• Unbeaten Bay touch team earns final berth

Unbeaten Bay touch team earns final berth

Hawke's Bay over-27 women's touch team coach Rachel Tongia poured kudos on link player Patrice Mareikura after the side yesterday qualified for today's final at the Christchurch-hosted nationals.

"Patrice has had an awesome two days down here. Her mother Lynne has been ill but Patrice still managed to help look after her as well as fit in her trainings for our campaign. 

"It means a lot to me because I used to play with her mother and now I'm coaching Patrice," Tongia explained.

A Hawke's Bay Tui rugby squad member last year and 2018 Australia women's NRL rugby league player with the Combined Affiliates States team, Mareikura (pictured above), helped the Bay beat another previously unbeaten side, Counties-Manukau, 9-7 and Canterbury 9-6 yesterday.  

Hawke's Bay will meet Counties-Manukau again in this morning's final. Against the same team yesterday Hawke's Bay led 4-2 at halftime and performed well as a team throughout the match.

Against Canterbury Hawke's Bay trailed 5-4 at halftime.

"In our first game we stuck to our policies. In the second game the leadership of our captain [Candis Timms] impressed as well as the character of the entire squad. If we got into a sticky spot we were able to work our way out of it and that character will help us in the final," Tongia explained.

"All of our middle players who are very quick worked well. Any one of them can come up with something special on the last play," Tongia said.

 She also heaped praise on 43-year-old Julie Ferguson who has been playing at this level for almost 30 years. The former national age group rep and former Aotearoa Maori Sevens rep continues to out play opponents almost 20 years younger.