Marlborough Exchange and Kings Exchange

Our annual sports exchange with Marlborough Boys College was held at SBHS on 21st and 22nd May.

Rugby 1st XV: Win (24-17) vs (Marlborough Boys college) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: In Round 3, of the UC Championship and our annual exchange with Marlborough Boys the First XV knew they were going to be up against a big opposition and it  promised to be a big game. Marlborough came in to the game 2 wins from 2 and Shirley having lost two of the first games in the dying seconds of each. 

Shirley started strong and with a howling wind at our backs, we used it to our favour and pinned the corners forcing Marlborough back in to their half on every occasion possible. The first points came when halfback Mitchell Barry kicked a penalty 10 minutes in to put Shirley on the board 3-0. Marlborough soon hit back from a scrum when their Number 8 crashed over from 5m out. 5 minutes later Shirley had a penalty advantage on the 22 and a little box kick over the top from Mitchell Barry saw Connor Watherston-Spencer regather and score after beating three defenders with speed. That was also converted taking it out to 10-5 to Shirley. 

On the brink of halftime Connor Watherston-Spencer took a high ball around the 40m mark and was hit with no arms forcing a yellow card for the Marlborough player. Mitchell Barry added another 3 points. Shirley went in to the half ahead 13-5 and on a high. 

In the second half Shirley was facing a big head wind making it hard to exit out of their own half.  Five minutes in to the second half Shirley was awarded another penalty resulting in 3 points on the scorecard. Shirley were struggling to get out of their own half until Second Five Tasipale Valavala busted through a hole from set piece off a strike move and ran 30m before throwing it wide to James McCulloch who finished the try in the corner which was unconverted. This put the score out to 21-5.  Two minutes later fullback James McCulloch was hit in a high tackle forcing Mitchell Barry to go the tee again and adding another 3 points. After Shirley  being unable to exit out of their own half, Marlborough struck back which made it 24-10. Marlborough then kicked a penalty right in front of the sticks. Marlborough, hot on attack, scored again making it 24-17 heading in to the dying stages of the game where Shirley held on to the ball building phases and managed to hold on to get their first win of the UC championship 2018 season. 

For Shirley Tasipale Valavala was very strong in the midfield carrying hard and making big tackles. First Five Connor Watherston-Spencer in his first start was impressive until exiting the game on the brink of halftime due to an injury. The loose forward trio of Kiarn Wilson, Cody Broekhuizen and Kodi Haydon worked hard all day around the field especially turning over ball and making tackles. Vice-captain and hooker Shaun Berryman also worked hard all game.

Tries: Connor Watherston-Spencer, James McCulloch

Conversions: Mitchell Barry 1 conv, 4 penalties

Rugby U15: Win (74-5) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: The game against Marlborough was one where we had a fantastic first 15mins putting the game out of reach early. We stuck to our pattern and were rewarded with several first half tries due to the space we opened up. Our boys fought well and there were several notable performances from Pele Atonio, Tahlor Cahill, Ethan Faitaua and Uriah Tuli. MBC deserve credit, sticking through to the end for a much better second half. Their defence and attack improved resulting in a consolation try near the ending minutes. 

The boys that I had billeted with me where very respectful and well mannered, as I’m sure the other boys were too. I thoroughly enjoyed this exchange with Marlborough and look forward to hopefully playing the team again in the South Island Tournament. I am also thankful to both schools for organising this, their help is very much appreciated.

Rugby U14: Loss (0-61) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: The Under 14 A Rugby Squad took on a very sizable team from Marlborough Boys. The game started with SBHS hot on attack but a courageous defence from Marlborough restricted them from crossing the line. After that, Marlborough dominated play running slick back moves and using hard carrying forward runners. Shirley Boys' defence was at times weak which allowed Marlborough to make easy metres and cross their try line on a number of occasions. 

In the second half, poor discipline cost us and Marlborough pulled away, out-playing us in every facet of the game. The Marlborough team boosted an excellent set piece, which provided them a platform to launch from. Full credit to the Marlborough team who were definitely better on the day. Our boys showed at times a desire to attack but also good heart to keep on putting effort it. I am sure it was a well enjoyed day by all.

