The Chiefs Knock Out Cup Competition

Mr Kirkham, HBHS Assistant Principal and Coach of the 1^st XV explained the current competition situation for our strongest rugby players:

There are eight teams; after each round the pool halves, so after two games we have gone from four possible opponents in the field to two.  The two local teams that contested the semi-finals were HBHS and St John’s.  We beat St John’s, so we’re in the final against Manurewa.

The Chief’s Knock Out Cup is something that was organised this year between the two top teams in Counties, the two top teams in the BOP and the four top teams in the Waikato.  It is a competition that the Chiefs have been trying to convene for the last few years, but Tauranga, Rotorua and our involvement in the Super 8 games meant that we couldn’t participate.  The Knock Out Cup has started right at the beginning of the season so that everyone’s commitments are taken into account.

We play Manurewa on May 25, which looks like it is going to be the curtain raiser of the Chiefs/Bulls game at Waikato Stadium. The televised games have been a part of the Sky broadcast schedule – this game isn’t a part of that, but it will definitely have a wide following. 

What are your goals for this year?

I’m happy this year that we’ve got Karl Hoeft coaching the forwards – his exploits as an All Black, as a professional rugby player, and his professionalism generally are a real asset to our side. 

Again, we have a relatively young team.  We had a young team last year with some older players.  We are still organizing our squad for the year – we are still pre-season.  Japan was great for the last three years because when we went over, we traveled with the boys that we thought would probably be the core of the 1^st XV.  Sure enough, that was the way it worked out.  This year with our season broken down and with the current competition, we’ve had to keep a larger squad.  The Super 8 competition starts soon, which will provide us with challenges, week in, week out.  The goal is always the same: pit ourselves against the strongest available teams, see where our strengths lie and develop into a strong unit.