It was the Leone Whites’ shield to lose … and they almost did.

This past Saturday, amidst heavy rainfall and strong winds, the rugby shield game between the Laulii Moli ole Ava and the Leone Whites went on as scheduled.

Before the anticipated match between the two rugby powerhouses, spectators and avid rugby followers were already predicting that the game was going to go Leone’s way, as the Whites always seem to come out strong during bad weather.

“This is Leone’s day,” said one rugby fan standing next to the entry gate at the Veteran’s Stadium where the game was held. “This is their kind of weather.”

But Laulii was unshaken. The tiny village nestled in the far eastern side of the territory came out with heart.

The two teams have nothing in common. As a matter of fact, they are totally opposite - in every way. From the size of the villages they represent to the physique of the players, Saturday’s match was truly a battle between David and Goliath.

The difference was obvious when the players took the field. More than half of the Leone players were bigger than the entire Laulii squad but the Moli ole Ava players had an advantage. Granted they were smaller, but they could run from one side of the field to the other without losing their breath.

This was apparent during a play when a ball that had already been ruled a dead ball at mid-field was on its way to the Leone goal post. A Laulii player came all the way from behind and managed to catch up with both the loose ball and the Leone player before either made it to the try line.

This sparked ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the spectators seated in the north side grand stand, the majority of whom were Laulii supporters.

The game began as the rain started to get stronger and the wind was picking up. It was an action-filled match that included many errors from both teams, questionable calls by the referees (depending on who you ask), and an injured Moli ole Ava player who suffered a broken hand and had to be tended to by personnel from the Emergency Medical Services.

Leone had many chances to break away and dominate the scoreboard but they just couldn’t manage to do it.

Junior Fua, who was able to capitalize on a drop kick, made the first three points of the game. Fua added another three points and took the score to 6-0 in Laulii’s favor after he scored a penalty kick.

The Leone team looked in disarray for many minutes during the game when they missed several opportunities to score.

Their first attempt came in form of a penalty kick that was kicked a few inches too low. Another penalty kick was off the mark and veered away from the inside of the goal post by a few feet.

The Whites did manage to get one of their penalty kicks in, taking the score to 3-6 at the half.

Later in the game, frustrations ran deep when a Leone player was yellow carded for a high tackle on Junior Fua, who was definitely the star of the game. Scoring all of Laulii’s six points, Fua was running up and down the field that day with ease, using his quickness to get past his opponents, at the same time drawing defenders who were twice his size.

While attempting to kick the ball, Fua was tackled by a Leone player. He went down for a few seconds but managed to get back up and continue playing the rest of the game. His teammate Miracle Petelo wasn’t as fortunate. The young teen suffered an injury to his arm and had to be escorted off the field.

Physiologist Monique Solofa was on hand to render immediate aid but the EMS crew was contacted and arrived about 20 minutes later, just as the game ended.

During the final few minutes of the game, the Leone Whites managed to get the ball within inches of their goal line. A try was imminent but they were never able to get the ball across, as Laulii players huddled up like a swarm of bees and pushed the Leone players - and the ball - several yards in the opposite direction.

Laulii then received possession of the ball but didn’t manage to score so Leone was given another chance for a penalty kick which was good, and resulted in the final score of 6-6.

Because the game ended in a tie, Leone gets to retain the shield. The next team to get a shot at the coveted shield is the Pago Pago Eagles who are set to play the Leone Whites tomorrow at the Stadium.