CRL 2024: ROUND 12 CLUB WRAP
The race for CRL Whitehead Plumbing & Gas Men’s Premiership finals spots is balancing on a knife’s edge with just two weeks of the regular season remaining, following another tense round of fixtures that saw the top two teams on the Massetti Cup table tipped up.
Hornby Panthers successfully defended the Thacker Shield with a stirring 24-10 defeat of ladder-leading Linwood Keas, snapping a four-match winless run in the rivalry between the perennial grand final opponents.
The Panthers scored the first two tries of both halves at Leslie Park to set up the vital win, with club legends Corey Lawrie and James Baxendale both finding their way over the stripe.
The result helped Hornby retain fourth spot and close to within one point of second, while Linwood’s grip on the Massetti Cup loosened somewhat – though the defending champ remain two points clear of the field.
In the inaugural Matariki Challenge match, Halswell Hornets became the first recipients of the Paniora/Tamatea Taonga with an impressive 20-6 victory over Riccarton Knights.
A hard-fought first half finished 12-6 in the home side’s favour, before Hornets winger Jared Sherwin’s second try gave them breathing space and centre Joshua Aileone’s late four-pointer sealed the deal. The Hornets consequently drew level with the Knights on 14 competition points and leapfrogged them on the ladder due to a superior for-and-against.
Fifth-placed Eastern Eagles stayed in the playoffs hunt, staying only two points adrift of the Panthers with a 44-20 win over Greymouth Greyhounds at Ngā Puna Wai.
The Eagles got off to a flyer, running in four unanswered tries in the opening 30 minutes. The Greyhounds rallied admirably to score the next three tries – reducing the deficit to eight points – but the Eagles powered home with hooker Hazani Fa’amoetauloa and prop Harold Kolose both finishing with doubles.
The CRL ISC Sport Canterbury Cup featured the runaway, equal-ladder-leading top three teams against the distantly trailing bottom three, but the results were anything but straightforward in Round 12.
The Eagles pipped Papanui Tigers 32-30 at Ngā Puna Wai, while the Panthers squeaked past the Keas 30-28 at Leslie Park. The Hornets enjoyed a more comfortable win, 28-4 against the Knights, as the trio stayed in a share of first place with identical 9-3 records.
In CRL Division One action, Ashburton Barbarians moved into outright second ahead of Woolston Rams courtesy of a 32-12 win in the teams’ clash at Woolston Park. Meanwhile, Addington Magpies (30-28 versus Burnham Chevaliers) and Shirley Hawks (36-28 versus Papanui Tigers) kept their finals hopes afloat with high-scoring victories.
Burnham Chevaliers took a big step towards a place in the CRL Bartercard Women’s Premiership semis with a 24-4 win over Addington Magpies in Sunday’s Round 8 clash at Coronation Park.
Hornby Panthers surged to top spot on points differential after a 66-6 win over Eastern Eagles in the first match of a Ngā Puna Wai double-header, with four players picking up a brace of tries and Kyra-Lee Westland continuing a prolific season with a 22-point haul.
Sydenham Swans stayed level with the Panthers on competition points after a 40-30 victory over two-time defending champs Linwood Keas at Ngā Puna Wai. Janaya Mata, Maya-Lin Mataele and Harmony Simaile all scored two tries for the Swans, while Sailiai Pau crossed twice in the second half of a seesawing showdown for the Keas.
The two Women’s Premiership fixtures were part of a massive day at the home of Canterbury Rugby League, with Ngā Puna Wai also hosting the inaugural CRL Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Youth Grand Final Day. The four youth grade deciders all featured margins of four points or less.
Hornby Panthers won the 14s Girls title with a 12-8 win over Linwood Keas; Hornby Panthers White took the 14s Boys trophy courtesy of a 20-16 defeat of Sydenham Swans; the Swans carried off the 15s Boys spoils by edging out Riccarton Knights 20-18; and the Panthers outlasted Celebration Lions 18-14 in the 16s Boys grand final.
CRL WHITEHEAD PLUMBING & GAS MEN’S PREMIERSHIP – MASSETTI CUP ROUND 12 RESULTS
Eastern Eagles 44 defeated Greymouth Greyhounds 20 at Ngā Puna Wai
Hornby Panthers 24 defeated Linwood Keas 10 at Leslie Park
Halswell Hornets 20 defeated Riccarton Knights 6 at Halswell Domain
CRL ISC SPORT CANTERBURY CUP – PREMIER RESERVES ROUND 12 RESULTS
Eastern Eagles 32 defeated Papanui Tigers 30 at Ngā Puna Wai
Halswell Hornets 28 defeated Riccarton Knights 4 at Halswell Domain
Hornby Panthers 30 defeated Linwood Keas 28 at Leslie Park
CRL DIVISION ONE – ROUND 12 RESULTS
Addington Magpies 30 defeated Burnham Chevaliers 28 at Coronation Park
Ashburton Barbarians 32 defeated Woolston Rams 12 at Woolston Rams
Shirley Hawks 36 defeated Halswell Hornets 28 at Macfarlane Park
CRL BARTERCARD WOMEN’S PREMIERSHIP – ROUND 8 RESULTS
Burnham Chevaliers defeated Addington Magpies at Coronation Park
Hornby Panthers defeated Eastern Eagles at Ngā Puna Wai
Sydenham Swans defeated Linwood Keas at Ngā Puna Wai
Image credit: Abraham Atherton Photography
