Sun, Jul 18, 2021 1:20 PM

Junior Red Devils narrowly hold onto Seddon Shield

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Peter Jones

Marlborough and Nelson shared overall honours at the Seddon Shield rugby tournament staged in Westport last week - but it was a close-run thing as tough opposition and stormy weather conspired to deny the young Red Devils.

The annual under-52kg event, widely acknowledged as New Zealand's longest-running rugby tournament, is contested by teams from Marlborough, Nelson, West Coast, hosts Buller and Golden Bay-Motueka.

Despite having no players with previous experience of the tournament, Marlborough made a bold showing from the outset and went on to retain the trophy they had claimed in 2019.

On Monday, they scored a solid 41-24 win over Buller, followed by a bye on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, a possession-starved Marlborough side were pipped 14-12 by Nelson, however the closeness of the score and the fact Nelson had previously drawn with Buller meant the young Red Devils remained in touch heading into the final two days.

Thursday’s match was a thriller, a late interception getting Marlborough over the line 24-19 against a plucky Golden Bay-Motueka outfit.

Entering the final two matches on Friday, both Marlborough and Nelson sought bonus point wins to clinch the top spot.

Games on the final day were brought forward as a serious weather storm approached Buller, with Nelson first-up against Golden Bay Motueka. The boys in blue got the job done, scoring four tries in a 22-10 win.

Marlborough started later against West Coast, but their bid for top position was almost foiled by the impending storm.

The Red Devils’ head coach Glenn Blackmore explains. “We were lucky with the weather … another couple of hours and we would have been stuck [in Westport]”.

“During our game the tournament organisers came up and said they had had another call from Civil Defence and were going to have to call the game off shortly.

“They said that if it gets to halftime the game will stand otherwise you will both get two points. We scored our third try just before the break and I said to the boys that if we can score one more try they will call the tournament off and we will get our five points, so that is what happened. We only played about 10 minutes into the second half with the final score being 24-0.

“It was really good of [the organisers] to give us the opportunity to play a little bit longer,” he added.

Consequently, the overall title was shared between Marlborough and Nelson, both with 16 points, from Golden Bay-Motueka, 11, Buller, 10, and West Coast 1.

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The Marlborough players and management get their hands on the Seddon Shield at the tournament prizegiving. Photo supplied.

Glenn was full of praise for the Buller officials who, “ran a fantastic tournament, just outstanding”.

The Marlborough coach was also impressed with the standard of play across all the five teams, especially with the Buller and West Coast sides who were allowed to field some year 9 players to make for a more competitive event.

The Red Devils pack was one of the smallest but were able to provide their talented backline with enough ball to get the job done. Another big factor in Marlborough’s success was their defence, which proved the stingiest of the tournament, conceding just 57 points from their four matches.

“Overall we went really well. I don’t think were the best side there, but we had a great culture which got us through,” said Glenn.

“We all stayed together out at Carter’s Beach and it was a really good team environment … everyone gelled well and we just tried to keep the boys always doing stuff together.”

Five Marlborough players were named in the Seddon Shield tournament team. They were backline players Thomas Blackmore, Vilikesa Nawaqavonovono, Jett Murrell and Josh Harris, plus No 8 Gus Wickham.

Despite there being a few obvious standouts among the Marlborough lads, Glenn said their success was “a real team effort … with our defence being a stand-out”.

He also observed that playing in wet conditions on boggy grounds was a learning experience for the Marlborough lads, who often have their sport postponed on a rainy day and were trained to play free-flowing, attacking rugby.

“Some of the lads struggled with the wet conditions we encountered on the last two days. It was a good learning curve … how to use the elements in their favour.

Results

Monday: Marlborough 41 Buller 24; Melson 34 West Coast 19. Tuesday: Golden Bay-Motueka 41 West Coast 22; Buller 19 Nelson 19. Wednesday: Nelson 14 Marlborough 12; Golden Bay-Motueka 32 Buller 31. Thursday: Buller 43 West Coast 15; Marlborough 24 Golden Bay-Motueka 19. Friday: Nnelson 22 Golden Bay-Motueka 10; Marlborough 24 West Coast 0.

The Marborough team was: Kereopa Wikaira (captain), Lukas Dowling, James Litchfield, Viliami Manoa, Max Ruffell, Flynn Nurse, Jack Powell, Gus Wickham, Tyrone Langi, Thomas Blackmore (vice captain), Louis Thomas, Jett Murrell (vice captain), Vilikesa Nawaqavonovono, Drew Materoa, Josh Harris, Jonty Hickman, Cayse Winitana, Ahurei Devon-James, Manaia Jones, Cooper Paulo. Coaches Glenn Blackmore, Paddy Dowling. Manager Kieran Hickman.

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