The Canterbury Colts lost only once all season (against a strong Tasman B side) and the Under-19s also did well despite not playing in a formal competition and often coming up against older players.

The team’s fitness was a real factor in many of its successes. They often had to come from behind to win, including the final against Harbour when they were down 5-10 at half-time and a spectacular effort against Wellington in the semi-final.

Assistant coach Wayne Burleigh said: "We played some very good rugby throughout our round-robin except for the first 40 minutes against Tasman (a one-point loss) and although we were down 3-

"Our semi-final against Wellington was not looking so good as after 55 minutes we were down 18-31 and almost gone, but to the team’s credit they dug in real deep and showed a tremendous amount of character to play some wonderful rugby and blow Wellington off the park with a 54-31 victory.

"After losing the two previous finals there was a lot of resolve from the team to change our fortunes for this final (against Harbour), and that they did. Down 5-10 at half-time after playing into a strong southerly wind we turned to play with the wind and felt confident we could pull off a victory. This we did with a 20-13 win and when that final whistle went all our hard work had been repaid.

"Although all players contributed in every way some who were standouts for us this season were: Andrew Olorenshaw, Will Catherwood, Kalave Auali’itia, Ben Frame, Luke Romano, Willie Heinz, Nick McCashin, Phil Burleigh, Ben Nowell and Paul Burton."

Pool play results

v Nth Harbour. Won 8 - 5

v Northland. Won 68 - 0

v Hawkes Bay. Won 62 - 17

v Auckland. Won 37 - 10

v Tasman. Lost 22 - 23

v Otago. Won 20 - 5

Semi-final v Wellington. Won 54 - 31

Final v Nth Harbour. Won 20 -13

Squad:

Mitch Alcock, Kalave Auali’itia, Alastair Brownlee, Paul Burton, Brett Cameron, Will Catherwood, Cam Eyre, Tom Fleming, Ben Frame, Josh Hall, Willie Heinz, Kodi Hepi, Scott Higginson, Ryan Hooper, Henry Johnstone, Dan Keenan, Nick McCashin, Vince Mellars, Ben Nowell, Andrew Olorenshaw, Luke Romano, Chris Stevens, Marcel Taualongo.

Canterbury A players to play for Canterbury B during season were: Phil Burleigh (every game), Steve Alfeld, Tyson Keats, Kosuke Endo, Sean Maitland, Steve Fualau, James Broadhurst, Owen Franks, Peter Borlase and Corey Flynn.

Coaches: Viv de Beus and Wayne Burleigh. Manager: Mark Persico. Trainer: Luke Thornley. Physio: Jeremy McTear.

Canterbury Colts coach Craig Philpott said: "The Canterbury Colts 2008 season was a very successful one. On the scoreboard we were undefeated against other colts teams, winning all our games by 20-30 point margins and scoring five tries each time, Auckland being the only exception (19-3).

"More importantly, though, the campaign confirmed how strong Canterbury rugby is in this age bracket. Given that the Air New Zealand Cup squad contained nine Colts-eligible players, for this 26-player squad to perform as it did suggests a wealth of talent abides in our catchment. Indeed, 12 of this year's side were still under 20.

"The opportunity to test ourselves against a National Provincial B team (Tasman), and under the ELVs for the only time in the campaign, was an exciting challenge for us. Down 0-26 after 25 minutes, the team regathered itself and set about eating into the deficit. Our fifth try just before the end brought us to 31-33, the game-tying conversion just a bridge too far!

"It was a performance that spoke volumes for the attitude and skill level of the players, and this was put in perspective when Tasman pipped eventual B Competition champions Canterbury B by the same margin a week later."

Andrew Horrell 44, Tim Loughnan 25 (5 tries), Fraser Middleton 25 (5 tries), Tim Priest 25, Sam Monaghan 22 (4 tries)

Squad:

Rodney Ah You (Linwood), James Brown (HSOB), Kieran Coll, (Chch), Jared Cropper (Chch), Rory Crowhen (Belfast), Harry de la Tour (MLU), Tim Emery (MLU), Kieron Fonatia (New Brighton), Jonathan Hall (Marist Albion), Andrew Horrell (Chch), Will Hurst (Chch), Hamish Kilpatrick (MLU), John Legg (HSOB), Tim Loughnan (Glenmark), Fraser Middleton (Linwood), Sam Monaghan (Glenmark), Joe Moody (Lincoln), Royden Palmer (Shirley), Hadleigh Parkes (Chch), Tim Priest (Chch), Kerry Robb (Lincoln), Sam Robinson (Shirley), Matt Thatcher (Chch), Matt Todd (Chch), Rob Verbakel (University), Sam Whitelock (MLU), Aaron Williams (MLU).

Coach: Craig Philpott. Assistant coach: Richard Smith. Manager: Grant McWhirter.

The Canterbury Under-19s did not play in a formal competition, mostly playing national under-20s teams, although they did beat Wellington home and away.

Coach Hugh Galvan said: "The difference between under-19s and the under-20s we played tended to be the contest at ruck time and scrums. Outside this we competed well and dominated in some areas. Our backs were our strength and we used set pieces to attack from at every reasonable possibility.

"Great opportunities were given to players to play on some of the main grounds. We played at AMI and in doing so got an insight into some of the Canterbury legacy. Our team also played at Carisbrook and North Harbour Stadium.

"The New Zealand Under-20 selectors showed interest at our games as all players are eligible and no doubt we will get a number away to the first New Zealand Under-20 camp.

"We’re really happy with the progress made throughout the season with individuals and the team as a collective. We had a great group of players that were keen to learn and be exposed to some of the ‘Canterbury way’ of doing things."

Results:

31/8 v Wellington U-20 at AMI Stadium. Won 23-17

6/9 v Wellington U-19 at Porirua Park. Won 27-24

9/9 v Hawkes Bay U-20 at Tremain Park. Lost 17-26

13/9 v Otago U-20 at Carisbrook. Lost 15-22

20/9 v Canterbury Maori U-21 at Christchurch Park. Won 55-7

4/10 v North Harbour U-20 at North Harbour Stadium. Won 32-29

Squad: