CRL Rd 12 Wrap: Keas and Eagles lock in top two spots as Hornets give finals chances huge boost
Linwood Keas and Eastern Eagles sealed their positions in the top two with a fortnight of the regular season remaining, while Halswell Hornets gave their finals hopes a massive boost in a high-scoring Round 12 of the CRL Whitehead Plumbing and Gas Men’s Premiership.
The unbeaten Keas effectively wrapped up another Massetti Cup success with a 38-10 victory over Greymouth Greyhounds at Linwood Park.
The defending champs led 16-0 at halftime after a double to winger Julius Mumuta, while lock Chanel Feala scored Linwood’s last two tries of the match. Centre Jeremiah Lesoa grabbed a second-half brace for Greymouth.
The Eagles guaranteed a momentous top-two finish with their ninth win of the season, powering to a 52-22 win against Hornby Panthers at Wainoni Park.
Dontae Siaki, Isaiah Smith and Henare Kahukiwa all notched doubles for the Eagles, who raced out to a 28-6 halftime lead. The Panthers fought admirably after the break, crossing for three second-half tries.
The Hornets halted their recent slide courtesy of a 60-0 shutout of Papanui Tigers, who were celebrating Old Boys Day at Papanui Domain.
Halswell scored seven tries in a rampant first-half display and added another four in the second stanza. Tyler Tapa-Wither, Nicholas Evans, Roan Brown and Hayden Thompson all scored two tries, while Tommy Moriarty tallied 18 points.
Riccarton Knights’ bye saw them move to outright third, while the Hornets leapfrogged the Greyhounds into fourth spot on for-and-against.
The third-placed Hornets produced an equally emphatic CRL Sidekick Chartered Accountancy Canterbury Cup Conference League result, overwhelming the Tigers 62-0.
The Keas remain in outright second – one win adrift of the Eagles – after a 64-4 defeat of the Greyhounds, piling on 13 tries.
In the sole CRL Division One Round 11 fixture played on Saturday, Eastern Eagles inched to outright second spot with a 32-18 win over Shirley Hawks.
The Eagles trailed 18-14 early in the second half but powered home with the last three tries of the afternoon at Wainoni Park.
Hornby Panthers and Linwood Keas firmed as the teams to beat in the CRL Happy Hire Women’s Premiership, both racking up emphatic victories in Round 8 on Sunday.
The ladder-leading Panthers bounced back from last week’s narrow loss to Keas – their first of 2026 – with a 44-4 defeat of third-placed Eastern Eagles at Wainoni Park.
Hornby centre Courtney Shadbolt nabbed a four-pointer in each half of the eight-tries-to-one result.
Meanwhile, the second-placed Keas overwhelmed Shirley Hawks 60-0 at Linwood Park with front-rower Lupe Manu scoring a hat-trick.
CRL WHITEHEAD PLUMBING & GAS MEN’S PREMIERSHIP – ROUND 12
Halswell Hornets 60 (Tyler Tapa-Wither 2, Nicholas Evans 2, Roan Brown 2, Hayden Thompson 2, Ollie Hansen, Roman Keno, Tommy Moriarty tries; Moriarty 7, Keno goals) defeated Papanui Tigers 0 at Papanui Tigers
Linwood Keas 38 (Julilus Mumuta 2, Chanel Feala 2, George Faaiva, Uili Uli, Montgomery Fafili tries; Etelani Pouli 5 goals) defeated Greymouth Greyhounds 10 (Jeremiah Lesoa 2 tries; Mac Gibson goal) at Linwood Park
Eastern Eagles 52 (Dontae Siaki 2, Isaiah Smith 2, Henare Kahukiwa 2, D’Angelo Tauti, Klayton Waikato, Leo Petelo, Peneli Penelitries; Waikato 3, Kahukiwa 3 goals) defeated Hornby Panthers 22 (Kyan Rosie, Jacob Hayward, Toby Gibson, Carlos Heather tries; Blake English 3 goals) at Wainoni Park
CRL SIDEKICK CHARTERED ACCOUNTANCY CANTERBURY CUP CONFERENCE LEAGUE – ROUND 12
Halswell Hornets 62 defeated Papanui Tigers 0 at Papanui Tigers
Linwood Keas 64 defeated Greymouth Greyhounds 4 at Linwood Park
CRL DIVISION ONE – ROUND 11
Eastern Eagles 32 defeated Shirley Hawks 18 at Wainoni Park
CRL HAPPY HIRE WOMEN’S PREMIERSIHP – ROUND 8
Linwood Keas 60 defeated Shirley Hawks 0 Linwood Park
Hornby Panthers 44 defeated Eastern Eagles 4 at Wainoni Park
Photo Credit: Abraham Atherton Photography
