Ponsonby Rugby Club

The 2024 Gallaher Shield Final

Ponsonby 59 Pakuranga 24

Ponsonby fans turned out in good numbers at Eden Park last Saturday for Finals Day, and most were quietly confident that their favourites would bring the Gallaher Shield home for the 36^th time.

We had, after all, put together an unbeaten season and while Pakuranga had suffered only one loss, that one was – for an hour – one-way traffic. At that point Ponsonby ran on all its subs in one go, everyone looked for the miracle plays and Pakuranga picked up four soft tries, making a 40-5 lead look a little tenuous at 40-29.

That lesson was clearly learned, because Ponies then slaughtered most opponents, surviving scares from Eden and Varsity but winning many other games by huge margins. Eden met suffocating defence at the Springs in the semi, and any repetition of that would make the blue-and-blacks hard to beat. Hence the confidence, even if it was not always quiet.

Within the opening five minutes, most Ponsonby nerves had been quietened. The first time Wiseguy Faiane ran the ball, deep in his own territory, he opened the defence right up before finding his outsides with a long ball that created a four-on-two. The first scrum saw Ponies bulldoze their opponents, winning a penalty and all the mind games at the same time. An early lineout was followed by a 25m drive that ended with a penalty try.

Veteran hooker Joe Royal was dark about the call, as he managed to force the ball. He wanted that try, which would have been his tenth of the season. And that would have made him joint top try-scorer in 2024, which followed his top-on-his-own effort 12 months earlier. Gone are the days when the hookers scored two tries a season.

Pakuranga came back soon enough with a rumble try under the sticks, but within a couple of minutes they were seven down again. From that point Ponsonby were never headed, and it soon became clear the big question was: ‘How many?’

With the forwards providing plenty of front-foot ball, the backs found all sorts of space to cut capers. Clearly they had discussed where gaps might be, and just as clearly it was felt that Pakuranga’s outside-in defence left acres of space out wide if the ball could get there. Faiane made several telling breaks, and each time broke outwards once behind the line, looking to free up the fast men outside. They relished the space and all made major carries.

As good as the backs were, the stars were the loose trio. Taina Fox-Matamua was named Man of the Match, and that was a clear-cut call. His carries were powerful and his defence thunderous. Two tries was a fair result for his efforts. Kaleb Emile-Vaoga and Riki Ruben weren’t far behind, either in standard of play or physically on the ground. That combination was one Pakuranga never found an answer to. The tight forwards did their work well, with the final try going to replacement prop Zyon Holo, when he scooped up a loose ball from a breakdown on the Pakuranga 22 and galloped away to score. Nobody else had any idea where the ball was, and for those few seconds it became a one-man game. By the next day, of course, that run had become 70m and tacklers had been brushed off left and right, but props are allowed to embellish their try stories.

Wiseguy Faiane kicked well, both from hand and for goal, and his final 22-point haul (5c, 3p, 1d) iced an already rich cake.

Every single player in a Ponsonby jersey played well; even when replacements came into the game there was no let-up for Pakuranga. If the scoreline flattered one team it would have to be the losers, because Ponies could have really racked up a number if they had been brutal about it.

The win capped an unbeaten season (our seventh which ended with the Gallaher Shield at home again), and in other ways it was a record-setter. The 36^th Gallaher Shield win is, of course, a new mark; likewise the 47^th championship won under the ARFU banner and the 51^st overall. It marks the first time both the Gallaher and Coleman Shields will summer in the same clubrooms.

The team scored 826 points to 159, and 123 tries to 22. No fewer than 31 players scored tries. The points ratio, 5.19 to 1, is the highest we have enjoyed since 1910, when exactly the same number was posted. A year earlier, the mighty 1909 team had posted a 12 to 1 ratio, the biggest since 1900. And all this was done in a season when we lost a steady stream of players to various contracts during the year.

As a marker for our 150^th Jubilee, it couldn’t have been more fitting. Our two top teams led the way, and the path they blazed was indeed a bright one. The Auckland squads, named immediately after the final, reflected this: 12 men and no fewer than 23 women will be kitting up for Auckland this season.

What a way to commemorate our return home and milestone season.

Paul Neazor

Junior Prizegiving!

Join us THIS Saturday for Ponsonby Rugby's 2024 Junior Prizegiving Day!!

🗓 Saturday 14th September

🕙 10am-12pm - Please arrive early for a prompt start.

☕️Coffee Cart & Sausage Sizzle on site from 9am

📍 Mount Albert Grammar School

🎉 Afterwards, we invite all parents, players & families to join us back at the Clubrooms for our 'Coaches and Managers Appreciation Day'.

We look forward to you joining us in celebrating our amazing volunteers with music, spot prizes, and more.Kitchen and Bar will be open.

See you there! 💙🖤

About the club

Ponsonby Rugby Club is the longest standing grassroots club in Auckland, New Zealand, having been operating for over nearly 150 years! It serves the wider Ponsonby community as not only a rugby club, but a hub for the community to come together, connect with other people and families, and foster a love of sports in our tamariki.

PRC is well known for its dominance in the Auckland Rugby club competition, both nationally and internationally as a result of winning the coveted Gallaher Shield 35 times (and the regional championship 50 times), far more than any other club. The Club has also produced more All Blacks than any other club in New Zealand.