The First XV had to suffer the disappointment of a last-minute loss to Auckland Grammar in what was a fantastic occasion on Grammar #1. To their credit the team bounced back the following week with what was perhaps one of the most complete performances by a King’s 1st XV when they played against St Kentigern College. Such was the King’s dominance that the final scoreline of 52-19 flattered St Kent’s a little. This last weekend the exact same scenario happened. Following a narrow loss to Sacred Heart, the team came out firing against St Peter’s in a rerun of last year’s 1A final. King’s absolutely dominated St Peter’s with the 50-3 scoreline underlining just how superior King’s were. The win leaves the team in 2nd place on the table and well on track to secure a home semi-final.
In other grades there have been some very promising results. The Second XV have put in some very brave performances and have recorded some good results. Unfortunately, as is often the case with the Second XV, they have been disrupted by injuries in the First XV squad and this has depleted their numbers and stretched their playing resources.
With a very young squad this year the U15s have had a baptism of fire in what is effectively the Junior First XV competition of Auckland. However, the measure of their improvement and how much they have developed was very clear a couple of weeks ago. In a pre-season “friendly” they played local rivals De La Salle and lost by over 50 points. In the competition round De La Salle travelled to King’s as unbeaten leaders of the competition. Our lads played the game of their lives to draw 7-7 and in fact had a match winning try disallowed right at the end of the play.
In Grade Rugby there has been much to enjoy. The newly formed Auckland 1R competition was slow to start but has gained momentum. The King’s 1R side has been lucky enough to have two of their matches televised and played another one as a floodlit game on a Friday night. The new initiative from Auckland Rugby is designed to keep more players in the game and judging by the response from the players it is doing just that. The players have certainly risen to the challenge and put in their best display of the season so far to beat St Peter’s 32-7 in the curtain raiser to the First XV match.
5th Grade has been the strength of the Grade programme. The 5A side has been playing well in their competition and should be vying for a home semi-final. The 5B side remain unbeaten in their competition and will be hard to beat come finals time, although some of the boys will need to be very careful about what they eat over the holiday period!
6th Grade have had a very difficult season to date. Despite severe issues with player resources and availability the boys have played some good rugby in patches, although I don’t think I have ever seen a side that has had to deal with so many unlucky injuries and setbacks and factors that have generally been out of their control. Yr 10 camp in particular has robbed them of key players at the most important part of the season. With class 10 June returning it should bolster the squad for the remainder of the season.
7th Grade has had a solid season so far. They have given the coaches and parents some tough times on the sidelines with some narrow victories and equally frustrating narrow losses. They are currently sitting in 5th spot on the table and are still well in contention for a semi-final berth.
