Turf Hotel / Tasman rugby sevens side fell at the final hurdle, but still managed to earn themselves a spot at the nationals following the South Island sevens championships in Timaru on Saturday.
Tasman were the defending South Island champions, but were unable to repeat their efforts this time around, going down 33-27 to a strong Otago side in the decider.
The Tasman Makos crossover games in next year's ITM Cup rugby competition were confirmed yesterday. The Makos will play Canterbury, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki (in a possible Ranfurly Shield challenge) and Waikato from the premiership on top of their championship matches.
Shane Christie, the Tasman Makos loose forward and New Zealand sevens representative was named as the supreme winner and recipient of the New Zealand Community Trust Sportsperson of the Year, as well as Nelson Pine Industries Sportsman of the Year award.