Onehunga High School’s First XV is back in the top tier for 2016. Winning the 1b Championship last year gave OHS the right to play off against Tangaroa College for a spot in the 2016 1a Championship; widely regarded as the toughest high school competition in the world.
Beating Tangaroa 17-6 on April 30th gave Onehunga that coveted spot in the championship.
The game itself was a tight affair, with the pressure of the occasion leading to both sides making plenty of errors. Tangaroa took an early lead through a penalty, but it was Onehunga that led 6-3 at half time.
The crucial moment of the match came two minutes into the second half when winger Trevor Marurai won the race to a kick into the corner of the Tangaroa in-goal. Another penalty closed the gap back to 11-6, but shortly after Marurai (who scored all of OHS’ points) stepped up again to kick a penalty from half-way. The ball did just enough to restore Onehunga’s eight-point lead, grazing the crossbar as it passed.
From then OHS’ superior fitness started to show; almost all of the last 15 minutes of the game were played in the Tangaroa half. A penalty on fulltime sealed the result and Onehunga’s return to the 1a Championship.
