Clutha beat archrivals Crescent 22-11 in a true battle of attrition on Saturday.
Less than ideal conditions welcomed both teams as they were forced to play on the back field of the Clutha Showgrounds.
Crescent showed they were up for the challenge and came out of the blocks hard and fast, but they could not turn early advantage into points.
Crescent’s defence was a key factor in the first half as they kept Clutha scoreless.
The visitors finally took their chances and went into the halftime break 11-0 ahead.
The second half featured Clutha increasing the tempo and playing in the right areas of the field.
A brace of tries to prop Mafi Demont and some strong positional play by replacement pivot Jack Dent helped Clutha take the lead and hold on to it for the duration.
Crescent lost their mojo in the second half and almost looked to give up when the going got tough.
West Taieri locked in second place on the table and a home semifinal with a 30-17 win over Toko at Milton.
West Taieri’s set piece was the catalyst to their success with numerous tries coming off an unstoppable lineout drive.
Toko were not in the game at all until the final 15 minutes, when they rolled up their sleeves and scored two tries to salvage some pride.
West Taieri’s result was a fitting end to a memorable day for Dave McNeill in his 300th appearance for the club.
Owaka braved the floodwaters and got a huge result at Heriot.
The Swamp Hens beat the hosts 21-12 in a slippery game that they never looked like losing.
Owaka made the most of their chances and Heriot’s poor discipline in the first half as they took a 16-5 lead into the break.
Heriot scored early in the second half before Owaka took control again. The visitors, on the back of a dominant set piece, worked their way down the field and scored a try to extend the lead with 10 minutes remaining.
Owaka showed calmness towards the end to play in the right areas of the field and take a deserved win away from Death Valley.
Clutha Valley retained the Miller Cup on their club day with a hard-fought 13-5 win over Lawrence.
The home side put in a dominant display in the first half but could not turn all their possession into meaningful points.
Valley led 8-0 at halftime but were finding it hard to crack a determined Lawrence defence.
The second half was the opposite of the first with Lawrence putting in a huge effort on attack.
The visitors pressure Valley’s line for large periods but failed to execute well and could only be rewarded with a solitary try.
Valley stole a late try through fullback Logan Wilson to extend the score and secure the points.
By Francis Parker
