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Otago Daily Times
19-06-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Miners Cup up for grabs this afternoon
With Matariki making this a long weekend, the southern region features a rare Friday afternoon spectacle in Kaitangata. The Crescent Coal Miners host Lawrence with the Miners Cup on the line. The top four is such a close contest that Crescent can momentarily jump up to second place for 24 hours with a win. Lawrence will not die wondering and are still due a win, which they have sought admirably all season. West Taieri host Clutha in a top-of-the-table battle at Outram with the Speight's Jug and McIntosh Cup on the line in what will be a war of attrition. Clutha have built an almost unassailable lead at the top of the table but will want to win all the same and keep the Pigs well behind them. Since returning from injury, West Taieri first five Callum Smeaton has been driving the team around the park well and will have a big say in the outcome of this clash. Toko celebrate their club day this weekend with what should be a competitive day of footy. The Toko Axemen host Owaka with the Dean Miller and Reg Phillips memorial trophies on the line. Both sides lost last weekend and will be frothing to right the wrongs of previous matches. Toko will want to be pushing back into home semifinal contention; Owaka will be hoping to get 22 players on the field. Injuries and absences are a real issue. Heriot host Clutha Valley for the Trevor Peters Memorial as both sides make one last effort to finish in the top four. The teams are fifth and sixth respectively with the loser of this match certain of a bottom-four spot. The victor still has a mathematical chance of semifinal footy.
Otago Daily Times
08-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Second-half dominance cements winning streak
Clutha maintained their unbeaten streak with a 34-25 win over West Taieri in a Southern Region game at the Balclutha Showgrounds on Saturday. West Taieri flew out of the blocks and were strong in the opening stages of the clash. They rumbled up the middle and found space out wide, where they scored some nice tries. Clutha did not have much possession to attack with but showed glimpses of what they were capable of when they had the ball. A brace of tries each to hooker Luke Moeke and halfback Jackson Reid helped West Taieri go into halftime 25-8 ahead. The second half was dominated by Clutha who, thanks to some impact from the bench, found their stride and held all the cards in the game. Clutha's bench lifted the whole team, and they began to make metres with the ball. Their forwards dominated the collision, and their lineout was a real strike weapon. West Taieri had no answer as the Clutha side steamed to victory. Toko also remain unbeaten after five rounds after a strong 43-27 win over Owaka at Swamp Hen Park. The opening 25 minutes were dominated by Owaka but they could not penetrate the Toko defensive line. On the half-hour mark, with neither side on the scoreboard, Toko scored an opportunistic try against the run of play to open their account. From there, Toko rushed out to a 12-0 lead. Owaka prop Chris Preddy was red-carded midway through the half, but it was the home side who finished the half stronger and led 13-12 at the break. The second half featured Toko capitalising on Owaka's poor discipline and lengthy injury list as the bench was emptied early. Two further yellow cards for Owaka allowed Toko to finish strongly and run away with the game. Defending champions Clutha Valley won their second match in a row as they beat Heriot 41-38 in front of a sizable crowd at Clydevale. The first half belonged to Valley, who demonstrated the skill and ability that has been lacking in recent weeks. Their forwards held on to the ball well and their backs found space. Valley went into halftime 35-10 ahead and full of confidence. Heriot came back into the fight in a big way in the second half. They controlled possession and kept Valley on the back foot for the majority of the half. Two key penalties to Valley goal kicker Ben Smart kept Heriot at bay and in the end, those kicks were crucial as Valley held on to win. Crescent bounced back from their disappointment from last weekend in style. The Coal Miners thrashed Lawrence 56-8 at Simpson Park thanks to an individual haul of 31 points by Kairus Booth. Crescent were dominant in all aspects of the game and rarely gave Lawrence a chance to show their worth. The first half was extremely one-sided before Lawrence finally got a chance to show some attacking brilliance. After a brief attacking period, where they scored their only try, Lawrence ran out of legs and Crescent finished well to retain the Miners Cup. By Francis Parker
