All set for Jubilee Cup and Hardham Cup semi-finals this weekend

Above: Running away with it. Can Wainuiomata make history tomorrow and play their way into their first Jubilee Cup final?

It's semi-finals day tomorrow. As well as the matches in both the Jubilee and Hardham Cups, there are also the semi-finals in the top Colts division, another round in the lower grades, and the resumption of college rugby. Conditions should be fantastic and ideal for expansive rugby.

Jubilee Cup

Hutt Old Boys Marist (1) v Oriental-Rongotai (4)

When the draw for the semi-finals was confirmed following last week's final round of matches, most people's minds probably flashed back to last year's match-up between these two sides at the same stage, the epic extra-time marathon won 30-27 by Ories.

The Hutt Rec should again be in magnificent condition, which will be something both teams will relish.

While HOBM booked their place two weeks ago, Ories are perhaps somewhat fortunate to be here. Despite doing what they needed to do and notch a bonus-point win over Petone, they would have missed out had Old Boys-University scored one more converted try and lost to MSP by 7 points or less.

Although both sides have, like every other club, experienced a turnover in personnel over the past 12 months, there is still a dizzying array of talent and notable and critical matchups all across the park. Although both cleared to play, Ories All Black duo of Ma'a Nonu and Julian Savea have both elected not to play ahead of the next stage of the international season.

Highlights will be in midfield, where the Eagles' Parataiso Silafai-Leaana and Opetera Peleseuma take on Ories' Trevor Marama and Paulo Aukuso, the former playing his blazer game (50^th) and the latter playing his 150^th game for the Magpies; and in the loose where Jason Risdon will have the task of battling Ardie Savea, who has been named to start and has been simply rampant in his club outings this year.

Other contests to look for will be between the respective first-fives, Glen Walters and James Proctor, across the back three where Tomasi Alosio and touted first-year youngsters Chase Tiatia and Fereti Soloa go against Matt Proctor, IRB 7s Rookie of the Year Ambrose Curtis and wrecking-ball Afa Fa'atau, up front between NZ U20 rep James O'Reilly and Hurricanes enforcer Motu Matu'u, and at lock where another first year player, Ories' Liam Hallam-Eames, will contest lineouts against HOBM's All Black Jeremy Thrush.

Although HOBM head into this game having lost 12-13 away to Wainuiomata last time out, they had run off six consecutive wins before that to wrap up the Andy Leslie Trophy with a week to spare. Before that though they had only finished sixth in the Swindale Shield with a six-win five-loss record, and their qualification wasn't secured until the final round. In nine home games this season (and due to maintenance work on the Hutt Rec their first wasn't until round 6 of the Swindale) they have won seven and lost two, scoring 268 and conceding 194, though most of that differential is from their 60-14 win over Wellington. Ories also won six matches in the Swindale, plus a draw on opening day with Wainuiomata and likewise weren't confirmed into the Jubilee until the final round of results. While they only won three matches in the Jubilee Cup, the five bonus points collected ultimately proved sufficient.

The two sides split their meetings in the ‘Battle of the Birds' this year. Ories were one of the sides to lower the Eagles colours at the Nest, winning 17-15. HOBM returned the favour on Magpies territory with their 32-17 win at the Polo Ground. Overall Ories have won 5 of the nine encounters between the two over the past four seasons. ????

Wainuiomata (2) v Marist St Pat's (3)

The other semi-final is between two sides last involved at this stage of the season in 2012, and with very different Jubilee Cup pedigrees. Marist St Pat's won their 14^th Jubilee Cup title that year while Wainuiomata have never won one, and in fact tomorrow is the first time ever that they will be hosting a semi-final.

MSP have already taken home one piece of silverware, the Swindale Shield, after defeating Tawa in what was a virtual final; and have posted a twelve win, five loss and one draw records across both competitions. Wainuiomata finished the Swindale in eighth place, but that was misleading since they qualified with a week to spare and opted to rest players for the final round match against OBU. Their record for the year stands at 10 wins, five losses, and three draws.

Wainuiomata's style of play has been based around their forward pack, with the big all- Va'a front row of David, Attila and Justin complementing the skills and talents of Shahn Eru, hard-working openside Greg Leolifi, lock Glen Angus, and current Best & Fairest leader Ben Tupuola. Out in the backline first-five John Monu, playing his 100th match for Wainuiomata, has provided steady direction, allowing the clutch of players outside him, ranging from veteran and former NRL player Marvin Karawana to youngster Josh Robertson-Weepu to flourish. Centre Teru Time has been particularly industrious during the Jubilee Cup.

MSP have been able to field a consistent backline group for most of the year, with returnees Fa'atonu Fili and Ryan Setefano complementing halfback and captain Peter Sciascia, midfielder Isiah Petelo and Andrew Wells at the back, while Hurricanes squad member Cardiff Vaega has been a handful with his size and speed. The forward group has been less settled, but openside Isaac O'Connor has been impressive weekly, and utility Valentine Meacham has given good service and usually tackles everything that moves. Vaega and O'Connor will be absent tomorrow due to unavailability and injury respectively, but the Scarlets have been able to add All Black Jeffrey Toomaga-Allen at tighthead, Tongan international Lua Lokotui at lock, and NZ U20 player Matt Peni at No.8.?? ?

