King Country Lochore Cup Champions after Extra Time Epic
King Country: 46 (Latrell Smiler-Ah Kiong, Leveson Gower, Cordy Nordstrom 2, Logan Paterson, Liam Rowlands tries; Patrick Hedley 5 con, 2 pens) West Coast: 44 (Troy Tauwhare, Jack Ray, Ben Alexander, Jacob Mitchell, Quinn Johnsen, Sean McClure tries; Jacob Waikari-Jones 4 cons, 2 pens,) HT: 17-15
King Country are Lochore Cup champions for the first time since 2015 after a staggering 46-44 victory over West Coast at Rugby Park, Te Kūiti. It took a hundred minutes and eight lead changes to finally separate the two unions.
In the last minute of regulation time, West Coast was down 34-29, battering away repeatedly at the hosts’ line. Eventually, reserve flanker Quinn Johnsen dived through the middle of the ruck and scored 10m in from touch.
Had first five-eighth Jacob Waikari-Jones landed the conversion West Coast would have been champions. Cruelly the ball cannoed off the left-hand upright and sprayed across the front of the posts.
The visitors carried on the momentum in extra time and after six minutes of honest, gut-busting industry, earned a penalty which Waikari-Jones kicked to make it 37-34.
Spurred on by a feverish home crowd, King Country summoned energy from a place few know. In the 88th minute, reserve prop Tom Ryan made an inspired charge to shift momentum. King Country cradled towards the corner flag and Logan Patterson wriggled over to give the Rams a 39-37 lead at halftime in extra time.
Ryan was proving an absolute menace and a breakdown turnover he secured from the otherwise redoubtable Ethan Simpson had West Coast anchored inside their 22.
Resolute and surgical forward thrusts followed with an overlap created. A lofted pass almost ruined that opening until captain and hooker Liam Rowlands, the size of a garden gnome, leaped like Hamish Kerr to secure the ball and bash through two defenders and score. Patrick Hedley kicked seven goals from eight attempts, including an early conversion that struck the top of the left-hand upright and bounced over.
West Coast wasn’t done. Collective expansive opened a hole for Sean McClure, in his 92nd match, to ferret clear. As the siren sounded Waikari-Jones nailed a sideline conversion to close the gap to 46-44.
King Country dispatched the restart into the West Coast 22. A dozen brave phases followed until a slight bobble terminated time 40m shy of the Rams’ line.
It was tit for tat the whole way though West Coast opened up a 29-20 advantage after 55 minutes when wily player coaches Troy Tauwhare and Jared Mitchell combined for a try at the lineout.
King Country fullback Cody Nordstrom was a livewire. Yellow carded in the first half, he scored tries in the 58th and 63rd minutes to propel the Rams in front.
It was a momentous day for Aarin Dunster who celebrated his 150th match as a player and coach for King County. Dunster was King Country captain in 2015 when the Rams won their only previous Lochore Cup. The Rams Heartland Championship record is 63 wins, 89 defeats, and five draws.
Poverty Bay (2006 to 2008) is the only union to successfully defend the Lochore Cup.
Meanwhile, finals were introduced in the NPC in 1992. The first NPC semifinal went to extra time with Otago beating North Harbour after a Greg Cooper try. In 2012 Canterbury beat Taranaki 51-27 after extra time in a semi-final en route to the title. In 2014 Taranaki topped Auckland 49-30 in a semi on their way to Premerimship glory.
In all matches, King Country and West Coast are tied at ten wins apiece.
REPLACEMENTS (if any during the match): Substitute, Injury, Blood Bin or BC (Blue Card) | ||||||
RESERVE NAME | PLAYER NAME | TIME | REASON | |||
Dan Davis | replaces | Jesse MacRae | 45mins | replacement | ||
Mitch Tapp | replaces | Ben Alexander | 58mins | replacement | ||
Sean McClure | replaces | Nick Foxley | 61mins | replacement | ||
Quinn Johnsen | replaces | Jack Rea | 65mins | replacement | ||
Richard Kaisia | replaces | Jarel Hemahema | 73mins | Replacement | ||
Logan Winter | replaces | Ethan Simpson | 75mins | replacment | ||
Jack Rea | replaces | Troy Tauwhare | 85mins | injury | ||
Ethan Simpson | replaces | Tumama Tuúlua | 90mins | Injury | ||
Jesse Macrae | replaces | Mitchell tapp | 90mins | injury | ||
Jamie Kearns | replaces | Logan Winter | 93mins | replacement | ||
Nathan Booker | replaces | Kane Parker | 93mins | replacement |