Under 16s Beaten in Final

9th October 2009 10:12AM

Waikato Under 16’s V Auckland U16’s – Northern Regions Final

Saturday 3rd October 2009

Silverdale RFC,  North Shore 

Result: Waikato 10   Auckland 30                                    

Home Team:Codey Nepe , Cameron Moorby , Masiu Akauole, Alex Suttie © , Jacob Skeen , Kane Jacobson , Nathan Sunde , Adam Burn , Ben Finau, Wharenui Hawera , Hilton Gibbons , Hadleigh May , Niko Malo , Andrew Brown , Joseph Webber. Reserves: Jordan Mallinger , Mark Tyrell,  Kira Wetere , Jarred Wilson, Josh Moore, Tim Walters , Paea Mau 

Tries: Jarred WilsonConversions: Wharenui Hawera (1)

Penalty Kicks: Wharenui Hawera (1)

Drop Goals: 

 Waikato were under pressure from the kick off as the big Auckland pack tried to assert their dominance. The pressure told early as Auckland crossed for their 1st try after only 6 minutes. The game was an even affair as Waikato slowly found their rythym and started playing themselves back into the match. A Wharenui  Hawera  Penalty after 20 minutes narrowed the margin to 5-3. however Auckland answered with a Penalty of their own straight from the kickoff to take the margin back out to 5 points. Another Auckland Penalty 10 minutes later took the score out to 11-3 and Waikato were looking forward to changing over at half time with a tail wind only 8 points adrift. However a soft try right on the stroke of halftime took Auckland out to a 16-3 lead at the break. 

Halftime Score:  Waikato 3     Auckland 16  

Waikato  - with the wind at their backs in the 2nd half - tried to play to their game plan but small errors kept them on the back foot. Auckland capitalised on these errors and scored 2 more tries – in the 7th and 15th minutes to take the game away from Waikato. To their credit – Waikato never gave up and this resilience was rewarded 2 minutes from fulltime with a try to Jarred Wilson – after a good kick and chase.  Wharenui Hawera converted to bring the scoring and the season to an end. 

Fulltime Score: Waikato 10     Auckland 30    

Outstanding Players/Moments in the Match:  The boys will be disappointed with the result of this match but can look back at the season with pride. They have developed over the past 8 weeks into better footballers and better men. They have trained hard and have been good ambassadors for the Waikato Union. We wish them all the best in the future endeavours – be they in rugby and in life.