The state of the venue, William Jones Park, has been subject to perhaps more debate this week than the two teams have. Aborted improvement works over last summer saw it cut up badly early on and only some urgent remedial efforts saw it remain in action. Despite the debate over its suitability, it will host the match tomorrow, and the hill next to the ground is sure to be packed with supporters from both sides.

Head-to-head, these two teams have already fought out a pair of gripping contests. The Swindale contest took place under lights on the Thursday before Easter at Porirua Park; with Eru the individual star bagging a hat-trick in an entertaining 30-all draw. The Jubilee match was at Evans Bay two weeks ago, with two late penalties from Fili seeing MSP prevail 16-13.

Nick Hogan will referee this match, while Richard Gordon will control the game at the Hutt Rec.

Hardham Cup

Northern United (1) v Avalon (4)

The sight of playoff rugby at Porirua Park is nothing new. Home side Norths have played 7 such matches there, winning five; and tomorrow is the 12^th successive year playing a semi-final. However for the second year in a row it will be in the Hardham Cup.

For the third successive year Norths won five Swindale Shield games, only to again find that that, and amassing seven bonus points, wasn't enough to finish higher than ninth and consigning them to being able to defend their Hardham crown.

Even then they stumbled out of the gate, being on the receiving end of one of the upsets of the season when beaten 24-25 by OBU's second side. Since then they have run off six successive wins, denying all opponents even a competition point, and were particularly ruthless against the other promoted Senior 1 sides, beating MSP B 60-0, Paremata-Plimmerton 43-14, and tomorrow's opponents Avalon 54-8.

While without the group of superstars of recent times, Norths has a mix of the local talent coming through and some veteran heads. The side is led by hardworking hooker/flanker Aiden Cains, complimented by young front-rowers Leni Apisai and Daley Ena, and former Wests lock Lance Mann. In the backs there is the considerable talent of Jackson Garden-Bachop, whose absence while on NZ U20 duty was significant, along with former Cook Islands 7s player Adam Vardey at halfback and Samoan U20 winger Aukuso Tuitama. Api Naikatini will also start tomorrow.

Avalon returns to this stage for the first time since 2010. Relegated at the end of 2011 from Premier at the expense of Rimutaka, the club has toiled away in the Senior 1 grade while Scott Waldrom has undertaken the massive task of rebuilding what was one of Wellington's strongest clubs.

This year's side handily won the Harper Lock Shield with 10 wins from their 11 outings. In the Hardham Cup they started by beating Swindale side Johnsonville, took wins against their fellow promoted sides, and aside from the heavy loss to Norths they were far from outclassed against Premier sides Wellington and Poneke before succumbing.

While the odds would appear to be against Avalon, in that 2010 Hardham Cup semi-final they pipped that year's top qualifier Wests in the semi before going down to Wainuiomata in the final. They will be hoping that lightning does strike twice, particularly backs Cameron Cross and Liddy Ah Wong who are the only survivors from that match. Much will depend on their ability to get parity at scrum, win lineout ball, and their backs taking the opportunities that arise with fullback Jordan Aquila a threat in particular.

Poneke (2) v Wellington (3)

The only Premier game on in Wellington city itself is at Kilbirnie Park between near neighbours and the unions two oldest existent clubs, Poneke (founded 1883), and Wellington (founded 1870).

Both sides endured somewhat dispiriting Swindale Shield campaigns. After returning to the Jubilee Cup in 2013, Poneke's two Swindale wins were the same number they managed in 2012 though they did go on to win the Hardham Cup 20-17 over OBU that year; while Wellington's first Premier campaign in over a decade saw them notch only a single win but were seldom comprehensively outplayed, and were last year's beaten finalists in this competition. The Hardham Cup has proved more fruitful with Poneke winning six and the Axemen five, each losing to Norths while Poneke won the matchup between the two by 21-6 at Hataitai. It was far closer when the sides met at Kilbirnie during the Swindale Shield, with Poneke scoring two late tries to narrowly prevail 21-20.

Poneke's strength is up front, in keeping with their long-established style of play, and in particular their loose forward group of captain Galu Taufale, Roy McGrath and Nathan Iro. Hurricane Reg Goodes came back into the fold last week, while Wellington Academy hooker Conor Maddix-Wikaera also returned from the bench after a lengthy injury lay-off. NZ U20s player and fullback Tauasosi Tuimavavae and first-five Pakai Turia are the future of the Poneke backline, which for now relies more on speed and hustle than it does on physicality.

Wellington recruited from far and wide ahead of the season, but their core remains with three players who were with the side when it started its resurrection from Senior 2 in 2012; hooker and captain Tala Kitekeiaho, first-five Hilton Mexted and lock/flanker Vaea Fifita, a freakish athletic talent who still stands fourth in the season-long Best & Fairest standings despite points not being awarded in Hardham Cup matches. Dean Brunsdon heads the loose forward unit while the backline has bulk in Numi Mika and speed in flyer Tony Smith. ??

