Sideline Sid Sports correspondant & historian www.sunlive.co.nz

Last weekend was a rollercoaster of emotions for Sideline Sid – with the mighty All Blacks smashing the Wallabies and the not-so-mighty Steamers tasting defeat in their first home game at ASB Baypark this season on Sunday.

Oh what joy on Saturday night, as the All Blacks put the Australians to the sword at Eden Park.

The last time Australia won at their ‘house of pain' in Auckland was in 1986, when David Lange was the Kiwi Prime Minister, the Mikhail Lermotov sunk in the Marlborough Sounds and GST was introduced.

In the sporting world, New Zealand achieved the historic feat of winning a cricket test series against both Australia and England, while North Shore United beat Mount Maunganui in the Chatham Cup football title decider.

The All Blacks touchdown in the opening minutes of Saturday night's test was just the entrée to a razzle dazzle display of attacking rugby.

While a few rugby scribes criticised the All Blacks for letting the Wallabies back into the match, the reality was the All Blacks again put the pedal to the floorboards to finish with a comprehensive six-two tries victory.

Other commitments prevented me from being at Baypark on Sunday afternoon, but it's early in the NPC season and we all hope the boys in the Blue and Gold have a few surprises up their sleeve.

I'm not sure what possesses the schedulers of NPC matches to put a game on at 4.35pm on a Sunday afternoon, with work and school commitments the next day taking a prominent place in peoples' agendas.

A mid-afternoon start on a Saturday works for me, but I'm highly unlikely to attend a similar kick-off on a Sunday arvo.

This weekend brings a test match atmosphere for eight teams of Western Bay rugby-mad youngsters, when the annual JMC rugby finals is fought out at Blake Park in Mount Maunganui.

The finalists, from the 10-aside Under 10 grade, to the big boys of the Under 13 division, will go head-to-head on the Sir Gordon Tietjens main field at Blake Park.

The day kicks of at 8.30am, when Rangataua and Mount Maunganui square off to decide the winner of the 2014 Under 10 trophy.

Papamoa Blue, which came from the fourth qualifying spot in the Under 11 grade to defeat top qualifier Judea in last Saturday's semi-final, will meet Te Puna in the 9.40am final.

The two top qualifiers in the Under 12 grade, in Katikati and Greerton Marist Black, have earned the right to contest their division final stanza.

The last game of the Super Saturday gives Te Puna and Greerton Marist a second bite of the finals day cherry, when Te Puna's blue and black brigade meet the Greerton Chargers in the Under 13 final.

For local rugby fans it will be well worth making the trip to Blake Park on Saturday, to see the rising stars – and who knows you make see an All Black of the future.

The Western BOP JMC Finals is at Sir Gordon Tietjens Field, Blake Park, Mount Maunganui this Saturday, August 30, 2014:

8.30am: Under 10 Rangataua v Mount Green

9.40am: Under 11 Papamoa Blue v Te Puna

11am: Under 12 Katikati v Greerton Marist Black

12.20pm: Under 13 Te Puna v Greerton Chargers