Welcome to another week of rugby here in Canterbury, and with it being School Holidays, hopefully a number of our junior and teenage community are enjoying some well earned time off!
While the weather is certainly cooling off, our senior competitions are beginning to heat up, with the Bascik Transport Metro Premier competition entering it’s first week of playoffs, while our Luisetti Seeds Ellesmere and North Canterbury Division 1 competitions are only two weeks away from the knockout rounds as well.
The Bascik Transport Metro Premier competition has remained the same this year, and you can read to which eight clubs have an opportunity to lift this year’s trophy in our preview article below.
Other articles this week include Southbridge’s Pasifika Day and jersey raising money for a good cause, a further dive into North Canterbury’s Super Saturday, and our U15 Development Camp taking place this week, with the final day of the camp today.
Off the back of all that is happening in our community game, we are also looking forward to the beginning of our high performance season with the Farah Palmer Cup, presented by Bunnings Warehouse, opening game against Wellington next Saturday at Rugby Park. Get down and support the team as they start their campaign to retain this year’s Premiership.
Elsewhere, both of our national sides are in action, the Black Ferns in Ottawa, Canada against the host nation and the All Blacks in Mendoza, Argentina. The teams will be announced today, so keep an eye out for those red and black representatives doing us proud!
We also have Marist Albion’s Tahlor Cahill and Isaac Hutchinson in action with the All Blacks U20’s in South Africa, and New Brighton’s Billy Harmon is co-captaining the All Blacks XV in Japan.
This week, make sure to get out and cheer on your club. I personally will be out and about on Saturday, refereeing at Burnside, so if you’re down at Burnside Park, make sure to come and say hello.
Ngā mihi,
Josh Bamber
Communications Executive, Canterbury Rugby Football Union
Community Welcome
Bascik Transport Metro Premier heats up as sights turn to Playoff Rugby
All Metro eyes turn to finals this week, as the Bascik Transport Metro Premier competition enters the first round of playoffs this weekend.
It’s been one of the tightest competitions in recent memory, with positions 1 through to 10 up for grabs in last week’s final round, with teams fighting to make the top eight and keep themselves in with a chance to lift the Bascik Transport Trophy come the end of July.
Ultimately, University (47 points) secured top spot on the final day, beating Belfast on their way to picking up the Bascik Transport Cup as Minor Premiers, a trophy that they have not held in recent memory.
They are joined at in the top four by Marist Albion (42), Lincoln University (40) and High School Old Boys’ (39), the latter of whom jumped into fourth spot after a final round win over Christchurch.
Those four teams will face off in the Qualifying Finals, with University hosting HSOB and Lincoln University travelling to Marist Albion, with the reward for finishing in the top four an extra life if they lose.
However, that reward of another life comes with it the danger of facing the sides in the Middle 4 section, who will be keen to prove their final credentials both this weekend and next.
Those sides competing in the Elimination Finals will be Linwood (35), New Brighton (35), Sumner (34) and Shirley (28).
It sets up two intriguing elimination finals, with Linwood hosting Shirley a repeat of the one point thriller that saw Linwood progress in 2022, while the seaside rivalry between New Brighton and Sumner is reignited with survival on the line.
For the two losers, Saturday will signal the end of their Trophy finals chances and see them drop into the Plate competition, while the winners live to fight another week against the losers of this weekends top four’s Qualifying Finals for a chance to play in the semi finals.
From there, the winners of the top four’s Qualifying Finals will receive a week off, while the losers play off in the semi-finals. The winners of that game will then take on the original Qualifying Finals winners in the Preliminary Finals, with the two winners earning a spot in the final to contest the Bascik Transport Trophy on the 30th of July at Rugby Park.
At the other end of the table, the bottom four sides do battle in an attempt to secure final bragging rights for the season, with the Plate on the line for the winner of the bottom half of the table and the dreaded wooden spoon the prize for the 12th placed team.
Taking part in the 9th to 12th section are Sydenham (26), Burnside (24), Christchurch (8) and Belfast (6). Sydenham host Belfast at Sydenham Park, while Christchurch travel west to Burnside.
The losers will play off against each other to determine the final 11th vs 12th seeding and the winners will look to end their season on a high with a Plate semi-final against the losers of the Elimination Finals, before the Plate final on the 22nd of July.
Bascik Transport Premier Men’s - Playoffs
Southbridge celebrates diversity and inclusion with Pasifika Day
Southbridge will don a different type of blue and white jersey this week, with the senior side stepping out for their Luisetti Seeds Ellesmere Division 1 match against Hornby in a specially designed pasifika jersey, as part of a Pasifika Day planned at the club on Saturday.
