The season's first game in Pātea featured a rematch of the grand final between the Pātea Warriors and Hāwera Hawks.
The host team was trounced 34–16 in what has been labelled a "bittersweet rematch," much like that grand final.
“In all honesty I was nervous as. After the grand final disappointment, you kind of want to make amends for it and the expectations are high as we were undefeated at home last season,” Pātea Warriors' Jarrad Kumeroa says.
“There’s nothing like playing in front of a home crowd, first game of the season at home, grand final rematch,” he says.
Before switching to the Warriors, 27-year-old Kumeroa (Ngāti Ruanui) spent nearly 10 years playing with the Hawks. His close buddy Jamie Adams had pushed him to return home.
“In all honesty the switch was an easy one. My bro Jamie had me at a Pātea training, a few weeks down the track I was offered a leadership role and eventually the captaincy,” Kumeroa says.
Francis Katene (Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāruahine), a stalwart of the Hāwera Hawks, claims that his team is carrying on from where they left off the previous year.
“It was good to be back out there especially against our other whānau, Pātea, a rematch of our grand finals,” says Katene.
“I’ve been involved with Hāwera Hawks for 30 years playing juniors all the way up to premier level. It’s very important to have another south team in the comp especially if we want the game to grow,” he says.
Tina Thompson (Ngāruahine, Ngāti Ruanui, Te Ātiawa), the manager of the Hāwera Hawks, wholeheartedly agrees and is looking forward to the talent show this season from the south Taranaki teams.
“It is important especially for our rangatahi, and more so our wāhine, I’ve seen a lot of up-and-coming wāhine coming through, it's so good to see,” says Thompson.
“My inspiration was and still are my sons and to whoever takes the field, I take my hat off to them all,” she says.
