Oh so sweet: Shepparton Bulls are the 2023 Victorian Rugby Premiership winners after knocking off Kiwi Hawthorn 24-23 in the grand final.
With a minute left on the clock in the grand final Shepparton Bulls pulled off the greatest escape in Victorian Rugby Premiership folklore on Saturday.
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Down by six points with the game’s wick burnt to its end, the Bulls produced a slick pick and carry move to cross the line and reduce the deficit to one against Kiwi Hawthorn.
And when Wayne Filoi nailed the conversion, the buzz began to brew.
It was only when Samuela Waqarerevaki plucked the ball from the scrum and booted it out of play to end the game 24-23 did the celebrations take off.
Blue and green-clad Bulls fans bolted from the Box Hill Rugby Club sidelines and onto the field.
Players fell to their knees.
And then it was party time.
“The boys gave everything they got in the last minute to get the win,” Bulls coach Moronae Silaga said.
“I believed in the team, the boys believed they could do it, but we never really looked that far.
“It was a great feeling, we’re still going back to watch the video, I don’t know how many times we’ve watched the replays ― that’s how excited we are.
“So I’m just really proud of all the boys who turned up and our supporters who travelled from Shepparton.”
Having already secured the minor premiership, Silaga placed no pressure on his Bulls.
In his eyes they’d already overachieved.
But his instructions were clear: relish the occasion, play with patience and prove the doubters wrong.
“We knew we can play better when we relax, try and calm the nerves and work on our discipline and things like that,” he said.
The big man: Poonokerisiano Tuiletufuga scored the winning try for Shepparton Bulls in the grand final. Source: Rugby Victoria
“We went into the game knowing that was what our focus is, just trying to enjoy the game, and that’s exactly what we did.
“The boys were all prepared and we had absolutely nothing to lose ― and they knew that.
“I think so many counted us out from the start until the end of the game.”
Kiwi Hawthorn had the rub of the green in the first half.
Scrum-half Kyle James was pinpoint off the tee as his pair of penalty goals pushed the Kiwis ahead, though Wayne Filoi would grab one back for the Bulls.
With a surging run flanker Tony Ugapo crossed the line for the Bulls and number eight Liahona Vaegaau would do the same to give Silaga’s side a short-lived lead.
A driving move by the Kiwis resulted in a try on the left hand side in the second half, with last-ditch defending not enough to prevent Sikele Tale from scoring.
The left flank was a clear angle of attack for Hawthorn as, five minutes from the whistle, it would fling it out and slide over the line to take a six-point advantage into the final stages.
It was here where all the mental fortitude came into play according to Silaga.
“With two or three minutes to go we were down by six points and the only way to win the game was to score the try and get the kick over,” he said.
“We were down by one player and by the time he came on we had a really good impact, a reserve coming off the bench and they were the one who pushed for the last minutes.
“Usually we struggle in the last 15 minutes of the game, but in this one, it just seemed like the boys wanted it.
“The boys came together and made no mistakes, worked together as a team and really used their weight to get us across the try line.”
The man of the hour was prop Poonokerisiano Tuiletufuga, who used all of his size off the back of a scrum to bulldoze over and in.
Filoi’s kick followed and the rest was history ― the Bulls were premiers.
Silaga said it was hard to identify one clear standout as all of his 20 chipped in to bring the cup back to Shepparton, however, fullback Danny Patea was named player of the match in the final day classic.
