Nothing quite says country rugby like the Luisetti Combined Country Competition, and this weekend Waihora are gearing up for a shot at the silverware.

After a convincing win against Kaiapoi in last weekend’s semi-final, Waihora now turn their focus to Saturday’s final in Ashburton. They’ll face Mid Canterbury’s Ashburton Celtic, after their nail biting two-point win over defending champions Glenmark-Cheviot.

“It’s really exciting, the team are pretty pumped for it”says Waihora captain, Liam Robinson, who hopes his side will be able to raise the cup for the first time since 2018. “It would be a massive reward for everything we’ve been doing through the year as a group. The culture around the club and our team is pretty top notch. It would be really special to be able to get that done”.

Making it through the competition with only one loss (by one point!) Robinson highlighted the consistency of head coach Haden Schulte as a direct influence on their success “he’s been pretty top tier” said the skipper,“there’s also been a whole mix of boys standing up each week, there’s not one guy who’s let the team down”.

The combined competition has been sponsored by family run business Luisetti Seeds since 2011, “It is something we feel passionate about”says Ed Luisetti, Managing Director, “it’s about supporting our rural communities who obviously support us, and we've had such a strong history of rugby throughout our family”. Deeply rooted in club rugby, five generations of Luisetti’s have been keen rugby players, as well as employing coaches, players and referees across the Canterbury region.

“We're very much a rural based company and of course a lot of these rugby clubs that we are supporting are very much rural based themselves” said Luisetti, “in those rural communities’ rugby clubs and schools are the are the two areas where it really gets the communities together. That's what we're looking to support, those rural areas at the rugby club where everyone can get together and perhaps get off the farm and have a little bit of entertainment”.

Tai Tapu are hoping to flood Ashburton in a sea of black and white with a dedicated bus taking supporters to the game and Luisetti is certain the competition final is going to give them a great display, “It's a very exciting atmosphere and there's always a fabulous crowd, it’s very much a family occasion. It's all so tense and so tight, a wonderful display of free-flowing rugby”.

Despite having once played for Celtic himself, Luisetti remains diplomatic, stating “may the best team win” for Saturday.

Robinson says their preparation for the final is all about executing core roles, “It’s about backing what you do during the week, knowing your core roles well and nailing them when you get the chance. Ashburton are a physical side. They’re very clinical and are going to work hard for 80 minutes, we’ve got to be prepared for everything”.

Thanks to the ongoing support of Luisetti Seeds, competitions like this continue to thrive in our rural communities and nothing beats being there in person. So, if you’ve missed out on a spot on the bus, fill the car up with your mates and get down to Ashburton Celtic Rugby Football Club for a 2:45pm kick off for what is bound to be an epic day of finals footy!

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Words by Hannah Yates