There will be only one remaining undefeated team in the Tasman Tanning Senior competition after Saturday as McCarthy’s Transport Ruapehu hosts the big match with Forest 360 Marist Knights at Rochfort Park.

Single-team club Ruapehu have been on a bit of a yo-yo between the Senior and Premier grades in the last four seasons, and what was looking like a promising run towards their first Senior final since 2022 was derailed last year in a shock home quarterfinal loss to Bennett’s Taihape.

Ruapehu paid that defeat back in spades to start the campaign with a 50-0 win, followed by victories over Seales Winslow Pirates (53-12), Direct Connect Marist Celtic (24-19) and Kelso Hunterville (28-5).

“The quarterfinal wasn’t really in our mind from last year, we got a whole lot of new fellas and young guys – we’re just trying to build a team at the moment,” said coach Chris Winter, a former Premier title-winning coach taking the reins back this season.

“Real good numbers at the moment, it’s actually quite privileged in the numbers we have.

“There’s a few young fellas from the college that have stepped up, and there’s the odd guy that’s come in from work.

“There was a good basis from last year anyway, which was good.”

Ruapehu College 1st XV won the Manawatu Premier 2 schoolboys competition last season, beating Feilding High Colts in the final.

Out of that crop of talent comes the likes of Chrissy Winter, Jimmy Rowe and Hunter Cross, who played in the Whanganui Under 16’s under Chris Winter, as well as Tahatika Te Riaki, who made the Under 18’s.

Still with plenty of grunt in the engine room, the side retains Premier-experienced forwards like Mac-James Edmonds, Christian Hawira, Kevin McDonnell and Ben Waiwai, while Ezekiel Anderson is back home from a one-season stint with Tāmata Hauhā Rātana.

Also home from Byfords Readi-Mix Taihape is 29-year-old current Steelform Whanganui representative Kahl Elers-Green, seven reserve halfback games in Heartland (2022, 2024), who captains the team from the midfield, as last year’s talented young skipper Harry Rowe made his comeback from injury against Hunterville.

They will need to be on-song to contain the rampant Knights, with Winter hoping to contain the speedy attackers and pull them into an honest country rugby game.

“We have to. If we let them run we’ll be no good.

“We’ve watched them, when we played Pirates they were on before us, watched their skill level.

“They’re a well-drilled team. We’ll have to make a game plan this week and go give it our all.”

Draw

May 17th, 1pm kickoffs unless noted (times subject to change):

Hunterville vs Utiku Old Boys, Hunterville Domain; Border vs Taihape, Dallison Park; Ruapehu vs Marist Knights, Rochfort Park; Counties vs Kaierau (Challenge Shield), 2pm; Pirates vs Marist Celtic, Spriggens Park, 2pm.
 

By Jared Smith