In the semi-final King's was too strong for local rival, De La Salle College, running out 4-1 victors. A commanding display from Lukas Halls in the middle saw him score two great tries with clever thinking and a lot of pace. Leo Roa and Kiamana Keepa were the other scorers in a somewhat one-sided contest.
Mangere, who King's drew with in pool play, was outstanding on the day. The fact that the King's team was missing a few players (who were at the Greater Auckland Athletics Championships) takes little away from the talented opponents. What was incredible though was the never-say-die attitude of the King's team and the comeback from 5-1 down to 5-4 with a minute to play. Kereama Mio-Romano scored King's first try after great interplay between himself and Trent Tipene. An individual piece of brilliance saw Sam Reid stand up his wing and run half the field, outpacing the defence to the corner with an acrobatic dive. This galvanised the team and two wonderfully taken tries by Moses Puru and Ciarahn Matoe created an exciting last few minutes.
King's, as runners-up, now qualify for Regionals and will be playing all this Saturday against the best teams from the Greater Auckland, Counties and Northland area.
