Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Adyn Ogle
THE Bay of Plenty Volcanix won a brutal battle of attrition to lift the Farah Palmer Cup championship title on Saturday.
The gritty 7-5 win over Otago at Tauranga Domain provided a perfect finish to the women’s national provincial second-tier campaign, one that Opotiki’s Luka Connor played a significant role in.
The loosehead prop completed the transition from number 8 this season, but her want to run with the ball remained – illustrated in finishing as the top try scorer in the competition. Her eight tries were also more than anyone in the premiership.
Connor’s running game featured in Saturday’s win as the wet conditions provided a platform for the forwards to shine.
“We knew it was going to be tough. The whole game was fast and physical but we expected that.”
The Volcanix were comfortably the top qualifier in the championship, which earned them a potentially tricky week off as Otago and North Harbour battled for a place in the final.
It meant the Volcanix were favourites to win the final, in contrast to winning just one game in the two previous seasons. Connor said coach Brendon Webby and his team played a big part in their success.
“We were not used to being expected to win it. The pressure was there, but we didn’t think of it that way.
“Brendon told us not to think about winning. We thought of it as just another game, but he coaches us mentally calm all week.”
Connor believe this season was another step forward for women’s rugby.
“I thought the level of rugby stepped up a lot, and there were more girls playing. We want to inspire more young girls in the Bay to play.”
The Volcanix will play in the premiership next year and they can take confidence into that after a draw and a two-point loss against premiership opponents this year. Connor said she was keen for the challenge.
“Every year the team changes, but I think if we kept basically the same setup I think we can compete up there. It will be a whole other level.”
Connor was also afforded a special moment before kick-off on Saturday. Each player was able to choose someone to run them out on to the field before kick-off. Connor chose 10-year-old Opotiki JAB player Mac Andrews, a big fan who Connor used to look after when she was younger.
“It was really cool, I got to have that little bit of where I am from with me. He kept wishing me good luck. It was neat to have him there when we sung the national anthem.
“I also have to give a big thanks to the Opotiki community and to my family and friends for all their support.”
Meanwhile, another Opotiki talent, Bay of Plenty Steamers lock Tom Franklin, came close to completing a double in the men’s competition. The Bay were beaten 59-45 by Wellington in the Mitre 10 Cup championship final, in a game that went to extra time.
Wellington looked to have it won in normal time, but Terrence Hepetema scored with two minutes of play and Mike Delany’s conversion locked the scores up at 40-all.
Wellington first-five Jackson Garden-Bachop missed a penalty on fulltime, but his side pulled away in the 20 minutes of extra time to claim the title.