Canterbury take out ITM Cup Title
3rd September 2011 11:53PM
In a tight contest Waikato were unable to come out victorious falling to defending champions Canterbury 12-3 in the ITM Cup Final at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton tonight.
Waikato were looking to send players Stephen Donald, Sitiveni Sivivatu and captain Nathan White out with a fairytale win.
Although Canterbury's finals experience proved too much for the Mooloo men as the Cantabs secured their fourth consecutive title.
The early stages saw the Mooloo men almost go ahead when prop Toby Smith went on a blistering run to set up Donald with defence stopping that movement.
Moments later, Donald kicked the first points of the night after he received a high shot by Canterbury's Wyatt Crockett to give Waikato a 3-0 lead.
Canterbury first-five Tyler Bleyendaal had a chance to level the scores only to miss at the delight of the vocal Waikato crowd.
Replacement Tom Taylor who came on for Bleyendaal was able to kick the penalty to make it 3 a piece after 25 minutes of play.
Both sides appeared to be in an arm wrestle, with each team testing each others defence. Canterbury went ahead through another Taylor penalty as they appeared to have the advantage in possession and territory.
Taylor's third penalty gave the men from Canterbury a 9-3 advantage heading into halftime as they withstood a Mooloo attack right before the siren sounded.
The early stages of the second half were reminiscent of the first as Canterbury looked to have the upper hand with the Mooloo men fighting hard.
Waikato's best chance came early on as winger Henry Speight found himself in some open space only to get a cruel bounce when he chipped ahead as the ball went into touch.
With a quarter of the game remaining both sides appeared to be feeling the heat as Romana Graham and Canterbury's Sean Maitland found themselves in a dust up.
Speight came close again as he was held up over the line by the Canterbury defence.
But the telling moment came in the 74th minute when Waikato were penalised for an infringement at the breakdown by referee Garrett Williamson.
Taylor stepped up to nail the penalty and stretch their lead to 12-3 and almost certainly seal the win for Canterbury.
From there, the defending champions closed out the match as the fulltime siren sounded. Canterbury emerged the victors as they wrapped up their fourth consecutive title with a 12-3 win.
Overall it was a great season by the Mooloo's and they were unfortunate not to finish with the desired result but deserved to be praised on their efforts throughout the season with the focus now turning to the 2012 season.
In their final appearance in Waikato colours we acknowledge players Nathan White, Stephen Donald and Sitiveni Sivivatu as they head overseas and we wish them and their families the very best for the future.
Score Summary
Waikato: 3 (Donald Pen)
Canterbury: 12 (Taylor 4 Pen)
Halftime: 9-3 Canterbury
The Waikato Team that played in the 2011 ITM Cup Final against Canterbury were:
1 Toby Smith
2 Marcel Cummings-Toone
3 Nathan White
4 Toby Lynn
5 Romana Graham
6 Liam Messam
7 Marty Holah
8 Alex Bradley
9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow
10 Stephen Donald
11 Tim Mikkelson
12 Sam Christie
13 Jackson Willison
14 Henry Speight
15 Trent Renata
Reserves
16 Vance Elliott on for Cummings-Toone in the 75th min
17 Ben May on for White in the 65th min
18 Matt Vant Leven on for Graham in the 75th min
19 Zak Hohneck on for Holah in the 68th min
20 Brendon Leonard on for Kerr-Barlow in the 52nd min
21 Sitiveni Sivivatu on for Mikkelson in the 41st min
22 Declan O'Donnell on for Christie in 75th min
23 Ted Tauroa on for Smith in the 77th min
