Christie's boot guides Tech to Shield triumph
4th August 2010 09:16AM
By EVAN PEGDEN - Waikato Times
Fraser-Tech claimed their second Waikato premier club rugby title in three years and the 11th in their history when they beat Morrinsville Sports 19-15 at Waikato Stadium on Saturday.
In doing so, Shenanigans Irish Pub Fraser-Tech reversed the result of last year's Waikato Breweries Shield final and took back the Styvie Cup that means so much to both clubs after it was presented in memory of Darrin Stevenson, who played for Tech and died suddenly last year after coaching Wagon Wheel Bakery Morrinsville into the playoffs.
But this was a close one where the tensions of a final got to some players at times and the boot of Sam Christie rewarded Tech's possession and position edge in the game against a Morrinsville team that out-scored them two tries to one.
Fraser-Tech dominated the first half hour of this match and went out to a 13-0 lead, scoring their only try in the fourth minute when the competition's top try scorer Maru Henry handled twice in an attacking move that saw him touch down.
First five-eighth Christie added a couple of penalty goals to his conversion and after 27 minutes the blue and whites had the jump on Morrinsville, who had coughed up the ball in their only two real attacking chances.
But the visitors, who cramped Tech's usually deadly width game with a blitz defence, led by second-five Vesi Rauluni and with a wily guiding hand in the form of veteran halfback Damon McKinnon, came storming back in the last 10 minutes of the half to close it up to 13-10 by the break.
A backline attack with fullback Benji Olesen prominent finally prised open the Tech defence with some great support play, mobile prop Sean Bagshaw finishing it off with the try. Andre Wilson converted and then added a penalty goal before halftime.
Tech, who had an edge in the set-pieces, dominated possession in the second spell but struggled to create space out wide against the rush defence and made a lot of mistakes under the pressure of finals football, despite some promising backline attacks that usually featured young centre Glen Robertson and Henry.
Instead it was the pick and go of the forwards that made inroads and the boot of Christie that kept them ahead on the scoreboard with another couple of penalties to make it 19-10 before Morrinsville centre Michael Hotene scored a try right on the 80-minute mark from a kick-through after a player from each side failed to touch the ball down in the in-goal area.
Wilson's conversion attempt hit an upright and bounced away and Tech survived three minutes of stoppage time to claim the title.
"We're pretty happy. Morrinsville are an awesome team and they showed their championship characteristics by the way they came back," Fraser-Tech coach Roger Randle said.
"They never gave up and I never felt comfortable there with the way Morrinsville were playing."
While it had not been the most efficient display, Randle said all that mattered in a final was winning.
"At the end of the day when we look up at the board in our clubrooms it doesn't say `Fraser-Tech messy win', it says `Fraser-Tech champions' so we're happy."
Randle was up against his fellow Waikato sevens coach, Morrinsville mentor Waisiki Masirewa, the pair having guided the province to the national sevens title last summer.
"My good mate Ski, we've come up against each other in two finals now and we've got one each and got the sevens together so I'm happy with that."
Morrinsville Sports captain and tight-head prop Mark Verner, who took on the skipper's role with regular leader Alex Bradley excluded from the playoffs as a member of the Waikato ITM Cup squad, praised his team's never-say-die attitude.
"We played 80 minutes but I just think that first 10 minutes we were a bit slow off the blocks and maybe it cost us due to the 50-50s," Verner said.
"We should have held onto the ball a couple of times but we're just rapt to be here again and prove that last year wasn't just a one-off thing."
Verner said it had been a fine season for the Morrinsville club, which this year made a strong showing in the Haswell Catley Trophy main round only to fall at the final hurdle.
"We'll build on it. The club's gone really well, we've had all four teams in semifinals this year, which is great for us, we're a proud country club and we'll be back," he said.
FINALS DETAILS
Senior A: Premier: Waikato Breweries Shield: Fraser-Tech 19 (Maru Henry try; Sam Christie con, 4 pens) Morrinsville Sports 15 (Sean Bagshaw try; Andre Wilson con, pen). HT 13-10. Waikato Draught Plate: Te Awamutu Sports v Hautapu, not played. Promotion-Relegation: Lion Cup: Te Rapa 31 (Chauncy Edwardson, Declan O'Donnell, Riley O'Donnell tries; Nathan George 2 cons, 4 pens) University 24 (Sean Nixon, Lance Elrick, Tom Livingstone tries; Gavin Donald 3 cons, pen). HT: 6-3. Jubilee Trophy: United Matamata Sports 15 Hinuera 12. HT 12-0. Senior B: Premier: Rowe Cup: Otorohanga 17 Hautapu 12. Under-19 (Grey Memorial Shield): Hamilton Marist 17 Pirongia 14. Under-21 semifinals: Hautapu 35 Fraser-Tech 17, Hinuera 35 Morrinsville Sports 5.
