Words by NZ Police Rugby
With no winter tournament on the calendar this year, Auckland Metro Police Rugby took the opportunity to bring teams together for a mini tournament in Auckland on Friday 28 August.
Originally planned as a two-day ‘Festival of Rugby’ featuring five district teams, the event was reshaped after Wellington and Bay of Plenty were forced to withdraw. Auckland Metro, Counties and Waikato were still keen to get on the field, giving birth to the aptly named ‘Game of Three Halves’.
The day kicked off with a rematch of the recent Ratana Cup clash between Auckland Metro and Counties. Counties carried plenty of confidence after taking both the Ratana and Challenge Cups from Auckland just two weeks earlier, and continued their winning form with a 20 – 0 victory.
Auckland Metro bounced back in the second match, taking on Waikato for the Gallagher-Miller Cup. The annual fixture honours Police rugby legends Senior Constable Barry ‘Bazza’ Gallagher and Inspector Scott Miller. In a hard-fought contest, Auckland came away with a 10 – 3 win to retain the cup for another year.
The final match saw Counties return to the field to face Waikato. With both teams looking to finish the day on a high, the match delivered plenty of physicality, strong defence and attacking rugby. Counties ultimately secured a 33 – 5 win, finishing the day undefeated and claiming tournament honours.
Final standings:
🥇 Counties
🥈 Auckland Metro
🥉 Waikato
Counties’ Sam Sefu was named Player of the Tournament, with notable performances also recognised from Auckland’s Sione Paea and Max Jones, and Waikato’s Nick Stark and Tim Erceg.
A special thank you goes to Auckland Sergeant Adam Booker for refereeing all three matches, and to Police Sport for supporting the event and helping make the tournament possible.
With a mix of experienced players and a number of newer Police rugby players taking the field, the event was a great opportunity to get teams back together, build connections and keep Police rugby ticking over.