Friday, October 26, 2012 • John Hill
RUGBY - NO matter what the outcome, history will be made when Ngati Porou East Coast host Wanganui at Whakarua Park, Ruatoria tomorrow in the Meads Cup final.
It will be the first time since the inception of the Heartland Championship in 2006 that the top-four final has been played on the Coast.
Defending champions Wanganui are into their seventh straight final, having won three and lost three.
This year is the 125th anniversary of Wanganui Rugby Football Union and the Coast plan to spoil the visitors’ party by avenging last year’s 30-10 final defeat at the home of the “Butcher Boys”.
Coast player-coach Ngarimu Simpkins said the disappointment of losing last year was an added incentive.
“Nobody needs incentive when they’re playing in a cup final but we’ve tasted what it was like to lose one . . . it’s not a nice feeling.”
Assistant coach and skipper Rua Tipoki said the looks on the faces of the players in the dressing room last year made him proud.
“When I saw how disappointed they were about losing to a team as good as Wanganui, it showed me how far we had come as a team,” Tipoki said.
“They all believed we could win and we said back then the challenge was to come back next year and win it.
“Here we are in the final and at home. It’s going to be an emotional occasion but we’ve got too much experience in this team to let the emotion of the occasion get to us. It’s not about the occasion, it’s about the result making the occasion.”
“Wanganui certainly won’t be overawed. It’s going to be a battle but we’re up for it.”
Simpkins said that after the hype of their 26-15 semifinal win against North Otago last weekend the players already had their feet back on the ground.
“We trained last night and they were calm . . . but ready for this weekend,” Simpkins said. “Our focus, as it has been all season, is on getting our own house in order and not worrying about the opposition.”
Simpkins has made one change to the starting line-up, with Tipoki to wear the No.12 jersey after starting on the bench last weekend because of a groin injury.
“TK Moeke will move back to the wing with Tom Teaki on the bench,” Simpkins said.
“We’re under no illusions about how good a side Wanganui are. Our round-robin win over Wanganui (25-17 in Ruatoria) counts for nothing except it got the monkey of our backs (the Coast had won only one of their previous 22 clashes with Wanganui), and it has given the boys confidence.”
Wanganui will have six players backing up from last year. They would have had seven but first five Mark Davis has been ruled out with a knee injury.
Areta Lama will start in the No,10 jersey with Sean Brown his back-up.
‘We’re not concerned with the opposition and that’s not disrespecting Wanganui,” said Simpkins. “We will just concentrate on what we can do.”