Chris Graham will be in charge at Kilbirnie Park; while at Porirua Park Scott Kennedy will be in the middle.

All Jubilee and Hardham Cup semi-finals kick off at the slightly early time of 2.30 pm to allow for the possibility of extra-time. Should extra-time be required it comprises two periods of 10 minutes, and if still tied the winner will be determined firstly by which team scored the most tries in the match, and if equal the side that won the most recent round-robin match between the two sides.

Colts Division 1 John E Kelly Cup

In one semi-final Hutt Old Boys Marist (2) hosts Norths (3) on the Hutt Rec No.1 ground at 12.30 pm ahead of the Jubilee Cup match. The Eagles started the year slowly, finishing sixth in the first round and winning only two games, but after losing to OBU Green in the first game of this competition have rattled off six straight wins, including 17-6 over tomorrows opposition when they met only last week. Norths have perhaps been more consistent, dropping only four games all year, and won the first round meeting between the two sides 23-17 at Porirua Park back in early May.

The other semi-final is at the Basin Reserve at 2.30 pm, where the Old Boys-University Green side continues their quest for three titles in a row, against Petone. The Goats are the owners of Wellington rugby's longest current win streak at 34 matches going back to 2012, and their 312 points scored in the seven games of this round are 140 more than the next side. Petone booked their place in this game in an 8-3 arm wrestle over Wellington last week, and while they will need to vastly improve on the 0-48 and 17-45 losses to their opponents this year, they will take heart from the fact that OBU only just squeaked past bottom-side MSP 23-21 last weekend.

Up-and-coming referees Jordan Price and Aaron Conlon will have the whistle at the Hutt Rec and Basin respectively. The extra-time rules described above also apply to these games.

Other grades

Following last week's Senior 1 Ed Chaney Cup results, only 5 of the 10 sides can now make the semi-finals. Out front leaders Poneke have secured a place in those semi-finals, and can guarantee home advantage with a single competition point in their match against third-placed Tawa at Lyndhurst, while a win will ensure that they will also be at home for the final should they progress that far.

Two other top-five sides, Upper Hutt (5^th) and Petone (2^nd), meet at Maidstone Park in another match with a large bearing on who will make the semi-finals, while HOBM (4^th) is at home against Norths and can take a large step towards securing a last four place with a win. The other matches have Ories at home against Wellington, and Wests host Wainuiomata at the Cage.

In the Senior 2 HD Morgan Cup the Hutt Rec will be the setting for the clash between top two sides HOBM and Avalon. HOBM have secured a home semi already, and can wrap-up home field for the final as well with a win ahead of having the bye next week. Avalon can advance their case for both as well with a win, but could find themselves as low as fourth if they lose. In the other matches Stokes Valley must win when they host OBU at Delaney Park, while Petone can claim a semi-final place at minimum if they beat already-eliminated Johnsonville at home on the Petone Rec. The fourth match is between bottom sides the Upper Hutt Rams and MSP at Maidstone.

College rugby returns after the school holiday break. Earlier this week Silverstream beat St Pats Town 20-18 in the annual traditional, a result that guaranteed them top spot after the round-robin ahead of Scots College. Both Silverstream and Scots have the weekend off under the finals format, with two quarter-final matches being played to determine their opponents for next weekend. In those matches St Pats Town take on St Bernard's at Evans Bay, and Wellington College hosts Hutt International on the College No.1 ground; while Naenae visits Rongotai in a match for the plate tier of the competition. All three games kickoff at 2.30 pm.

In the penultimate round of the Premier 2 grade leaders Wairarapa are at home against Hutt Valley HS and can wrap up top spot with a week to spare. Third-placed Porirua hosts the Silverstream 2nds, who sit fourth; Kapiti play Upper Hutt up the coast, and Aotea plays the Wellington College 2nds, in all 1.00 pm kickoffs. The sole 2.30 pm kickoff is at Tawa College between the home school, who sit second, and Paraparaumu.

The round of matches in the Under 85kg Paul Potiki Shield is highlighted by the clash of the lightweight grades heavy hitters - the MSP Blues and Tawa Titans - on Titans turf at Redwood Park at 1.15pm. Tawa had the bye last week, while MSP won an arm-wrestle 15-0 over Waikanae. MSP won their earlier matchup and with it the first round JC Bowl 27-10, though Tawa won the match between the two at the same stage last year. In the other matches the OBU Spartans and Upper Hutt Rams meet at Te Whaea at 1.00 pm, while at 3pm Waikanae visits Eastbourne at HW Shortt and Poneke hosts the OBU Bunnies at Kilbirnie.

In the Women's Victoria Tavern Trophy the sixth round of matches sees leaders Norths travel to take on Wainuiomata in a top-three matchup, Oriental-Rongotai are at home against minnows Tawa, Poneke hosts Stokes Valley at Kilbirnie Park, and OBU visits Avalon at Fraser Park with semi-final aspirations for both at stake. All matches kickoff at 11.30 am.