THE HOME PAGE OF THE MIGHTY OBU COLTS!
Saturday July 19 OBU Green vs. Para-Plim: The build up to this encounter was special. Monday night saw the coming-together (not like that) of a group of men capable of tackling anything.
Thanks to the sponsorship of the coaching staff, an insatiable amount of brown bottles were digested and undigested (did someone say Graham?) in a time that Carl Lewis would never dream of running. The contribution of all involved resulted in boys in their underpants covered in beer, an eviction notice, four disgruntled flatmates of two of OBU's finest (who will remain nameless) and beer bottles smashed into the carpet. Let's not mention Tony Veitch's brief appearance.
A special message from all those who once resided at 23 Vivian Street:
"Thanks for coming round, and don't worry about the mess. We love OBU so much that we we'd lick the froth from your handles....even while we sleep under the stars in the dead of winter." All in all, this experience brought team bonding to a new level. With no regrets and only minor legal action.
When it got down to business the team trained hard and provided Kamate with enough lube in his machinery to get the cogs rotating and fire the lads up one more time. It was noted that the 17 man turn out at training was the best effort seen in donkey's years; this capacity to turn the caps on when it counts epitomises the determination of the "Green Machine" to make it one week further and go the whole nine yards.
News came on Friday evening. The court session was to be postponed to the following week and the 'White' team were gameless due to field preservation. This meant that for the first time all season 22 men would take the field and a big 'chur brother' goes out to all those who made the effort and helped out when it was needed the most.
Once again Mother Nature decided not to help out and provided filthy conditions at Ngati Toa Park. One could sense a hint of de ja vu as the boys once again prepared to roll around in the mud like Lakey in gravy.
Warming up took 55 minutes thanks to Budgie's insistence that when he played senior rugby the warm-up was more important than the match itself. The boys took a lot out of the recurring passing drill and at the end of the day this may have been the deciding factor (but probably not).
First Half : 5 - 0
The first half was largely played in the Para-Plim half yet OBU were only credited a single try to Seal. The conditions again made it impossible for any magic to unfold in the backline, however, the hands of Tom 'The Prodigal Son' Johnson and everybody's favourite bachelor Simon 'Sanchez' George proved that impossible is nothing as counterattacks were played from all corners of the boggy field.
Jake 'Mooloo' Bezzant in the midfield played well apart from forgetting that you have to place the ball over the try-line to get the five pointer. What a rookie. The forwards in the first half were very physical and took to Para-Plim as though it was Parihaka all over again.
Travis 'Lakey' Graham had a bit of toe-to-ball action in an attempt to match Sparta's level of intelligence from the previous week... again nothing eventuated from such initiative but thanks for making us laugh!
Second Half : 17 - 0
The second half was very similar in that OBU dominated up front and had Para-Plim defending their line for the majority of the time.
Jamie 'Ewok' Bremnar showed off with a little twist, turn and churn over into the end-zone and it seemed that it would be very difficult for Para-Plim to come back. Then Rob 'Seal' Collins glided his way over the line for his second try of the day after some magnificent support play in the backline. Jack continued to break the line and mentioned after the match that his hard-work on the field was dedicated to his mentor Ben Koloto. BK had nothing to say on the matter, as is his way on most matters, apart from that he was very proud of his 'home-boy'.
Razor Cunningham tried to fill the boots of Big Jamie Barrett. He tried and you know its really great that he was prepared to try. Once again Blaine 'Boulder' Abraham was ruthless in his attacking and defensive game - if ever there was kid who ate his crusts as a young fella it's the Boulder! Its all about the tighties with this author, so I'd also like to note Sparta and Lumpy for managing to fold the opposite front row over time and time again as they continued to deliver the OBU goodness.....feel the quality, baby, you know you love it.
Kamate's word after the match : "Really proud of the boys once again, played out of their skin and did everything right in the conditions that were on offer."
Players of the match :
Forwards: Blaine 'Boulder' Abraham
Backs: Rob 'Seal' Collins
Tries to: Jamie 'Ewok' Bremnar, Seal
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12/07/08 - OBU Green vs. Johnsonville (by Jamie Barrett, lock/ tighthead prop/all around good guy)
Saturday saw the post holiday reunion of a team who are prepared to fight for the glory of the green and white jumper. Needless to say, we proved ourselves worthy of playing under the same colours as comrades - in no particular order - such as Dave Loveridge, Ben Koloto and Conrad Smith as the 'green machine'.
