The Weet-Bix Raluve under-18 trophy changed hands and crossed Lautoka’s Vomo St when Jasper Williams High School won 22-17 over Natabua High School in the final at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva on Saturday.
Natabua, being the defending champions, could not hold off the Jasper advance on several occasions during the match and gave way to opportunities for their Jasperian opponents to capitalise on.
Walking away with $5000 in prize money, they celebrated their win with prayers of acknowledgement and praise and consoled their Natabua opponents beside the stadium’s grandstand.
Head coach Alena Laqai was elated and thankful for the win and the hard work of her young brigade.
“I must congratulate my girls. I thank them for their hard work, they played till the last minute in order to get the cup from Sharp St,” Laqai expressed.
Laqai’s reference to Sharp St off Vomo St in Lautoka, is a colloquial metonym for Natabua High School, where the street has the school’s second entrance into the school premises.
Meanwhile, Laqai explained how firm their mission for the final had been.
“Natabua, we’ve been playing with them for so many games. Every year, we played with them from Lautoka, then it goes to the Western, and up to the nationals now,” she said.
“It’s a different team when they play, when they defend the cup.”
As the team understood the task that lay ahead for them, she added their defence was an area they focused on greatly for the match that eventually swung in their favour.
“We had to improve on our defence: in defence and rugby defence, and just game management,” she said.
Meanwhile, after the match, rugby sevens maestro and legend Waisale Serevi met the team to congratulate them and Natabua High School for their efforts on the field.