In a match that left fans on the edge of their seats, the Tupapa Maraerenga Panthers and the Avatiu Nikao Eels engaged in a spectacular and intense clash in the weekly rugby league competition, culminating in an exhilarating 24-all draw.

Both teams showcased their skill, resilience and passion, trading blows in the fourth round of the Cook Islands Rugby League (CIRL) Rarotonga 13s competition at Teimurimotia Park, Titikaveka, on Saturday.

Over 300 supporters turned out to watch the premier games.

The Panthers burst onto the field in their vibrant hot pink uniforms, instantly stirring up memories of the iconic Pink Panther movies.

The Panthers powerhouse, captain Eric Newbigging pushed through the Eels defence near the try line to score right between the posts followed by a successful conversion, giving the team an early 6–0 lead.

Nine minutes later, the Panthers scored their second try when their “little general” Mafu Kalas pushed right through the middle of the Eels defence to dive between the posts. The successful conversion gave the Panthers a 12–0 lead.

The relentless Eels scored their first try midway through the first half to trail 4-12 after an unsuccessful kick, and just minutes later they scored again with another failed conversion to trail 8-12.

The Panthers’ successful penalty kick extended their lead to 14-8. Their third try and conversion then increased the lead to 20-8

The intense battle saw some heated moments, resulting in a Panthers player receiving a 10-minute sin bin.

The Eels kept driving and scored a try, cushioning their deficit to 12-20. Four minutes late, a runaway try and a conversion inched them closer to the Panthers 18-20.

The Panthers took advantage of the Eels’ ill-discipline and added four more points from two successful penalties to extend their lead to 24-18.

The lack of discipline continued and marred the otherwise thrilling game, leading to several fights breaking out, and the Panthers were penalised with two sin bins.

The Eels capitalised on the opportunity and with a minute remaining before the final whistle, their fast and powerful fullback, Nathan Nabou, scored a decisive try. A successful conversion tied the match, ending it at 24-all.

Panthers skipper Eric Newbigging earned the Most Valued Player of the Week award for the big metres he gained with ball in hand as well as his tackle breaks, presence on defence, offloads and tackle assists.

In a post-match interview with CIRL, Newbigging said: “It’s always a tough game against our brothers from Avatiu … it shows why they are the defending champions.”
He said their focus for the upcoming matches would be on discipline.

“You can see we had two sin bins and that killed us towards the back end of the game. Credit to our boys for hanging in there when we were down to 12 players.”

Eels captain Josh Motu was happy with his boys’ efforts.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game against the Panthers – it always is. We were down in the first half and managed to catch up slowly, I’m happy we played it out,” said Motu.

“We gave away too many balls, we had poor handling, we will fix that at training.”

The Arorangi Bears brace for the Takuvaine Warriors defence. MELINA ETCHES/25030217

In the first premier match on the day, the Arorangi Bears defeated the persevering Takuvaine Warriors 44–4.

The half time score stood at 16–0 to the Bears. With a Warriors player in the sin bin, the Bears scored multiple tries, extending their lead to 28-0.

The Bears maintained their attack, overpowering the Warriors and leading by 44 points to nil. Takuvaine scored a consolation try to remain without a win, going down 4-44.

On Friday, the premier game between the Titikaveka Bulldogs and the Ngatangiia Matavera Sea Eagles saw the Bulldogs defeat the Sea Eagles 32 – 12.

In a post-match interview with CIRL, Bulldogs captain Clarke Ngaau said he was impressive with their win.

“The game was pretty scrappy, plus the heavy rain but the boys pulled through,” Ngaau said.

Sea Eagles captain Daniel Toa said they played well in the first half.

“It’s not a good result losing, we came out here for one result to play to win. We just weren’t hungry enough, Titikaveka were hungrier than we were and it showed on the field,” said Toa.

He said they had trained throughout the week and prepared well for the game.

“It comes down to game time, attitudes gotta be right and everything should fall into place and just being there for the brother that’s next to you. We just didn’t show up for each other today.”

Results

Men’s Premiership Match Week 4 results: Avatiu Eels 24 Tupapa Maraerenga Panthers 24; Arorangi Bears 44 vs Takuvaine Warriors 4; Titikaveka Bulldogs 32 vs Ngatangiia Matavera Sea Eagles 12 (Friday). Women’s Exhibition Match: Blues Team 0 vs Red Team 20.