Coast Swamps Foxes

East Coast 43 Thames Valley 13

Saturday 6th October 2007 at Rhodes Park, Thames, 2pm
Ref: Mike Fraser (Wellington) Crowd: 500 HT 6-5 Valley

By Steve Hale at Rhodes Park

Ngati Porou East Coast scored seven tries while demolishing Thames Valley in a stunning display of running rugby. Following a stirring pre match haka, the Coasters immediately took control, dominating both possession and territory. A superior scrum anchored by Mike Noble, enabled veteran number eight Horace Lewis to splinter the Valley defence repeatedly with his punishing trademark running and offloading.
Against the run of play the Valley somehow managed to cling to a slender lead at the break, until the visitors opened the floodgates early in the second spell. Buoyed on by their legendary posse of travelling supporters, East Coast proceeded to tear the local side to shreds, dotting down six times in forty minutes. The explosive acceleration and timing of fullback Anthony Heal caused the local tacklers countless nightmares, while halfback Charlie Harrison directed his troops expertly behind a rampant pack. Replacement prop Tainui Forrester completed the rout by converting the final try, leaving the shattered Swamp Foxes with wounds to lick before their semi final fixture next week.

East Coast: 15 Anthony Heal 14 Esava Vakacereisoso 13 Doone Harrison 12 Tikarau Callaghan (Seamus Kennedy) 11 Jonah Tuitoga 10 Lance Maaka (Matt Richards) 9 Charlie Harrison 8 Horace Lewis (Te Rae Parata) 7 Daniel Townsend (Robyn Wylie) 6 Morgan Wirepa Junior (c) 5 Richard Schofield 4 Kerehama Blackman 3 Mike Noble (Jason Mataira) 2 Harawira Matakihi (Richard Tuhaka) 1 Ray Brown (Tainui Forrester)
Scorers: Heal (2), Tuitoga, Lewis, Parata, Doone Harrison, Charlie Harrison: Cons: Vakacereisoso (2), Heal, Forrester

Thames Valley: 15 David Harrison 14 Danny Watson 13 Sheldon Waetford (Robbie Hooper) 12 Steve Hill (c) 11 Chris Doakes (Taitusi Nawakawaka 10 Brendon Clark 9 Simon Adams (Dan Hitchcock) 8 Filo Tuuga (Te Ra Arthur) 7 Matt Tilyard 6 Shane Davy 5 Glen Townsend 4 Gene Waller (Nick Holmes) 3 Mark Verner 2 Matt Biu (Jade Ta Whiti) 1 Travis Twizel (Jamie Gifkin)
Scorers: Tries: Nawakawaka: Cons: Harrison: Pen: Harrison (2)

Red Beards 1st XV

Red Beards 1st XV


15. Gavin Hastings (Scotland)
For the simple reason that my grandfather was a Jock and he would have demanded that I had one Big Sweaty in my run on side.

14. Tana Umaga (Petone)
For spending a good five minutes bouncing RB junior on his knee after my young fella nearly died from the shock of seeing Tana at an after match function. A genuine legend of All Black rugby.

13. Danny Gerber (South Africa)
Man of Steel. Did 4000 sit-ups a day, could out sprint a cheetah and tackled like an incestuous water buffalo.

12. Philippe Sella (France)
May have preferred outside centre but any back that can drop Peter Fitzsimons deserves a place in my team.

11. Brian Lima (Manu Samoa)
I like backs that can tackle and have to take my hat off to any bloke who could still play test rugby in their late 40s.

10. Hugo Porta (Argentina)
A fantastic player who had all the skills. Being a Puma Im sure he could also supply some seriously big T Bones for the BBQ.

George Gregan (Australia)
Simply the best and still going strong. A true champion on and off the field.

Buck Shelford (Navy)
Bring Back Buck. My backups would have been ‘The Bull of Dax’ Laurent Rodriguez (France) followed by Lozza Dallagio (England).

Ruben Kruger (South Africa)
The type of man who a pack of bulldogs would tiptoe past.

Arran Hopa (Waikato)
Covered in tats, the Taupri rubbish collector was also a staunch member of a local bikie gang. Not a man to be trifled with. To drown at sea was such a tragedy.



Keith Robinson (Te Aroha COBRAS)
Play footy with Robbo and he will automatically become your favourite lock also. Could supply all the wild pork, ACDC and JDs for any team function.

Martin Johnson (Tihoi)
King Country seems to be developing a habit of producing one world beating lock every 50 years. Married a Kiwi girl from the bush so you have to take your hat off to the bloke! Next in line would be a really nasty piece of work, Olivier Merle (France).

Jean-Pierre Gauret (France)
Short, barrel shaped, strong as an ox and as filthy as they come. The fitness or discipline of this Lourdes potato merchant wouldn’t endear him to the modern game, but in the 80s he was the best in the business. If Gauret was suspended from the game, I would draft in Olo Brown as his replacement. Jason Leonard also came under serious consideration for both his drinking and scrummaging skills.

Andrew Campbell (Coromandel & Thames Valley)
If it wasn’t for a broken neck and a lag in prison this guy would have been an All Black. The former NZ Maori rep returned to the fray at nearly 40, to anchor a Thames Valley scrum that dominated Natal in 1994. The best player I ever opposed. Unlucky to miss the cut were Keith Wood (Ireland) and Tommy Lawton (Australia)

Carl Hoeft (Te Aroha COBRAS)

Not the flashiest, not an impact player or a big ball carrier, but a human scrum machine. A man who will always put the team first. Is respected by his peers for never having a bad word to say about anyone. Often lets himself down badly by trying to impersonate Elvis on the dance floor, but never fails to punish himself by pounding the pavement for a solid hour the morning after a night on the piss. Honourable mentions for Pascal Ondarts (France) and Topo Rodriguez (Argentina), both formidable looseheads.