Aupiki: Semi Final Preview

A repeat of round one to see how far we've come

In Karen Carpenters voice please sing the following:

We’ve only just begun to play!
White lines and promises,
a couple bucks of meagre pay.

Okay, so we’ve come all this way to end up back at the beginning. The semi finals replicating the match ups of round one with Matatū playing the Blues and then Manawa facing Poua. We all know this is a bit of a joke. It’s the one Ayesha Leti I’iga made to me after the first round “Do you think we’ll make the semis?”.

We all know this and yet none of us know if there is any plan to fix it. I am so disheartened by the response coming out of NZR in relation to plans for extension next season. The head of Aussie Rugby, Andy Marinos, has made plain their intentions. He stated when asked about a merger between SuperW and Aupiki that it would happen “At worst case, next year.”. Mark Robinson meanwhile is has been his usual non-committal self, offering much more exploratory rhetoric. Robinson doesn’t seem to get that he no longer has the luxury of time. People will make the decision for him and continue to jump ship if he doesn’t turn his around sharpish.

It makes me furious that the NZR, who are responsible for all rugby, talk out of different sides of their mouth when it comes to the men’s and women’s game. That Dame Patsy Reddy can be wheeled out to talk about the need for early coaching appointments for the post World Cup All Black coach least they risk “turmoil” and yet there is no such concern for confirming the full Black Ferns coaching set up today, over four month post our World Cup.

They clearly understand the need for certainty within the men’s game but will happily operate on a TBC basis for us. Honestly, I find myself asking, not for the first time, do we need to take our game off them?

Big sigh.

I write all of this and yet have booked my flights to the semis this weekend and finals next. So let’s look at these games.

Matatū v Blues

When these two faced each other down in Dunedin, it felt like the clock beat the Blues more than Matatū did. The pattern they established that day has remained in place for the rest of the season, the Blues outscoring their opposition in every second half so far. They just need to sort their start out and maybe they’ll be away.

Matatū also have struggled with a full 80 performance but have the opposite problem. They have scored first in every game they have played but have then let their opposition work their way back in. Every single match has been a dog fight for the Matatū.

Matatū look their best when they are letting their backline loose on a counter attack, are chasing a kick up the field and putting a lot of pressure on the rucks. You love to see it in a region which is more… let’s say traditional in their rugby style. They made nearly four times as many tackles (it was 168 to 45) as the Manawa last week and still had the ticker to mount a comeback in the last ten minutes. That’s what makes this team dangerous. That’s what makes this team exciting.

The Blues have gotten better every week. It stands to reason as their style of play is to run everything. This is a high stakes option that relies on accuracy of execution which improves with game time. The form of the World Cup Black Ferns in their squad has continued and been met with the of standout performances of Patricia Maliepo, Tafito Lafaele and Maama Vaipulu.

And then there is Jaymie Kolose. If there was ever a player to catapult herself forward with an Aupiki performance it must be her. Currently first equal for number of defenders beaten and one try off the top try scorer spot, she has been making it rain for the Blues. Kolose has been bringing it since pre-season where we were checking our notes to figure out just where this kid had come from. Her performance for Counties Manukau last season perhaps overshadowed by the other winger on her team. You might have heard of her? Ruby Tui?

A storyline this short season is short changing us on is that of the number 9 jersey for the Blues. Melanie Puckett was pushed out of her starting spot by the transfer of Ariana Bayler but Puckett’s insertion into the games from the bench is perhaps part of the reason they are a second half team. Puckett’s been given bigger and bigger shifts each week and had the season rolled on, she may just have been given the start. There is a chemistry between Puckett and Ruahei Demant that is undeniable.

This game will be a final before the final and whoever makes it through will be thankful to the other side for getting them ready for what is to come.

Kick off: 3.15pm, Sunday 19 March at North Harbour Stadium or free to air on Prime

Manawa vs Poua

On the limited pre-season and team lists, I had predicted this as our final but I have been let down by my home team. Last week against the Blues hurt in a way that makes my job difficult when I have to try and write about things without bias.

Manawa are the Goliath of this competition and ugh, can they stop being great? They are though, up front, in the loose, out wide, up the guts - they are all the things, they are the complete package.

It’s hard to point to a singular performance within their squad because it has been so complete. What I love to see though as a long term fan, a friend and former teammate is Georgia Daals shining. There is so much talent I have played with here in Wellington that has covered for the mismanagement of the women’s game by our union. To see her finally get her break and just smash it, oh I’m so proud.

Poua, oh my Poua. We saw their potential in their first twenty minutes against the Manawa, their heart in their win against Matatū and their undoing in the match against the Blues.

Their fitness is still off the mark compared to other. Perhaps not suspiring given they have the fewest current Black Ferns in their squad. Because of this, if they have had a player sent to the bin, it kills them. So they will need to keep all their players on the pitch so they don’t have to run for anyone else.

The last time they played Manawa, their scrums were a disaster. They have been putting in the work and are improving. This is thanks in large part to the development of the young prop, Cilia-Marie Po’e-Tofaeono, at tighthead. She had never played there before but is making it her own. A huge ask of a newbie so full credit must be given.

It’d be the upset bigger than Joanah Ngan-Woo’s hand in the World Cup final for the Poua to beat Manawa. It’s a Hurricanes side though, so anything could happen.

Kick off: 6.05pm, Sunday 19 March at North Harbour Stadium or free to air on Prime

With you,

Alice