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Silverdale Rugby Club was dressed up and looking its best when two teams contesting the championship division of the women’s Farrah Palmer Cup competition came to play there on Sunday, August 6.
Much effort went into preparing the clubrooms and grounds for the day, which started with the Harbour U18 female rugby trial as the curtain raiser.
The main event was the Farrah match – North Harbour Hibiscus (a team which includes six Silverdale players, as well as one in the development squad) versus the so far unbeaten Manawatu Cyclones, whose captain, Selica Winiata, plays for the Black Ferns and the NZ Women’s Sevens.
A good crowd of supporters, from both sides, turned out to cheer on the teams.
It was always going to be a big ask for North Harbour Hibiscus (NHH), currently placed fifth out of six teams on the table, but they came close to scoring twice in the first 10 minutes and the first 20 minutes of the game were very close.
NHH stayed in the fight until injuries to backline players Moana Courtenay, Holly Williams and Hailey Beale in the second half disrupted the team.
The final score was 57-9 to Manawatu.
Silverdale director of female rugby, Glen Maguire, says it brought a tear to the eye when the North Harbour Hibiscus team sang Eki Koe ‘ofa ‘a’au, a Tongan hymn, at the post-match ceremony.
