In November of 2017 after a successful tour of South Africa, Cliff Jones and Paul Kearney, two parents met with our hugely supportive Principal of Tauhara College Mr Keith Buntting and Head of Rugby Deputy Principal Iain Mutch, and applied for the positions of Coaches of the 1st XV.

A strategy of helping our good young men become role models and even better people was planned, the aim was to have a team of young men that were feared on the pitch but revered in the school.

Three managers volunteered - Peter Nash , Emma Roberts and Sponsor Laura Kelly.

Training began in January with some hardcore base fitness work and was always followed by a sausage and a swim.  The boys started to bond.

A week long preseason training camp to Wellington and kindly being able to stay at New Zealand’s oldest club, the Wellington Football Club, where Premier Coach Richard Deck, Spud Preston and Charlie Fuller trained the boys for three days.

Tauhara old boy Hurricane, ex All Black Dion Waller and ex All Black John Schwalger put the boys through their paces in the forwards, and they played a regarded First Division side Tawa College in a brutal first up game.

Losing controversially by two points, the team knew that they could face good sides and lift their performance for the future.

The season started well and outstanding games placed the Tauhara 1st XV at the Top of the Second Division and they went through to the Finals losing only one game to a spirited Opotiki side.

Their semi-final was against the highly respected Tauranga Boys College, a tough game saw Tauhara win convincingly by 42 to 3.

The final was against a top adversary KatiKati College played at the Rotorua International Stadium and it commenced with rousing Hakas by both teams.

The game started well with a fantastic half field try to fullback Jesse Caulton within the first two minutes, but from then on KatiKati lifted their efforts markedly hitting back with two quick tries.

Then a well-practiced move saw top performing winger Patrick Anderson score right in the corner.

So the half time whistle had the teams locked together at 12 points all, encouragement and belief followed the boys into the second half where the tempo of the game increased yet again.

The Tauhara 1st XV knew they were going to have to dig deeper than they had ever had to.

Replacement dynamo D'Artagnan Barrett scored early bustling across and our new Captain Steele Spence who had an incredible game converted the try.

It looked like Tauhara was back but Katikati fed off two unforced errors by Tauhara to score two quick tries both converted.

So with a 24 points to 17 lead to Katikati and with only ten minutes to go, the Tauhara 1st XV bent their backs and gave it everything.

Centre Santos Raj was put into a fantastic gap by Legacy Katene and scorched in to score wide out, the score now 24 points to 22 to KatiKati.

Wave after wave of attacks by Tauhara with 5 minutes to go were repelled by Katikati.

Two vital and massively powerful consecutive tightheads won by our front five of Huia Foua , DD Barrett, Anthony Renata, Monty Nash and Riley Roberts won us quick ball right on the KatiKati line.

Two minutes to go and KatiKati tried a short kickoff , the Tauhara forward pack were giving nothing away and ground them down all the way to their try line where it appeared No 6 Tayhn Walden had scored.

An unsighted referee had no option but to call it held up and the final whistle blew sealing an historic first Final for Tauhara College and promotion to the first Division for 2019.

The coaches and managers quickly realising that every member of this squad had given their all.

And as a result, produced a feat never before achieved.

The teams fantastic new jerseys were Sponsored by Le Pine & Co Barristers, the years food and Trips away by The Mole & Chicken Bar and Restaurant , Gables Motel and PKV Treeworks and a fantastic support group of parents.

Our aim was to build better young men and as a by-product build a great Rugby side and to cap it off we had the best points for and against record in ten years in the Bay of Plenty (568 for …..63 against).

This has not been at all easy, but nothing worth anything ever is and the results have made our small College very proud to be the top performing Taupo College Rugby side in 2018.

Kia Kaha Tauhara!