The TGS youth 15s scored five tries in a convincing 33-14 victory over Whangaparāoa College.

After tight tussles over two of the better teams in the competition – Rosmini College and Westlake Boys’ the boys were keen to express themselves on attack and they did that despite the waterlogged pitch on the Hibiscus Coast.

TGS shrugged off a few injury issues during the week and stepped up physically against a team with some backline threats, with No.8 Jere Loli-Hart having a huge game. Jere (pictured with the ball) scored a try in each half and impressed with his workrate and uncompromising defence, with second-five Ayden Hong again a standout in the TGS backline.

The boys’ structure and team work were more important than individual performances, however, they quickly took the game away from Whangaparāoa, who had their fullback sent off early in the match for a tip-tackle.

No.10 Ben Hindle’s game management came to the fore as he consistently made the most of his team’s numerical advantage and trapped the opposition inside their territory and from there the pack took advantage, with Jere, flanker Cole Chadwick and locks Theo Scarfe and Connor O’Neill featuring prominently.

Jere crashed over under the posts from close range for our first try, with Theo next on the scoreboard for a five-pointer, also from close range, well converted by wing Will Butchers. Will was quickly in the action again when finishing off a blindside move, with Ben making the most of the overlap with an early and accurate pass. Will then impressed the travelling supporters by superbly converting his own try from the sideline.

The 21-0 halftime lead was a fair reflection of the boys’ dominance.Whangaparāoa did not have a genuine attacking opportunity in the first half due to our defensive line speed and they quickly resorted to kicking the ball away when up against the on-rushing Ayden and midfielder partner Charlie Richardson.

Prop Louis Gordon again impressed with his workrate and tackling. Fittingly, it was Jere who scored the fourth try which earned the boys their winning bonus point after he again used his power to crash over from close to the line, with flanker Joe Porteous scoring the fifth after he showed excellent determination and pace when chipping a loose ball ahead and winning the race to the line.Whangaparāoa scored two second-half converted tries but could not match the visitors’ discipline and unity.

Article added: Thursday 11 June 2026