Rugby: Semifinalists found in Taranaki premier club rugby

Photo by: Spinna Photography

Clifton will host defending champions Stratford-Eltham and Coastal will play New Plymouth Old Boys in Saturday’s semifinals of Taranaki premier club rugby.

The makeup of the top four was confirmed after the final round was played on Saturday.

Because of the tight race for positions three to five, Southern entered the final round in third place but missed out on a semifinal berth after their 24-19 loss to top seeds Clifton at Hicks Park.

The result meant Stratford-Eltham claimed fourth place, helped by their 31-22 win over Coastal at Okato Domain. Despite the loss, Coastal held onto second place and secured a home semifinal at Rahotu on Saturday.

New Plymouth Old Boys cemented their semifinal spot with a 48-17 win over Inglewood. While they finished level on competition points with Stratford-Eltham, they claimed third place on points differential.

Clifton finished the regular season unbeaten but had to work hard for the victory against Southern.

Played in gusty conditions, Southern raced to a 14-5 lead midway through the first half, using quick ruck ball to build momentum.

Clifton responded before halftime to reduce the deficit to 14-12.

Southern opened the second half with another try before Clifton levelled the scores at 19-19 with about 30 minutes remaining.

Clifton crossed again to take the lead and held off a late Southern fightback to secure the win.

There were plenty of momentum swings at Okato, but Stratford-Eltham's second-half performance proved the difference against Coastal.

Stratford-Eltham, at full strength, looked sharp and made the most of their pace out wide. Willem Ratu and Vereniki Tikoisolomone challenged the defence.

While Coastal had a dominant scrum, their lineout struggled in the strong cross-field wind.

The visitors scored five tries to four, with Coastal prop Owain Watts scoring twice.

A hat-trick to Old Boys fullback Jacob Hawkins helped secure third place.

Old Boys scored eight tries to three, with Jack Parker adding two for the winners.

Daniel McDonald scored twice for Inglewood in their final game of the season.

In the dead-rubber at Sanders Park, Tukapa finished their season with a 29-21 win over United.

Tukapa scored five tries to three.

Semifinalists were also confirmed in the other competitions.

Southern, Stratford-Eltham, Inglewood and Patea made up the top four in the women's competition.

Old Boys, Stratford-Eltham, United and Coastal qualified for the Division 1 semifinals.

In the colts grade, Old Boys, Coastal, Tukapa and Inglewood advanced to the playoffs.

Patea, Clifton, Toko and Kaitake finished in the top four in Division 2.

The winner of Saturday's Tukapa and Okaiawa match will play Kaponga for the Division 3 title.

Saturday’s men’s semifinals;

Clifton v Stratford-Eltham, Tikorangi, 2.45pm.

Coastal v Old Boys, Rahotu Domain, 2.45pm.

The final premier standings were: Clifton 53, Coastal 34, Old Boys 32, Stratford-Eltham 32, Southern 31, Tukapa 25, Inglewood 13 and United 9.