A year before rugby league last appeared at Tremain Park, it thought it had found a future home on an extension of Park Island Reserve, but the dream never materialized and in 2013 it took up residence at the Regional Sports Park in Hastings .

But new president Anthony Taueki, who spent less than a month in the dugout before the 2024 season began in early September, found the sport was growing to a point where it was outgrowing the facilities available on the field, where rugby league has been able to. was developed as an all-inclusive whānau day for most of the last decade.

The regional park had four playing fields available for the league and two locker rooms, and this year faced a clash with fields reserved for touch (football) for some of its unique spring season competitions, which for almost 25 years have been held. plays after rugby. The union club season is over.

Taueki, whose experience in leadership roles (including 12 years at Clive Rugby Football club, focusing on its successful women’s teams, plus a professional career in governance), made him a natural target when a new president was needed less a month before the start of the Premier competition on September 5.

He says the league is once again feeling left out, as has been the situation for much of Hawke’s Bay rugby league’s history, which dates back almost to the game’s origins in New Zealand in 1908. It was the second provincial league formed in New Zealand. It first had access to McLean Park in 1911, and for a period about 60-70 years ago was based at Rugby League Park, now long replaced by a residential development in the suburban Napier area that bears its name.

In 1989 the club final was held at McLean Park as rugby league returned there for the first time in at least half a century. The last time a Hawke’s Bay club match was played there was in 2005, but there have been two NRL matches at McLean Park in the last 10 years. including a sell-out for the New Zealand Warriors in 2023.

Stud trainer Graeme Su’a, an Auckland-bred Taradale Rugby and Sports Club member, said he was drawn to Hawke’s Bay by the “passion” he saw for the game in the area during a visit to Hawke’s Bay in about 2015. , when he came to play a club game for the Phoenix.

Su’a played rugby league for the Glenora Bears and at NRL Holden Cup age group level, but having moved to Hawke’s Bay and playing rugby for Taradale, this year he approached the club with the idea of ​​basing a team at Tareha Reserve. .

With the support of the club, he says he has formed a team of players from Taradale and other rugby clubs and from connections within the church, adding that they are the young team in the Premier competition.

In Saturday’s matches, Omahu Hui, leading 20-6 at half-time, scored seven tries, two of them for full-back Amini Koroi and one each for Ausage Fomai, Peter Ainiu, Debden Keil, Petera Kahui-Ariki and Sakopa Ofa.

The Stallions were also clear at half-time, leading Phoenix 24-10 and eventually scoring eight tries, with two each from Johnny Faleiva and two each from Hawke’s Bay Magpies rugby team members Meni Manase, and one each for Patrick Sam, Lilo Iosefo Au, Misipati Lealaisanoa, David Tonga and Vincent Vo.

There were also four age group semi-finals at Tremain Field and five finals across all grades are scheduled for next Saturday.

Doug Laing is a Napier-based senior reporter with Hawke’s Bay todayand has 51 years of journalism experience, 40 of them in Hawke’s Bay, in news gathering, including breaking news, sport, local events, topics and personalities.