Manurewa down but not out after final

BEN WATSON

GET OFF ME: Manurewa’s Renee Wickliffe pushes off a Marist defender in the Auckland women’s club rugby final in Panmure on Saturday.

BEN WATSON

STEPPING: Manurewa’s Aroha Savage puts on a step.

BEN WATSON

ON THE RUN: Manurewa’s Marama Davis makes a break during the Auckland women’s club rugby final against Marist.

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Manurewa is disappointed at losing the Auckland women's rugby final to defending champions Marist in Panmure last Saturday.

But they are heartened by their showing against a team that has won eight of the 12 championship finals they've played in.

Marist won 14-3 but the score doesn't reflect the closeness of the contest.

Manurewa's longest-serving player Karla Matua says the players were crushed at losing after getting so close.

"This was our first final and we played really well," she says. "We didn't get creamed as some might have expected.

"There was little in it. It was 6-3 at the 60-minute mark and then 9-3 before Marist crossed in the dying seconds for the game's only try."

But Matua says the team will be better off for the experience and the players are looking forward to going one better next season.

Five Manurewa players were named in the Storm team for coming representative matches. They are Karley Te Kawa, Hazel Tubic, Marama Davis, Arihina Marino and Stacey Brown.

Te Kawa, Tubic and Davis both played for the champion Counties Manukau secondary school girls' team in 2008. Te Kawa is already a Kiwi Fern.

In other women's rugby news, Manurewa's Renee Wickliffe and Aroha Savage have left with the Black Ferns for the women's world cup in England.

Other south Auckland players in the team are Huriana Manuel (Marist), Trish Hina and Joan Sione (Manukau Magpies)

The Black Ferns first game is against England on August 20.

- © Fairfax NZ News