Green Island's loss to rivals Taieri last week has put a major dent in their hopes of a semifinal spot. PHOTO: CHRISTINE O'CONNOR
The wrap and the four
Varsity put 80 around Zingers in a rout. It is hitting top form and slides effortlessly into third. Taieri won the Battle of the Saddle to go joint-top with Harbour over GI. This leaves GI two points out of the four and sucking oxygen to stay alive. Harbour got it done over AU but did not get a bonus point. Kaik was given a scare by Dunedin but got home later under a wet sail to grab five points and rocket into fourth.
So where to from here? Well, Harbour has Kaik, Taieri and the bye to go. Taieri has the bye, Harbour and Varsity to go. Varsity has Southern, Kaik and Taieri to go. Kaik has Harbour, Varsity and Zingers to go. GI has AU, the bye and Dunedin to go. So where does that leave us? I see Varsity winning all three of its games and finishing top. Harbour and Taieri need to win a game to be safe. Kaik needs to win two of three to make it. GI needs two wins and bonus points to make it. I have Varsity, Kaik, Harbour and Taieri making it with GI just missing but it could easily change. Bottom line - it is a great last three weeks. Strap in!
Down on the farm
The Central comp looks done and dusted with the usual suspects of Upper Clutha, Cromwell, Wakatipu and Arrowtown confirmed as the top four. It should be the same final as last year with Upper Clutha at home to Cromwell. Cromwell has the Horse and should be able to etch its name on it and bank it for the summer. Arrow is the only team which can stop that. In the South, the top four is all wrapped up and will be Clutha, Crescent, Heriot and the mighty Owaka. Can Owaka go all the way? Sadly, possibly not. The final though is still too close to call. In the North, the top four is decided in Valley, Excelsior, Old Boys and Maheno. It should be a Valley v Excelsior final. Should we be calling them Excelsior-Athies as apparently quite a few jumped ship at the start of the year. All three town teams are within 200m of each other so jumping ship is not that difficult. The bottom line is the bells are tolling for one or two town clubs!
Other grades
I'm having a look at the other grades and I'm getting a headache. In the prem 2s, Varsity is in but five sides are looking for three spots - Eastern, Taieri, Dunedin, GI and West Taieri. Good luck trying to sort that out. Looks like the top four prem colts teams are Kaik, Dunedin, Taieri and Harbour. Kaik is the logical winner as it is unbeaten. In junior colts, Kaik sits first and second with GI and Dunedin third and fourth so Kaik looks an obvious winner. In women's, it's Pirates and Varsity and we didn't need a comp to determine that. What is obvious is that Kaik will win the prestigious Ainge trophy in a canter with daylight second.
Stranger than fiction
Zingers is going through a rough patch with its prems and prem 2s conceding 190 points to Varsity at the weekend without scoring a solitary point themselves. So, answer me this. Why is Otago's latest recruit, Louis Conradie, at well over 2m tall and 120kg-plus of prime Boer beef playing for Taieri? He came on in the second spell for Eels against the Spannerheads and had an affect on the outcome. If we are to have these guys coming in late in the season put them where they will help - in this case, Zingari. It's about having some feel for the comps and not dramatically affecting the outcomes of said comps. ORFU, you need to lift your game.
Finals weekend
Lock July 27 in your calendar now. We have the finals of prems, prem 2s, prem colts and junior colts all at the Greenhouse that day. It promises to be grassroots rugby at its best and we are looking for a crowd of 5-6000. Don't miss it! More soon.
This weekend
Got destroyed by Hamish Harvey from RD Petroleum last weekend so on to Rowena Davenport, the head honcho at Otago Rugby this weekend so surely ...
The Hawks (12-) are at home in Cockabilly County and may just get it done over Kaik but nearly too close to call. Varsity (13+) will be too strong for the Magpies as it shoots to the top of the comp. Surely Dunedin (13+) can finally get a W against a beleaguered Zingers outfit at Bastion Point. GI (13+) has no option but to win with a bonus point as it travels to the Pony Pit to take on AU.
The late mail
There may be no column next week as I'm under the knife but if there is I'll be asking the question ``How did Waitaki Boys lose to Combined Coeds in the ODT first XV comp and why did the players behave like spoiled brats to boot?''