Rugby U16: Win (26-17) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: The team had a slow start to the game, conceding two early tries as Marlborough controlled play for large periods of the first half. After the second try, the team woke up and behind the leadership of Brodie Richards and Scott Shackleton the physicality of the forwards picked up and we started to spend time camped down at their end of the field. A decisive tackle by halfback Riley Dalziel caused a turnover inside Marlborough’s quarter and this series of play lead to Brodie Richards scoring a try at the end of the first half and going into the half-time break 10-7 down. We went into the second half with good deal of confidence and momentum, and the leadership of Richards and Shackleton in the physicality was carried on in the second half by Max Poufa, Louie Sweatmore and Reuben Bellamy. Two early tries in the second half meant that we had control of the scoreboard as well as the momentum heading into the last quarter of the game 19-10 ahead. Both teams brought great energy and respect to the game, with both teams dotting down an extra time in the last quarter to bring the game to the final score of 26-17. It was great to have the support of boys at school, in particular in the second half, which assisted the boys in gathering momentum and turning it into points in the second half

Football 1st Xl: Win (1-0) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at English Park

Match Summary: After a couple of tough defeats in League matches it was pleasing to see the 1st X1 Football team recover some confidence with a well-deserved 1-0 victory over Marlborough BC.

The match was played in good conditions at English Park and it was encouraged by the support of a large number of parents and spectators.

The team started really strongly and for the first 25 minutes played their best football of the year so far. We went 1-0 up in the 2nd minutes when some quick thinking from Captain Levi McNabb saw a long-range effort beat the MBC goalkeeper. Despite solid pressure for the rest of the half, Shirley failed to score again, despite dominating most facets of the game.

1-0 is always a dangerous scoreline as you are vulnerable to paying for one bad defensive lapse. MBC had two clear chances to score, but failed to take them and, in the end, we held on for a fully deserved win.

Unfortunately it came at a high cost, with Levi McNabb suffering a severe concussion with only a few minutes to go, when he was hit in the face by a powerfully struck pass.

This was a sound team performance where all contributed. Special mention must be made of the outstanding defensive pairing of Charlie Norris and Sam Stevenson; both of whom excelled on the day. Ben Magson, Jack Woolcott and Mark Zimmerman also produced fine performances. Hopefully this has set the team up for the next few weeks where we face matches critical in determining our national tournament placement.

Hockey: Win (3-2) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Nunweek Park

Match Summary: 10am, Tuesday 22 May at Nunweek Park saw the 1XI hockey teams from Shirley and Marlborough Boys playing each other in the annual winter sports exchange. Both these schools play at tier three hockey tournaments and therefore Shirley had targeted this match as a game that they could potentially win.

The game started at a frantic pace with both teams keen to score the first goal. Before the first two minutes were up on the clock, Joseph Collins scored first for Shirley. The match evened out for the remainder of the half with both teams attacking each other’s goals. Marlborough scored the equalising goal and both teams went into half time with the scores locked at 1-1.

The pace increased in the second half with both teams attacking each other goals for periods of time. Sam Sexton and Hamish Church scored for Shirley. Final score was a 3-2 win to Shirley. The boys were estatic with this result as it was their first win of the season.

Junior Football 1st Xl: Win (4-2) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at English Park

Match Summary: The match against Marlborough was the first game of the season for both teams.  The game started off very scrappy with Marlborough enjoying the better of the early exchanges. Slowly but surely Shirley began to assert some dominance, particularly in the middle of the park where Isaac Warren began to control the game, and eventually went ahead not long before half time (Isaac W the scorer). 

Several changes were made at half time and the risk is always that the flow of the game will be lost. This was not the case with Shirley coming out in the second half and quickly moving into a 3-0 lead (Patrick Reilly and Yuya Konishi getting their first of the season). A couple of minutes of madness ensued and Marlborough came back to 3-2. This was now a test of the boys mental toughness and they showed they have plenty of this with a calm response and a two goal lead was again established, (Bradley Pike sealing the game with a fine header from a corner). 4-2 was how it stayed. A solid start, especially for the boys new to the team this year. The overall performance by all was enough to give hope for a successful season.

