Firsts 31 - 25 Club

Tradition Valley battled back from ignominy in an enthralling final at Kings Park to defeat fierce local rivals CBRE Club 31-25 and claim the G4S Grand Championship. A partisan crowd was treated to seven finals before the season ending centre piece and the stage had been set for an epic battle.
Valley and Club were both contesting 4 finals, and 3 against each other. Valley struck the first blow of the day in Division 5A when the Griffins added the Cup to their league title, outplaying a poor HKFC Club VI’s 17-0. Club Sequins soon hit back with a hard fought victory over the Police 18-15. The Division 2 final looked to be Club’s when they lead Valley Knights 26-7, but a storming comeback assisted by four yellow cards for Club closed the gap to 26-21. In a thrilling climax, with 80 minutes up, Valley sprinted the length of the pitch probing for a memorable triumph but a last gasp knock-on gave HKFC II their fifth consecutive Cup victory. In the penultimate match on pitch 1 Valley Mustangs redressed the balance comfortably beating SJM Macau 34-17. With 2 Cups each on the day, the Division 1 final was the decider and Valley were trying to win their 12th consecutive match while adding the Grand Championship to their League Title and Knockout Cup. Club, though defending champions were massive underdogs which put all the pressure on Valley to perform.
It was Club fullback Mike Mckee who showed the first signs of nerves allowing a bouncing ball under his foot. HKFC’s scrabbling defence were penalised for not releasing and a quick tap allowed Ross Armour over for a 7-0 lead. Club came back strongly, almost scoring from the first phase and fly half Jamie Hood soon added 3 points to reduce the deficit to 7-3. Valley missed 2 penalties and both sides showed tension in their play. It wasn’t until the last 10 minutes that the game exploded into life.
After sustained pressure stalwart Valley prop John Hamilton bulldozed over in the corner and Captain Justin Temara’s conversion signalled early celebrations from the Valley faithful. One cad began playing ‘The last post’ on a bugle, indicating his thoughts on Club’s hopes but the players had other ideas. Valley soon lost hooker Brent Taylor to the sin-bin and Club capitalised when No.8 Sam Robertson scored to reduce the deficit, 14-10 at half-time.
Seconds after the break Mckee made up for his earlier error chasing down his own kick to touch down. Robertson was on the score sheet again minutes later when he finished a flowing move across the pitch. The bugle was noticeably quiet as Hood added a penalty for a 25-14 lead.
Hope was rekindled when Alex Baddeley scored from a lineout and rolling mall, then winger Johnny Elliott crossed to get within 1 point, 25-24. Valley’s club captain Shaun Murphy echoed everyone’s thoughts when he described the match as “on a knife edge”, but when substitute Max Woodward went over in the corner the comeback was complete. Temara added the conversion and the final whistle brought sighs and cheers in equal measure from fans and players to reflect what a roller-coaster final it had been.
Valley Coach Brian Higgins admitted his concerns during the final, "This whole season, we haven't been behind, and to get ourselves into that position was a bit worrying," said Higgins. "But we dug deep and we got our hands on the ball and scored some great tries."
Following their perfect season he hailed the players as “the perfect side.” Captain Temara was equally impressed with the comeback, “We knew they would be strong, because they had nothing to lose, but the guys really showed their character in the second half. We kept our composure and applied pressure and capitalised on the mistakes.” He also paid tribute to those at the club for their role in achieving glory, “It’s very satisfying to win the treble, we couldn’t do it without the support of guys like assistant coach Wayne (Caton) and Brian (Higgins), the fans and all those who bring their families down, I love being part of this club. “
Defeated Club coach Quinton Wrigley was gracious in defeat, “You know that Valley are a side that will always come back from adversity. They managed to go out wide and got through us.” He admitted, “They are the best team in Hong Kong.”