The Upper Clutha Premier rugby side (the Rams) retained the Neil Purvis Memorial and Phillip Cowie Memorial Shields with a comfortable eight try 50-20 win over Alexandra at Tarras on Saturday (June 12) in the final round of the Central Otago Premier Rugby competition.

The Rams went into the match on 19 competition points, equal with Wakatipu, but sitting one above the Queenstown club in second position thanks to a superior for-and-against points differential.

With Wakatipu playing last placed Cromwell Cavaliers and expected to record a bonus point win, the formula for the Rams was to beat Alexandra by as big a margin as possible and score four tries in the process to secure a bonus point.

The Rams did what was asked of them but it wasn’t enough, with Wakatipu recording a 93-7 victory over the Cromwell Cavaliers to finish with a positive points differential of 147 compared to the Rams 127.

The players enjoyed perfect conditions with the sun breaking through the inversion layer for the match.

The Rams will now meet Wakatipu in Queenstown in a qualifying final match on Saturday (June 19). The winner will advance to the preliminary final while the loser will play the winner of Maniototo and the Cromwell Cavaliers in an elimination match on Saturday June 26.

The Rams went into the Alexandra match with a number of positional changes and new faces in the starting lineup. 

“Injuries forced our hand in some positions and I was happy with the effort across the board. It makes it hard for selection for next week,” Rams head coach Garry-John Hape said.

“Regardless of where we’re playing we’re heading into finals footy with a good pack and some good depth right across the board.”

It was an uninspiring start by the Rams, finding themselves down 7-0 just two minutes into the match. However, a wealth of possession and good field position created four Rams’ tries before the half time break, where they led 26-13.

The Rams added a fifth try in the 49th minute in a well contested second half. Patience and perseverance were rewarded with the Rams scoring three tries in the last 10 minutes of the match.

For the Rams none were better than Tamati Gurau-Reynolds. The young prop was explosive with ball in hand with his mobility a feature of the match. He was well supported by No. 8 Jackson Campbell. In the backs, fullback Henry Schikker was dangerous with ball in hand while first five Tiare Murray showed great promise.

Defending champions the Cromwell Goats remained unbeaten in the round robin with a 12-5 win over Maniototo to secure the Vincent Shield for 2021. Cromwell will host Arrowtown in the other qualifying final this Saturday (June 19).

Tries: Jaiden McDonald (2), Henry Schikker, Byron Aitken, Blair Kennedy, Tamati Gurau-Reynolds, Danny Thorburn, Sean Murray.

Conversions: Brady Kingan (4), Tiare Murray.

Round scores:

Points table:

PHOTOS: Wanaka App