The fifth Taiwan 10s tournament produced a full-blooded final as the Taipei Blacks edged Taoyuan Tachu in the Cup decider, defending their title from last year.
The Blacks opened with pace, testing the Tachu defense, but it was their work without ball which led to the first try.
Tachu got a turnover after resisting the opening salvo, but were harried by the Blacks’ defense, finally scrambling a kick to touch. From the lineout, Huang Chien-ting got the first try after a backline move and crashing run by captain Ho Ming-shien.
Photo courtesy of Frank Huang, twrugbypix.com
There was no addition to the score for the rest of the half, though Tachu went within one pass of crossing down the left wing.
Angry scenes were sparked in the second half after Tachu saw an attacking opportunity turn into seven points at the other end through an intercept, length-of-the-field try to Ho Su-wei to make it 12-0, which led to a support staff member taking to the field and loudly protesting: “Offside.”
The Blacks’ Lin Ting-hui was sin-binned for a late tackle after a kick through near their line, opening the way for Tachu’s Chiu Yen-chei to cross. The conversion made it 12-7, but the last moments belonged to the Blacks as they ran the ball confidently and time ran out.
The two Pool B teams set up the rematch after the semi-finals, in which Tachu downed Taoyuan and the Blacks defeated the Taipei Baboons 12-7 in what was one of the toughest games of the weekend.
The Baboons had the best record from pool play and they overran Hsinchu City 33-0 in their quarter-final.
However, the Blacks’ defense, along with a testing kicking game, managed to sneak ahead in the second half and hold on for the win.
The Baboons finished fourth, going down 21-7 to Taoyuan in their playoff for third.
In the Bowl final, National Taiwan University beat Fivewoods, while Hsinchu City were beaten by New Taipei City 24-12 in the Plate final.
In the Veterans’ Division, the Taipei Silverbacks went undefeated through their two opening games, beating Taipei Blacks Senior 21-7 and the New Taipei Pirates 26-10.
Kaohsiung 98 T-Rex were also unbeaten when they faced the Silverbacks in the final game, but the Silverbacks beat them 19-7.
Junior rugby also got an airing as the Taichung Caterpillars, the Banciao Penguins from New Taipei City and the Taipei Angry Birds played a set of demonstration games.
Caterpillars manager Jessica Yang said the club has about 30 children playing, with 17 making the trip to Taoyuan.
She said the team was built around a family atmosphere.
“We won our games today, which is excellent,” Yang said. “It’s all thanks to the coaches, who are parents who get involved and really are the foundation of the club.”
“Other teams might pay a coach, but we love it that our parents will stay with the kids and be involved with the team,” she said.
Taiwan Rugby Union president Lomu Yeh said he was happy with the weekend and hinted at plans to expand.
“We might be able to use this place for a Sevens tournament next year,” Yeh said.
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