last 12 games was a disappointing climax to a promising campaign.

This year Norths have won eight in a row after an unconvincing first month. What has to happen to prevent the skid of 12 months ago?

“I don’t think we were prepared for the toughness of the Jubilee Cup. A lot of us hadn’t been there before and I think we made some mistakes in our preparation. We are more mature this year and aren’t getting too far ahead of ourselves,” Lalaga responds.

A unique feature of the Norths culture is the loud music that can be heard echoing from their dressing room prior to kick off. What is the theory behind the tunes?

“It helps the boys relax and anything that does that is helpful. I don’t understand what the young guys listen to, it’s awful, but it’s no worse than Chris Middleton who enjoys the Spice Girls,” Lalaga answers.

Lalaga is not the only Norths player to reach a century of games this year. Perry Hayman celebrated his 100th in the 32-15 win against Ories in Round 11. Hayman is a Jubilee Cup winner who has scored 584 points for Norths, represented Horowhenua Kapiti and boasts a scratch handicap in golf.

“Perry is a bloody good athlete and humble guy with the most unco sidestep I’ve ever seen. I don’t know how he beats guys with his foot work, but he does it time and time again. Our two kids play together in the junior’s. It’s been an honour to share so many games with Perry,” Lalaga acclaims.

Parekura’s Premier debut was against Marist St Pats where he took heavy hits from Hurricanes Ged Robinson and Jeff Toomaga-Allen with his first two carries.

MSP are North’s final Swindale Shield opponents on Saturday. A win for the hosts could see Norths win their first Swindale Shield since 2011.

“MSP is always a tough opponent. They are physical and have a lot of flair out wide. I haven’t beaten them very often so Saturday will be a big challenge, but it’s game were all looking forward to,” Lalaga concludes.

Did You Know?

Lalaga is employed by the Ministry of Social Development.

OBU conceded 50 points for the first time since Round 7 of the 2011 Swindale Shield when they lost 55-14 to Norths. That was 144 matches ago. They also lost 54-7 and 51-33 to Norths in 2010. Lalaga scored two tries in the 51-33 Jubilee Cup success. He has scored 30 tries overall for Norths.

Lalaga represented New Zealand in Aussie Rules football as well as East Coast in the Heartland Championship and Wellington in senior 7s.