There was an immediate bond as each man and his dog eyed up a performance that would build on the recent demolition of the 'South Sydney' Wests Roosters. The foundation of the season to come was laid in that game and it was heart-warming to see the boys eager to go from strength to strength as the prospect of a rare semi-final becomes closer every week. The pre-match saw treacherous conditions disable the usual 55 minute passing drill warm-up, leaving us fearing that a 25 minute warm-up simply would not be enough to get the remaining red-bull and vodka in the system seeping out of the pores.
40 Minutes : OBU 8 Johnsonville 0
The game proved to be a very up-front battle with a lot of the 'ball-in-hand' action resulting in 'ball-on-ground' action. 'Sparta' Cunningham (the slightly 'bigger boned' twin) led the charge as captain with a tight five who, lets just say, could walk into the Manawatu Turbos. The forwards worked hard to maintain composure and keep a cool head on their shoulders and this proved to be the deciding factor in the game. That, and also the demonstrable gaps in education bewteen both teams - let's not go there.
The game started off with a hiss and roar that witnessed the first forty minutes being played in the Johnsonville half, OBU capatalising on this territory as they dotted down for an unconverted try and a penalty. This decisive try was down to the wet weather ability of the underrated 'Sheep' Edwards; as any farmer knows when his wool gets wet that lanolin makes him hard to hold.
The seemingly overweight Johnsonville first five eighth had the audacity to throw a cheeky knee into the ribs of everybody's favourtie retro male, 'Shaft' Mueli, leaving him with a collapsed lung. A number of dashing runs by Blaine 'Boulder' Abraham and 'Seal' Collins in the midfield saw OBU make continual yardage through the ankle deep mud, whilst 'Lumpy' Christeansen at hooker was more concerned about keeping dirt off his face. Oh, to be so pretty.
It would be rude to complain about handling errors in the backline in such atrocious conditions, however, the forwards ensured the ball was breast-fed and adored before being delivered at precisely the right time and place. That the backs weren't able to do more in the circumstances will warrant a few good hard looks in the mirror.
80 Minutes : OBU 8 Johnsonville 5
The second half was a different story. Johnsonville appeared to have put OBU on the back foot as they continued to plow the ball into our defending tryline. Game saving entrepreneurial defense and lustrous high ball action by Jamie Bremnar, 'Wally' and Dave (the back three) carried OBU through to hold Johnsonville out and an 8-5 victory to the good guys. 'Sparta' tried to show off with a bit of foot to ball action, and succeeeded in demonstrating exactly why he is a front rower. 'Colt' Colton played a blinder at flanker despite continuing to look like the guy who got kicked out of N'Sync for being too effeminate. Jamie Barrett continued to put in a very Ballsy effort, probably the ballsiest effort of the lot.
Postmatch
Turns out Johnsonville were the top team in the division before this battle, so a great return to form from OBU Green proving that if they put their mind to it nothing can stand between them and the premiership. Yes, I've called it like Nostradamus! Coach 'Kamate' Clark's emotional words at 11:24pm on Saturday at the Cambridge still hang heavy in the air: "... I'm just so proud of the boys and the effort they put on out their. I love it when all the boys front up and play with so much heart and mana." At least that's what he seemed to be trying to say.
Tries : Sheep "Graham" Edwards
Penalty : Jono Mauvan
Player of the days - Backs : Kieran Cannon, Forwards : Jamie Barrett
12/07/08– OBU U21 White vs Norths (by Travis 'Lakey' Graham)
The conditions were woeful to say the least, Prince of Wales is a rough track on good days, but with a couple of weeks rain lashing down it had transformed into a bog.
The warms-up were done with good accuracy, always a pleasing sight on a day when you know it'll be slippery. Contrary to the weather the general vibe amongst the boys seemed to be that they were keen to get out there and get the job done. 'Cyclops' Gough gave us another rousing pre-match speech (who's writing this material?) about making the inches count for everything, which is what we have come to expect Any Given Saturday.
Halftime OBU 7 Norths 0
In the first half OBU White showed it's not far off the form it had in the first round. 'BK' Koloto led a spirited forward effort that had the upper hand over the North's pack particularly at scrum time and around the paddock. The backs were provided some decent ball given the conditions and began to shine, with “Sivivatu” Challender making several good runs as did Jamie Loveridge.
