Pearl Jam made it a third successive Whakatāne January Touch Tournament title with a thrilling 4-3 win over Loaded.

It was Pearl Jam’s fifth straight final and the first time in three finals that they hadn’t faced Wairere, with Loading having put up an impressive showing to earn their spot in the final two.

Local team Full Circle Blue finished eighth, while the Full Circle men’s team were 15th and newcomers FreakWinC failed to win a match.

In the open women’s section, Playing Up ran out comfortable 9-3 winners over Legacy with local hopes Full Circle women placing fourth.

Like Pearl Jam, it was a third successive title for Playing Up.

The restricted men’s grade was won by Prestige Touch Club with an 8-7 triumph over LNP. Uprising finished fifth with Texas Ova Hundeez finishing sixth.

AZ1 RW managed to sneak home 4-3 against Full Circle Pink in the women’s restricted final.

Ngāti Te Tarawa won the restricted mixed grade with a 5-3 victory over Empire.

Pahou playing in the same division finished third equal.

The over 35 grade was taken out by Te Tuia Tane with an 8-7 win over AZ1 Old Boys.

Tournament committee member Maggie Mita said it was another fantastic tournament.

“The weather really came to the party. It was incredibly hot and I think most of the fluids in the supermarket were gone because teams and supporters were trying to keep hydrated.”

She said there was some quality touch played throughout the day.

“The touch continues to amaze and the standard the top teams play at continues to get better each year.”

Once again there was a fantastic crowd to support the tournament.

“We had big numbers. The fans and community really did get behind the tournament and again make it successful. There is a lot of younger talent coming through.

“A lot of that is to do with why grades are booked out in six minutes. They just want to make it a real family feel the entire day and that is exactly what happens.”

This year there were seven local teams.

“It’s good seeing how they go against other clubs and teams from different regions.

“Entries fill up incredibly fast and the local teams know they have to be organised early if they want a spot. We don’t reserve spots. They have to be faster and register early.”

This year there were even teams from French Polynesia, several Australian players and even some players from Hong Kong.  

There were several New Zealand Touch Blacks on display in the open men’s and women’s divisions.

“It was a great tournament, and we will have a little time off before we start preparing for our 39th edition and even putting plans in place for our big 40th event as well.”