Driving to the game by the Ferret around the backstreets of New Lynn, I was contemplating that the final would be a tough event, as all Suburbs games tend to be. But when I rolled up to my hutch before the game and found that we were again going to have a close encounter with the midget from old Transvaal, who has problems with his bean counter, I thought for sure we were in for an uncomfortable afternoon.

The start was our best this year. We leapt into the game, making the right hits in midfield and showing superb handling skills. I was thinking, where had this been left in the locker until now?

Led by co-captains Ben and Levi, who were making busts close in, we were underway with tries to Kyan and Boaz. They were well-constructed tries, moving the defence side to side before finding the hole.

Ben, in particular, really has found his role and his mojo. Again, we had to go to golden oldie scrums due to an injury to a starting prop. One guy I don’t mention enough is Carl. He gets about the field and is committed. Our forwards have found their level, and Z once again dominated his lineout, but it was his ball carrying where he has really lifted his play. The Fijian, Vilame, has come into his own as well. Again, a fully committed 80 minutes. The little fella at No. 7 and the No. 6 showed up with their defence. Levi led from the front with his strong runs, which tested the defence.

I was only told after the game that the No. 8 for Suburbs was the former Tongan No. 8, so our boys did well to hold him. He was a powerful runner.

The game settled after the early thrusts, and in the second half we saw the best try I had seen for some years by many sides.

We were hard on defence and, from a scrum, Kyan made a break up the left side. From the resulting ruck, Max saw Cooper free on the right and kick-passed to him. Cooper ran downfield before passing to Levi, who in turn found Z (what were you doing there?), who then found Aratz, who in front of his father, here from España, dotted down under the posts.

That try was even acknowledged by the Suburbs club captain as a great try — and it was!

Which leads us on to our attacking weapons: the backs. Aratz has been terrific for us with his quick passing and distribution throughout. A game like this suited his style. Max has really moved up his game. He thinks it out and looks for a little bit more in it. He really will come back better; he just needs to get some length on his kick.

Our midfield of Boaz and Lani has really stepped up as well. They are small, but they are tough as, and in my view are real club people. Cooper, who is a halfback but playing on the wing, has accepted this role and given it his all. He is a good kid, and he will need to work on his halfback game in the off-season.

Kyan at fullback has been the find of the season. He runs the right angles, anticipates where the ball goes, and defensively is rock solid.

From being timid at the beginning of the season, he has grown into a top-class fullback. More will be heard of this boy. The wingers were mostly left out in the early games, as getting ball to them was impossible, but the last two games have seen the ball reach them.

Although we lost the game narrowly in the dark — to the point that even the Weasel had to tune his eyes out there in the gathering gloom — we could have snatched the prize at game’s end. We are not a team that yahoos its way around when scoring tries, but gets on with the job of playing as a team. To me and the Weaselettes, that’s more akin to team spirit.

As I departed on my journey home after having my saucer of milk left for me in the corridor, I found it sad that our competition has come to an end when winter has only just started. The ARU and its CODs need to look at this going into the future. I am aware it comes up year after year, but for our guys we are only just getting the feeling that we are starting to come good.

The Weasel would like to acknowledge the parents of players who fronted up week on week — the MacMillans, the Dillons, the Sintons — and supporters Moose, GK, Mark, Terry and Vanessa, and those who came at times, including those who I cannot identify from my hutch. We need to build our numbers back to what they had been in past seasons, and with a centenary season coming up, we need our Prems to be at the front.

The Weasel was buoyed by the Under 21 result, and a final awaits them, I’m sure, at Eden Park, which will be an occasion for all. It is not since 1973, when the Weasel was a young Weaselette chasing Weaselesses around the club and its environs. Gee, they were good days: Jimmy drinking a dozen quarts without dropping a drop, Merv the Swerve scoring more tries than he scored women, and Bernie having a permanent path to the ARU Judicial room.

In the meantime, we have had many runner-up finishes with Tank — God knows we were that close — so here we are with a chance to win the second-hardest competition in the ARU.

Good luck to all involved: coaches, managers, parents, and most of all, the players.