‘Sonof’ Wakelin was given the chance to take the lead with a penalty approximately 30 metres out. Unfortunately and controversially it was deemed to have gone wide even though an impartial touchie ‘TP’ Primrose, who is as honest as the day is long, deemed it successful.
Nevertheless five minutes later OBU were up 7-0 after ‘Wheels’ Kingi finsished off a scorcher. Sticking to the game plan the backs kicked through, the ball was predictably fumbled by Norths on the wet track, letting Sonof regather and offload to Wheels who fended of the full back and dashed 30 odd metres for a well deserved try.
In the later part of the first half the boys lost a bit of composure and North’s spent a large amount of time camped in OBU’s half. BK pointed out the boys of late have allowed the opposition to stay in the game on the back of little mistakes which is down to mental toughness. Focussed and spines stiffened we went back to work.
Fulltime OBU 10 Norths 3
By the second half the game deteriorated into a slog in the middle of the paddock.
Each team was trying to punch its was through the opposition, in some cases literally. OBU showed glimpses of extending their lead well beyond the final result that eventuated but it wasn’t to be as both teams could only manage a lazy penalty each.
OBU was defensively up to the challenge, and our simles grew as North’s began to voice their frustrations towards the ref; appalling but not surprising. They also didn’t shy away from some ruthless tactics at ruck time. Dylan “The mountain warrior” Johnson administered his own justice when the ref wasn’t prepared to take any action. Then TP entered the game he took it upon himself to start a couple altercations at his first few breakdowns – tu meke, ‘T-Pain’ – which all served to keep Norths off their game.
When the final whistle went the result was set and the boys one step closer to a semi-final berth.
Men of the match: Seen as there was no official men of the match named I’ll have to pick myself, I mean pick them myself. There were two players that stood out for me:
Big ups 2 Wigga in da 4wards getin all up in da grill of da opposition lock in da first half straight hustling dat ball in the air, keep’n it real, fools.
In the backs Sanchez made a solid switch from second-five to first. Closer to the fighting and quicker to get his hands on the ball, makes sense for the last of the Rats Tails.
Moment of the match: Wheels fend on the way to his try, who knew he had biceps? it seemed to kick start the NOS in his engine and he was away. Keep the work up and maybe one day I’ll let you have a shot at my land speed record - maybe.
Villain of the match: The North’s sideline let frustration get the better of them as they relentlessly abused the referee. Sadly the derogatory comments took their toll on the ref and he let the game fall out of his grasp. That said in terms of referees, its good to see younger guys coming through, which is what makes the rough comments worse because it deters guys from refereeing games involving those sorts of teams.
OBU scorers:
Try: Wheels Kingi
Con: SonOf Wakelin
Pen: Sanchez George
3/5/08 The OBU U21 White team made their way out to gateway of the Hutt on Saturday afternoon to play Petone at Petone Rec. This was their first game in anger in two games after being defaulted to by Wests 20mins before kick off the weekend before.
BK lost the toss and the boys found themselves playing in a bitterly strong southerly that brought snow with it. The 1st half was a see saw struggle which saw each team hot on attack only to be defending their own line moments later. Petone were the 1st to score after one such counterattack with their forwards crashing over in the corner. As the 1st half drew to a finish with what should have been a 20-30 point wind, Jeremy Newell barnstormed over the line from close range to level the match 5 a piece. In the try celebration Fraser "Razor" Cunningham always looking for the edge decided to give a hug and a loud woohoo to the Petone lock who was marking him (to which he later put down to getting inside his head)
Then on the stroke of halftime the OBU defend wilted once again and Petone to go in ahead 10-5.
During the halftime talk the boys were not entirely happy with their first half performance but with the wind at their backs they knew it would be a different story in the 2nd half.
From the get go OBU played with more urgency than they did in the first half. After 5 minutes of play we were awarded a kickable penalty which had to wait as one of the Petone players was down injured with a neck injury. We wish him the best of luck in recovery.
