2023 School Rugby

[Stargazer]

From the Club Rugby website:

The dates have been set for the annual Transit First XV pre-season Festival. The Wellington leg will be played at the NZCIS ground in Upper Hutt on Saturday 29 April and the Hastings leg is on Saturday 6 May.

The teams competing this year are: St Pat’s Silverstream, St Pat’s Town, Wellington College, Rongotai College, Hastings BHS, Palmerston North BHS, Gisborne BHS and Feilding High School. Feilding are taking the place of Napier BHS, who will be contesting the Sanix World Rugby Youth Invitational Tournament in Japan.

So Napier Boys' are going to Japan instead of Hamilton Boys', who've already played in that World Schools Festival.

[OleOleOle]

@Stargazer does that mean Hamilton are still unwelcome after their controversey a few years back?

[Stargazer]

@OleOleOle Which controversy? I think Hamilton Boys' aren't going because they've already played in that other tournament. Two overseas' tournaments may be a bit too expensive?

[OleOleOle]

@Stargazer yeah, that might be it. The last time they attended Sannix a few of their students were caught shoplifting, unsurpirsingly it didn't go down well with the Japanese

[Bovidae]

Good that NBHS get to go to Japan, but the trouble with the Sanix tournament is that the team that attends is usually very different as some key players in that team have left school. A NZ school hasn't won it in a while.

[Stargazer]

@Bovidae Yeah, I've no idea what this year's squad will be like. They had quite a few year 12s in the 1st XV, last year, so there will be some players with experience, but some of their best have left school (like Gus Brown, Max Ratcliffe, Adam Curran, Angus Prouting and - I think Corey Berkett).

[taniwharugby]

Whangarei Boys High name a team for pre season v Rotorua.

Several names I don't recognise, the ones I do I am not sure they have a very big team this year but many are supremely fit, are a few young fellas too.

[taniwharugby]

Yep, rugby is on its way. Pre-season games all lined up for Whangarei Boys' High School with last Saturday a first hit out against Rotorua Boys' High. Awesome the Rotorua Boys made the trip up north to experience our fantastic weather. Rain, thunderstorms, lightning through the night and 26 degrees of muggy heat and bright sunshine during the game.
First game for both teams and played in thirds to allow both squads to field all their players and test combinations. Rotorua took out the match 40 - 12 but our boys showed great determination against a bigger side. It was a good match to watch and a decent crowd turned up to enjoy this first hit out. It is planned to be an annual fixture with Rotorua taking home the new trophy.

Next week we travel to Auckland to play Kelston 1stXV and U15 teams. Times TBC.

Some photos below but 350 here:

Find Photographers & Photo Albums - jAlbum

[Bovidae]

Here's the RBHS team that played that game. Another Hutchings in the squad. The halfback Jai Tamati, who was selected in the NZ Schools team last year, must have been only a Y12.

[Higgins]

@Bovidae Looks to be about five players with Fijian names amongst that lot and not one of them a winger. Surely that cannot be true?

[Bovidae]

@Higgins They've always had a lot of Fijians in their team, and not only in the backs.

[Stargazer]

Preseason results - Saturday 25 March 2023

Palmerston North BHS 52 - 7 Lindisfarne College
Hastings Boys 33 - 12 Westlake Boys
Rotorua Boys 54 - 0 Tangaroa College
Feilding HS 48-5 Wellington College Principal's XV
Rosmini College v King's College ???

If there were more games on the weekend, please, add the results.

[Bovidae]

For those interested, here is Rotorua BHS's schedule for the year. I'll give them credit for playing a lot of games pre-Super 8, and I also see they have a Chiefs curtain-raiser game and tour to Argentina lined up in the school holidays.

[Higgins]

@Bovidae Looks like just a straight Final between the top two qualifiers. I thought they maybe had semis as well but maybe that might just be for the Super Rugby Regional Top Four playoffs?

[Bovidae]

@Higgins said in 2023 School Rugby:

@Bovidae Looks like just a straight Final between the top two qualifiers. I thought they maybe had semis as well but maybe that might just be for the Super Rugby Regional Top Four playoffs?

It was only a final last year too, so maybe that is the new format with the congested schedule.

[Higgins]

Wonder what the odds would be on a Napier v Hastings Final? Could lead to some interesting "discussions" amongst the small HB contingent on here!

[Stargazer]

@Higgins Super 8 only having a final isn't new. It's been like that for years. It's indeed the Top 4 Hurricanes qualification that has a SF before the F, allowing for a challenger team from outside the Super 8 and Wellington competitions to compete for the Hurricanes spot in the Top 4. Last year, that was Feilding HS.

Last year, they changed the usual format for the Hurricanes SF, leading to a Napier v Hastings Boys SF, instead of a F. I hope they alternate that, so we can have a Napier v Hastings Final, but that's assuming that a school like Palmy Boys doesn't spoil the party.

[Bovidae]

Is Napier BHS not going to the Sanix now? Or are both Top 4 finalists going?

SANIX World Youth Rugby Tournament 2023 is once again happening in Japan in April and the HBHS First XV is invited. They sit on top of the ALL TIME winners chart having won three times before and they'll be doing their very best to stay there.

[Stargazer]

@Bovidae No idea. That info of Napier Boys going to the Sanix tournament came from the Club Rugby website. Maybe they just got it wrong? I've read nothing about it on Napier Boys' social media.

[Stargazer]

@Stargazer said in 2023 School Rugby:

Preseason results - Saturday 25 March 2023

Palmerston North BHS 52 - 7 Lindisfarne College
Hastings Boys 33 - 12 Westlake Boys
Rotorua Boys 54 - 0 Tangaroa College
Feilding HS 48-5 Wellington College Principal's XV
Rosmini College v King's College ???

If there were more games on the weekend, please, add the results.

Result from Friday 24 March 2023
Gisborne BHS 10 - 29 De La Salle College

Additional result from Saturday 25 March 2023
St John's College (Hamilton) 24 - 19 St Peter's (Auckland)