Club rugby: Premier competition playoff spots all sorted

Sunday, 30 June 2019

Woodlands halfback Nico Costa with the ball during the Southland premier club rugby game against Pirates-Old Boys at Woodlands on Saturday.

After 15 rounds of rugby the semifinalists have been found in both the Galbraith Shield and Ack Soper Shield Southland premier competitions.

In Galbraith Shield action, this coming Saturday top-of-the-table Marist will play fourth-placed Star, while Blues and the Eastern-Northern Barbarians will also meet in Invercargill.

Marist, Barbarians, and Star had already locked in a semifinal spot heading into the final round of round-robin games on Saturday, while Blues needed just one competition point in their trip to Gore to take on the Barbarians.

Blues, however, went one better notching up a 22-12 victory after leading 17-5 at halftime.

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The win did not just rubber-stamp Blues' playoff spot it ensured the return match against the Barbarians seven days later will be played in Invercargill and not Gore, considering Blues finished in second spot on the competition standings.

Woodlands needed to bank a bonus point victory over Pirates-Old Boys on Saturday to give them hope of pushing into a semifinal spot.

Woodlands played their part notching up a convincing 43-17 win but as it turns out they left their 2019 run too late with other results on Saturday going against them.

Stags prop Joe Walsh missed the Woodlands win after Walsh was red-carded the week before.

The stand down was reduced from two weeks to one week on review.

Woodlands struggled in the early part of the season which included being tipped up by traditional division one team Midlands, and being pushed to the wire by Edendale and Te Anau.

As the season progressed players started to filter back into the Woodlands setup and there was that feeling if they could push their way into a semifinal spot they could have been a threat given the quality of team they have.

Instead, their 2019 campaign is done, as is the case for Pirates-Old Boys who showed glimpses of their ability this year but failed to win a game through the Galbraith Shield stage of the season.

As is the case with the Blues and Barbarians fixture, Marist and Star will square-off twice in seven days when they meet in semifinal action.

Marist will head into the game as hot favorites considering they have beaten Star twice this season with the latest a convincing 42-19 victory on Saturday at Waverly Park in Invercargill.

Star impressed in the first half and trailed just 20-19 at halftime, but when Marist turned with the wind behind them they started to dominate.

The introduction of Stags hooker Flynn Thomas in the second half also provided Marist with a big boost.

Thomas had missed the entire club season as recovered from a shoulder injury.

Marist also welcomed back flanker Phil Halder on Saturday as the green-and-blacks pull together their best team at the right stage of the season.

Star will be confident it can put together a much better showing in the second half as it also welcomes back some key players for the semifinal on Saturday.

Impressive loose forward Jordan Stewart will return from a two-week suspension to line up in the semifinal, while Brayden Mitchell, Junior Ngaluafe, Mana Harrison, and Jono Hayes are also prospects to play in the semifinal.

In Ack Soper Shield action, Wyndham, Edendale, Midlands, and Te Anau will take part in Saturday's semifinal.

Te Anau needed to beat bottom-of-the-table Waikaka on Saturday to lock in fourth spot and it was given a major fright as it latched onto a 31-29 win.

Riversdale did all it could by beating Edendale 25-22 but has still joined Waikaka as the two teams who have missed the playoffs.

Wyndham will host Te Anau on one semifinal, while Edendale and Midlands will meet at Edendale in the other semifinal.

RESULTS

Premier

(Galbraith Shield)

Marist 42, Star 19; Woodlands 43, Pirates Old Boys 17; Blues 22, Eastern-Northern Barbarians 12.

(Ack Soper Shield)

Te Anau 31, Waikaka 29; MIdlands 31, Wyndham 24; Riversdale 25, Edendale 22.

Division One

Pioneer 13, Waiau Star 12; Mossburn 38, Waikiwi 13; Albion Excelsior 68, Star 22; Blues 37, Wakatipu 15.

Division Two

Collegiate 40, Blues 15; DLS 28, Bluff 24; Ohai-Nightcaps 29, Pirates-Old Boys 29; Riverton 36, Woodlands 0; Tokanui 37, Balfour 19.