Top 4 Report: Rangitoto College

Lets get right to the honest truth of it all Rangitoto College was the weakest team there from all the boys schools that were at the Top 4. That shouldn’t be a surprise though because that is what was expected and I think they knew it as well coming into the Top 4. Even in saying that it’s not that they werent a good school this year because you think about it, they beat the winners of the Harbour Comp Rosmini College in their 2nd game of the season when all the teams are fresh, they had probably their best record for the school in a real long time, they beat a 1A school to make it into the Top 4 as the Blues Rep for the Coed School’s and honestly we just automatically think that it will be a 1A school that goes through and so to me this was a very talented team that should have made it. If you were their at the Aorere College game to qualify for the Top 4, that Rangitoto College team went through every bad memory of what Rangitoto College Rugby Program use to be just to get that extra emotional push to win that game and showed everyone that they belonged. Were they the weakest team there? Yes, but they earned their way there, they deserved to be there and they made sure that we knew that they could be back there very soon.

I think Rangitoto College have done their supporters, school, Crest, coaches and themselves Proud because they weren’t even thought of to be a contender for that spot at the beginning of the year. They made history making the Top 4 and I feel like the Rugby Program will make some big moves to keep shooting for that level every year now, and they should. So lets talk a bit about how they went in their games down in Palmy.

The wind was everyone’s enemy while we were down there even us supporters hated it, but if you have been to Rangitoto College and their field they always have a massive wind blowing down field and so for me I thought that was a small advantage for them going into their first game. They came up against Fielding HS for their first game which I thought they could actually take and make things hard for them but I knew that if the stage and occasion became to big for them even before the ball was kicked off they would struggle, and that’s what happened. Feilding HS make it that far to the Top 4 on a yearly basis and so for them it was nothing, and for them having to travel 20 mins away from home base there was nothing to it for them. Rangitoto College struggled with the top class players that Feilding had and it showed because every time those players had the ball or were around it they were making big plays. Caleb Foster I thought had a great game on the offence side of things but on the defence side not so good, but he was going up against a Hurricane U18 and now NZSS Development Center and so even though he couldnt shut him down it was the same when Caleb got the ball he couldnt shut down Caleb either so I think that was fare. Josh Corrigan with the worst luck getting injured 5 mins into the game which was a big loss to them. Josh Tanner as always was a power house runner and was just giving everything he had and would be my MVP for the team. The front row really really struggled to handle the Feilding boys in the first half in the scrums and in and around the rucks. This game got away from Rangitoto early and there was no way of bringing it back closer in the 2nd half.

Having not done so good in that first game I really think they settled and brought it together against St Andrews College. Rangitoto played a more controlled game where they were able to move the ball a bit better and also get their players to run with better timing and better structure. I felt they put phases together better holding onto the ball and not just kicking it away like in the first game, where they played to safe and never took chances. They began I felt to look like they did in the Harbour Comp just playing their style of rugby and making that game their game to show they belonged there and I think they proved that. A lot of the boys played better and as one group, Josh Tannar, Rami as well had a stronger game and did a whole lot better in the scrums. Breyton Lenee was just very physical and forward to the line as he usually is and they were finding it hard to slow him down. Caleb Leef had a better game and attacked better with the ball as well as Lock Ryan Meads and think hell be a player to watch grow next year. The score line didn’t come out the way they wanted it but I felt they really did show that they could get back their again and next time they will not be Rookies.

If I was at Rangitoto College I would be getting together after this week with a group of returning boys and training as a group with a goal to get back there to the Top 4 next year. This rugby program is strong and should get stronger with this experience and new login to their school’s history books as the first team to reach the Top 4 Coed.