Junior Basketball: Win (63-61) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: This was a great game against the Marlborough junior boys team. The billets were a pleasure to have. The game was a back and forth battle from both teams mostly being a tight scoring game having two points in between us throughout the game. Ryan Wood had a great performance, but Marlborough wouldn’t go down without a fight. 

Making the game go down to the wire with seconds remaining time was about to run out, Ryan had the ball went for a shot and he hits it, as time runs out everyone is astounded with what Ryan had achieved.  We had loved the matchup against Marlborough and we all appreciate the time and the distance they travelled. Thank you Marlborough!

Senior Basketball: Win (90 - 46) vs (Marlborough Boys College) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary: SBHS won 90 (Wiremu Waaka 16, Blake Cunninghame 16, Joel Jeffrey 12, Tyreice Tuliau 11, Jay Watkinson 11, Josh Thomson 10) to MBC 46

The Shirley Senior A Basketball team put together a solid team performance to get the win. The team played unselfish Basketball six players scoring in double figures. Wiremu Waaka and Blake Cunninghame led the team, both scoring 16 points. Wiremu worked hard around the key, finishing close to hoop and crashing the boards, while Blake lit up from outside splashing four 3 pointers in his tally. Also Year 11 Greg Rodger got his first dunk for the Senior A team in this game, sending the crowd and the team bench wild with their celebrations.

Our annual sports exchange with Kings High School from Dunedin, was held at SBHS on the 4th and 5th of June.

Rugby 1st XV: Loss (41-0) vs (Kings High School) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary:

The Kings exchange presented our 1st XV the opportunity to test out the depth of our squad against quality opposition with 16 players receiving their first 1st XV cap, a great experience.  Kings produced a well-rounded performance, making minimal mistakes and taking their opportunities smartly in wet, muddy conditions. Shirley produced periods of dominance throughout the game but was unable to capitalise, failing to produce any points as a result. The game was a good lesson  and opened their eyes to the level required to perform at 1st XV level on a weekly basis.  Despite the result of losing 41-0 there were many positives along with the obvious work-ons that need to take place going forward.

Rugby U14: Win (31-20) vs (Kings High School) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary:

The Kings team faced a motivated Shirley Boys High. Kings  started very strongly racing out to a healthy three try before SBHS was able to scalp one back before halftime. 

At half time Shirley brought on a strong bench that boasted many strong ball runners. We were able to break the line a few times and feed inside support players that carried strongly to the try line. The game was won in the last five minutes with a silky smooth backs' move which was finished by a winger in the corner. Our win can be accredited to our fast thinking counter rucks and our safe hands in the wet and trying conditions. A big thank you to parents who supported the boys.

Junior Basketball: Loss (57-72) vs (Kings High School) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary:

This was a great game to play against Kings. The billets were very good. It was great to see all the support of Shirley making us better as we were playing the game. Kings had some very good basketballers, one by the name of B. Freeman who led the team on the court and was a monster on both ends filling up the stat sheet with a whopping 38 points in the game, with that hitting five three pointers, followed closely by J. Davis who got an amazing 17 points for Kings side in the game. 

For Shirley, Ryan wood again having a great game with 20 points at the end also hitting two threes to go with it. Louis de Latour had a great game with 14 points and making some crucial shots. In the end it wasn’t enough.  We did put up a good performance but Kings were better on the day and they ran away with the win the final score was 57-72 in their favour.

Senior Basketball: Win (84 - 75) vs (King High School) at Shirley Boys High School

Match Summary:

We went into this game missing five players (including three starters) so it was always going to be a tough battle against Kings (who were also missing some of their top players). Shirley came out strong in the first quarter and made some easy baskets, while also making it hard for Kings to score. Shirley had a solid lead midway through the second quarter, but the momentum changed and Kings made a strong come-back to cut the lead to eight at half time, including a buzzer- beater at the end of the half.

At the start of the third, Kings again lifted their intensity and hit a barrage of long distance shots and took the lead. Mona Faitaua-Nanai used his strength and footwork under the hoop to allow the Shirley team to regain the lead, and push it out to double figures where it stayed for the rest of the game. Mona finished with a game high 28 points, while Greg Rodger (15) and Loyal Patelesio (10) helped with the scoring load. Some strong defence and rebounding from Tyreice Tuliau and Noah Westwood also contributed to the win.