The long and short of Taranaki's Shield tenures

 

 

Will Johnston

 Taranaki’s recent Ranfurly Shield tenure was the shortest in the union’s history.

The seventh win of the coveted trophy came to an end after Otago’s use of the wind propelled it to a 30-19 win at Inglewood’s TET Stadium.

The amber and blacks only had the Shield for eight days, the third shortest tenure in the Shield’s history. For the second week in-a-row, it changed hands for the first time since 2013.

Sports News Taranaki looks at Taranaki’s Ranfurly Shield eras.

Taranaki first won the Ranfurly Shield in August 1913, after a 14-11 win against Auckland at Alexandra Park.

It then had six successful defences against Wanganui, Manawatu, Horowhenua/Kapiti, Wairarapa, Canterbury and Southland before losing it to Wellington 12-6 at Victoria Park in Stratford. Taranaki had a chance to return the favour in 1919 against Wellington but lost 10-18.

The second reign came in 1957 when Taranaki beat Otago 11-9 with nine defences following in 1958, which became known as the ‘Fabulous Winter’.  That tenure ended when Southland came to Taranaki in 1959 and took the Shield south after a 23-6 win.

Another two-year tenure was repeated in 1963 when Taranaki beat Wellington 17-3. The Shield was almost lost to Wanganui in the first defence, but a last-minute try to Kerry Hurley saved the day. There were 15 challenges in this reign, including two draws before Taranaki eventually lost the Shield to Auckland in 1965, 11-16.

It was a long time between drinks for Taranaki, as it waited another 31 years to win it again.  In what was one of the greatest Ranfurly Shield upsets, Taranaki beat Auckland, against all odds, 42-39 in 1996. The match was highlighted by Dean Magon’s hat-trick of tries, a feat never achieved before, by a player in a challenging team. The win carved Taranaki’s name on the Shield for the fourth time. After staving off a strong North Harbour challenge, Waikato proved too strong for Taranaki and had a comfortable win to end Taranaki’s reign after the “fabulous fortnight’ as it almost inevitably became known.

It was 2011 before the Shield was to return when a young Beauden Barrett kicked Taranaki to victory over Southland 15-12 in Invercargill in 2011. He slotted five from seven penalties in a match that featured no tries but evoked memories of other classic Shield derbies.

The fifth tenure featured seven successful defences before Waikato won in 2012. The following year, Counties Manukau beat Taranaki in a dominate display, which could have seen the Shield head back south.

Again, Taranaki had a shot at Shield glory in 2016 against Waikato but had to settle for a 20-all draw.

Then came another famous chapter in the history of the Ranfurly Shield in 2017. Taranaki recorded the biggest comeback in the trophy’s history, Taranaki beat Canterbury 55-43 after trailing 31-7 at one stage This was the sixth Shield win and one of the most famous.

Again, Waikato took the Shield off Taranaki after three defences in 2018, the start of a difficult period for the union.

Against Otago in Dunedin last year, Taranaki lost 27-35 in a Shield challenge.

Fast forward to 2020. Taranaki beat Canterbury in the second round of the Mitre 10 Cup 23-22 to start its seventh reign. That was short-lived when Otago came to play at the weekend.

Otago’s first challenge will be against Hawke's Bay on Sunday. Hawke's Bay will fancy its chances of repeating history after taking the Shield off Otago in 2013 after just one week.

The beauty about the Ranfurly Shield is that Taranaki will have a crack at it again. And who knows, the wind might be on our side next time!