Finals footy, eh! You could be forgiven for thinking tomorrow’s final between Southern and Dunedin at Bathgate Park is the playoff for third and fourth.
Kaikorai and Taieri were the two best teams in the grade this year but could not get through the semifinals.
• The pro-rata points for the first round bye was, well, nuts. Appreciate it is difficult to make it all compute when you have an odd number of teams playing a round and a-half. And it was better than a previous incarnation when the first half round did not count towards the final standings. That turned out to be a an extended preseason gallop. But the pro-rata system adds a layer of fog to the competition standings we can all do without.
• Thrilled to see Southern captain Harry Taylor and Dunedin prop Rohan Wingham named in the Otago side to play Southland in a warm-up game today. Taylor has been among the best players in the premier grade this season. But you have to wonder whether 40 minutes in a preseason game for Otago is worth missing the club final tomorrow.
• Every year there are grumbles about the quality of the premier grade on the sidelines. ‘‘It’s not what it used to be’’ they say. Maybe this time they are right. The players who are coming through are getting younger and younger. More than ever, players are skipping the colts grade to play in the premier grade. The fact that some of them are actually good enough points to a decline in standards.
• Everybody who steps on to the field accepts a certain amount of risk. But no-one expects to be targeted by a cheap shot as happened in the premier development game this season. The decision to ban Southern midfielder Setu Junior Tupu for three years for kneeing an opponent in the side should be applauded. It sent the right message. Well done.
*Chris Bell is not actually 105.
