WHAT WENT ON June 26 - 27

Mercantile Squash
After seven competitive rounds of round robin play, the Wairoa Athletic Mercantile Squash competition has found its semi-finalists! There has been plenty of quality squash, close contests and great sportsmanship throughout the season, with every point proving valuable. Smithy Motorcycles have been the standout team all season, finishing well clear at the top of the table after a dominant round robin campaign. Here are the results of round 7:

Pickering Cabinet Makers bt. Farmlands 10 - 8
Smithy Motorcycles bt. The Wishing Stars 15 - 9
Emergency Smash Services bt. Racket Squad All Hui 15 - 6
Slort Sports bt. Pensioners 10 - 9

The match of the round belonged to Mike (Racquet Squad All Hui) and Alyssa (Emergency Smash Services), who produced an absolute thriller. After an outstanding battle, Alyssa edged home 41–40 in one of the closest matches of the year. Congratulations to Jason Smith, who was the winner of this week's raffle. The semi-final draw for this Friday is now confirmed:

Championship Round
Smithy Motorcycles (1) vs Farmlands (4)
Emergency Smash Services (2) vs Pickering Cabinet Makers (3)
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Wooden Spoon Round
The Wishing Stars (5) vs Slort Sports (8)
Racquet Squad All Hui (6) vs Pensioners (7)

Below: Final round robin standings.

Senior Rugby
Charteris Choppers Athletic Rugby travelled to Ngatapa for the final match of the second round, facing tough opposition in challenging, muddy conditions. The game got off to a fast start, with Ngatapa opening the scoring through an early penalty goal. Athletic responded with determination, working hard to stay in the contest, but Ngatapa crossed for two converted tries during the first half. Just before the break, Athletic got on the scoreboard when first five Wade Perritt slotted a penalty goal, leaving the halftime score at 17–3 to Ngatapa. Athletic came out with renewed energy in the second half, controlling possession and building pressure through several strong phases of play. Their efforts were rewarded when Apensia Cava finished off a superb team movement with a brilliant runaway try down the wing. Although the conversion was unsuccessful, the try gave Athletic momentum and reduced the deficit. The remainder of the second half was a hard-fought battle, with Athletic producing an outstanding defensive effort to keep Ngatapa scoreless despite the difficult conditions. Unfortunately, they were unable to add any further points, and the match finished 17–8 in favour of Ngatapa. Player of the Day points:
3 Points: Dylan Torrie
2 Points: Apensia Cava
1 Point: Tyson Kamo

This match marks the end of Wairoa Athletic's 2026 rugby season. We would like to sincerely thank all of our sponsors, in particular our code sponsor Charteris Choppers, our supporters, volunteers, and families, for your support throughout the year. . We look forward to coming back stronger next season.

Senior Football
On Saturday 27th June, QRS Athletic Football organised the first game of the popular Veterans vs Rookies series. The match was played in good spirits despite the muddy conditions, which benefited (or disadvantaged?) both teams by causing chaos and disruptive play (and some banter along with it). It was the Rookies who struck first, putting their team on the front foot with an amazing assist from Chris Jensen, who absolutely shanked it but managed to hit the side bar where Jared Olsen was able to put it away. Play continued through spells of rain and a hydration break, as seen during the world cup. The Veterans were looking to tie the game after great defence from the Rookies. But, not even the big puddles on the field could stop Tom Rowley-Westwood from getting the equalizer. The halftime the score was 1 - 1. At the start of the second half both teams looked to gain momentum with great displays of wet-weather footy. It was the Veterans who took a 2-1 lead though, through the boot of Tom Rowley-Westwood once again. After that, the Rookies had plenty of chances to turn things around but solid saves from keeper Phil Molina kept them out. Veterans' 3rd goal came from a simple error from Rookies keeper Aaron Ioane, who slipped up on his goal kick and found Sharn Black, who scored on his debut for the Veterans. The game didn't end there. As with any good derby, it got a bit scrappy towards the end when the legs got tired. The cards started coming out with the first yellow going to Tim Howard for a conversion-like attempt at goal. The second yellow went to Jared Olsen for completely messing up a goal attempt himself. As the field got more saturated, Mike Hardie mistimed a tackle and earned himself a red card, meaning the Veterans were down to ten players. Not even 10 minutes later they found themselves down to 9 players after another red card shown to Sharn Black for a similar offence. However, the experience of the Veterans prevailed as they held on for the last 10 minutes of the game, securing a 3-1 victory. This means the Veterans take the series lead to 1-0 in the best-of-three competition.

Player of the day for the Veterans: Polly Browne with an outstanding defensive effort on debut.
Players of the day for the Rookies: Tamara Olsen and Garron Bright.

We finished the day at the Bayleys Athletic Park Clubrooms with burgers and the final All Whites match of the 2026 World Cup.

Below: Veterans and Rookies