The game was move to another field and the penalty kicked. Then the gates opened up as quick tries were scored by Hayden Smith and Dylan Johnson, some of the defense and rucking got a bit lazy which lead to a few turn over opportunities to Petone which they were not able to capitalize on. Sheep Edward and Sean Christensen who was playing in his first White team match after some good performances in the Green team crossed the line to push the score out. Give Paddy Gough his first win over a Petone team in 3 years of coaching the Under 21s
Tries to Jeremy Newell, Hayden Smith, Dylan Johnson, Sheep Edward and Sean Christensen.
Simon George 3 conversions and penalty
30 - 10 Final Score
Players of the Day were Ben Koloto and Nick Walker
The Last Word is from the Coach Gough who told everyone that they did not desert him, his brothers in arms.
18/04/08 With Uni Holidays still on many players were unavailable some 18 players across the squad and we still managed to put out 2 teams.
The OBU U21 White team met at the Cambridge on the Saturday morning early to make sure the passports were checked off as we made out way out to Ngatitoa to play Paramata Plimmerton.
The boys were flat footed for the first quarter in what was a very slow start we were lucky to be only down 3-nil. The southern polar blast soon woke the boys from their slow start. With the midfield of Simon George and Gavin "Snakey" Roper starting to dominate on the back of some great aerial and round the field work from ex Coll Boy James Hansen.
In the second half the defense was outstanding holding Para-Plim out who attacked the try line while Snakeman Wakelin spent slightly longer than 10 minutes in the bin. As the Para-Plim attack tired, OBU counter attacked wonderful well to run in some late tries to push out the score line. Another strong display but with work still to be done.
Tries to Sankey Roper (3), Jamie Loveridge, Simon George and Luke Wishnowsky.
Simon George 2 conversions
34 - 6 Final Score
Players of the Day were James Hansen and Snakey Roper
The Last Word is from the OBU White Leader BK who decided that the boys need sexual healing.
12/4/2008: There were two games for Colts this week with the White team replacing their bye with the traditional fixture against Te Aute 1st XV and the Green team taking on Johnsonville at Helston park. Despite 17 guys away on holiday or injured we still rustled up a team plus 3 reserves at each venue which was a feat in itself. Special thanks this week to injured Prem's prop Matt Angry Anderson for running a good set piece session with the Colts forwards; the willingness of players to pass on tips and support to the up and coming age grade teams continues to be one of the great resources OBU has to offer.
Colts White vs Te Aute 1st XV -Lost 20-27
Tries to Kirk Murray, Levi Clark, Geoff Miller and Dave Hunt.
This week was a tough physical game against Te Aute College. We were treated to a splendid haka before the game and managed to defuse some of their passion with an early try to Kirk Murray in the first quarter and keeping them scoreless until half time. Te Aute came back with three unanswered tries in the third quarter before OBU responded with two tries in the final quarter to square it all up at 20-20 with a couple of minutes to go. From the kick off Te aute capitalised on a handling error and were camped on our tryline before going over and converting in the last play of the game. Fitness was a factor in the end with us ending up with only one reserve after an injury to Cam. We hosted Te Aute back at The Cambridge where speeches were held and soft drinks and BBQ were offered.
There is a long tradition going back many years with Te Aute College and Victoria University. In fact, Jack Hames Ruru, the last Maori All Black to play for Victoria and who was tragically killed in 1934 after an incident on the field, was a Te Aute old boy. The Jack Ruru shield which is keenly contested by all the OBU social teams was made in his honour.
Many thanks to The Cambridge management for their hospitality, Mark Bradley acting as MC and Piri Sciascia from Victoria University for maintaining the close links with Te Aute college.
Colts Green v Johnsonville U21 Won 49 – 0.
Tries to Jamie Loveridge (2), Gavin Roper (2), Tim Wakelin (2), Paul Mueli and Travis Graham.
Simon George 3 conversions and 1 penalty
A strong game from all that put into practice this weeks focus on team based defence and strong set piece. Players of the day were Jamie Loveridge and Travis Lakey Graham, both equally direct runners rewarded with tries on the day. Kudos also to Graham Sheep Edwards who’ll charge at it like a grumpy billy goat wherever you pick him, and Gav Snakey Roper who showed all that gym work is starting to pay off with a dominant display at centre. Overall though the highlight was an ability to keep reasonable structure in both attack and defence despite the blow out in score. Plenty to work on but a good start to the competition proper.
We were taken care of in the always hospitable Johnsonville clubrooms afterward, then back to the Cambridge where an injured Will Mowbray continues to amuse.
