Rugby: Inglewood make early headway in opening round

Photo by Inglewood Rugby.

Inglewood has made an early statement in the opening round of the CMK premier club rugby competition which started on Saturday.  

After three wins and seven consecutive losses in last year’s competition, Inglewood beat New Plymouth Old Boys 28-19 at Vogeltown Park.

The opening round didn’t disappoint pundits around the province with a mixture of high scoring matches and close finishes on a hot, dry day that featured hard surfaces. Southern were the form team at the weekend as they were the only side to secure maximum points. 

Old Boys scored early in the match but from then on, both teams struggled to cross the try line as they made mistakes deep in each half. Equally, the teams did a good job of exiting out of their 22 after those mistakes were made.

It was Inglewood who struck first after trailing 5-3 at the break with a try in the corner. That kick started their momentum as they scored two tries and a penalty kick to stretch the lead out to 25-5.

Inglewood’s ability to turnover the ball at key times and spread the ball wide with confidence was a key factor in their opening game.

There were seven debutants for Inglewood.

Old Boys bounced back with two tries, but Inglewood had the final say with a late penalty kick.

Defending champions Stratford-Eltham continued their winning form and beat Clifton 19-15 at Victoria Park but did it the hard way.

They trailed 15-0 during the first half, due to Clifton’s physicality and ability to find the gaps, Stratford-Eltham scored 19 unanswered points.

The comeback came after a Clifton error that Stratford-Eltham did well to capitalise on during the match and then found their way in the game.

Clifton didn’t convert opportunities, especially when they were camped deep inside Stratford-Eltham’s half but would have been satisfied with their set piece where they snaffled ball at key times, especially at lineouts.

Stratford-Eltham’s Willem Ratu showed his speed in space, while Clifton’s captain Sage Walter-Hansen was also impressive around the field.

Tukapa scored right on full time to beat Coastal 19-18 at the Rahotu Domain.

The scoreline remained tight throughout the match and it was difficult to determine who was the stronger team.

But late momentum from Tukapa helped secure the win.

It was a positive start for Tukapa co-coach Cole Brown, who after playing for and coaching Inglewood for many seasons had jumped ship to the rival club.

Last year’s finalists Southern beat United (formally Spotswood United) 57-20 at Stadium Taranaki.

The match was tight during the first half as Southern lead 19-13.

After the break, Southern found space, speed and support play to cut through the United defence and continued to add to their lead, despite a late try from the home team. Southern secured a bonus point from their efforts. 

Taranaki midfielder Meihana Grindlay was a key standout in the match with his storming runs down the field.

The points table after the first round is; Southern 5, Inglewood 4, Stratford-Eltham 4, Tukapa 4, Coastal 1, Clifton 1, NPOB 0, United 0.