The jerseys form an integral part of the day designed to help support the implementation of climate resilient water and sanitation in the Pacific Islands, work that is currently being undertaken by Unicef and DC10 Fund, with All Black legend Daniel Carter auctioning off some limited edition career celebration boots too.
In addition to the fundraising efforts, the day is also designed to celebrate the strong pasifika community woven through the club, encompassing both a thank you and a recognition of the hard work valued members of the club’s community have put in over the years.
“The motivation first started as a recognition to the first group of boys who joined the club from Fiji in 2007, helping us out at a tough time numbers wise for the club, and a number stayed here, with a couple of them still with the club now.” said Southbridge’s Chris McMillan.
“It was decided that we wanted to thank them for all they have added, not just to the club but the community too, so we came up with this idea to have a Pasifika Day. While covid has stuffed the last one up we planned, it’s great to bring it back this week and give something back to the islands as well.”
“The jersey we’re auctioning off is really cool as it’s a mix of our Southbridge colours and a Pasifika design, created by our physio Kristine Lilidamu, so it’s a great representation of our community.” McMillan said.
While the rugby will provide a great deal of entertainment in the early parts of the afternoon, the aftermatch festivities will include a range of different cultural elements, with food and fun to create a big community occasion.
“We’ve got in touch with Hornby and we’re encouraging everyone to get behind the event, everyone is welcome on Saturday so it’ll be a great occasion to celebrate and thank our community.”
Information on the festivities and how you can bid to win one of the auction items can be found on Southbridge’s Facebook page here.
Ellesmere Division 1 & 2 Draw - July 8
North Canterbury celebrates connection off the back of Super Saturday
A feeling of connection and an overwhelming sense of success is how last month’s Super Saturday has been described.
Ohokas’ Max Lines, who was one of three centurions during the jampacked day where all eight North Canterbury senior teams featured at Southbrook Park, said “Super Saturday was a really cool concept” and continuing it as a tradition would help grow the “connected feel with all of the North Canterbury Clubs.”
Despite looming grey clouds over head, it’s estimated that over a thousand players, spectators and officials attended, “It was a great day, something that should be added to our community calendar to make it an annual event” said North Canterbury Rugby Game Developer Craig Mullan.
A particularly exciting game was the Glenmark-Cheviot vs Kaiapoi match, as they fought for the Deans Shield as well as the returning R.J Huria Memorial Trophy. Glenmark-Cheviot walked away with the silverware, managing to keep Kaiapoi at bay with a 33-26 win.
When asked about the importance of having the R.J Huria Memorial Trophy returning following the 2015 Glenmark fire, Glenmark-Cheviot Captain Andrew Hull said “It’s great to be able to have it on display in the club rooms as it opens up a lot of conversations about the history of not only the two clubs but the North Canterbury Rugby competition as well.”
Brennan Kara, of Kaiapoi and Kerran Jenkins of Saracens also gained their centurion blazers on the day, adding the festival occasion as North Canterbury got together to celebrate what make country rugby great.
A wheelbarrow of groceries was raffled off and won by Louis James of Ashley Div 1, while vintage North Canterbury gear was on sale, with proceeds raised going towards the North Canterbury Senior Squad heading to Japan later in the year to train alongside Robbie Deans’ Panasonic Wild Knights.
Luisetti Seeds North Canterbury Division 1 - July 8
The Cantabrian’s U15 Development Camp keeps next generation connected to red & black rugby
With School Holidays in full swing, so too is the Cantabrian’s U15 Development Camp, with close to 100 U15 players from around the region taking part in the three-day camp this week.
Designed to provide an opportunity for players to experience learning opportunities that may sit outside of their traditional rugby environment, the development camp will have the support of a range of specialist coaches and speakers, giving kids the opportunity to grow all areas of their game.
In addition to providing growth in the on-the-grass aspects of rugby, the development camp is also designed to grow understanding around the tips and techniques that are equally as important off the field.
Participants will be introduced to strength and conditioning techniques appropriate for their age, as well as participating in development and goal setting sessions, alongside the opportunity to upskill their mental skills, an area that is increasingly important in the modern game.
Towards the end of the camp, the boys will have the opportunity to put their development into a series of games, with a mini-tournament being run today, providing an opportunity to showcase the tips and tricks they will pick up.
By design, the camp provides an opportunity for all rugby playing boys of that age to experience a safe and fun development environment, coming together from all areas and backgrounds.
The camp plays an important part in Canterbury Rugby’s Teenage Development Strategy, which more information regarding this strategy found here.
Gallery - U15 Development Camp
