Papamoa Head Coach Duncan Lowry says his team has the dream to “hijack the ISPS Handa Chatham Cup” this season.

The WAIBOP Premiership club, who currently sit fourth on the standings, will take on the might of Auckland NRFL Premier Club Bay Olympic at Gordon Spratt Reserve on Monday in round two.

When the club brought Lowry in as coach at the start of the season, they had a meeting to outline their goals, they introduced 16 new players to the club and they sold the dream that they were going to make a strong run in the ISPS Handa Chatham Cup.

“We are here to win everything,” said Lowry in his thick Northern Irish accent.  “We are here to win the league. We want to progress in the league and the dream is to hijack the Chatham Cup and the reality kicks in on Monday. It is no longer a dream, it is a reality.”

The Papamoa versus Bay Olympic clash will be one on 32 fixtures in the ISPS Handa Chatham Cup on this weekend with all games being played on Monday 4 June.

The ISPS Handa Chatham Cup has gone well so far for Lowry’s side. They defeated Tuakau 6-0 in the preliminary round and then beat Waiuku 3-1 in a good win away from home. Bay Olympic, as a NRFL Premier League team, had a bye in round one and will open their campaign on Monday.

Lowry said the magic of the ISPS Handa Chatham Cup, which dates back to 1923 and is one of the oldest sporting trophies in New Zealand, is very much alive and kicking.

“The Chatham Cup give little junior clubs like ourselves in Papamoa, the chance to go head to head with the big boys. It is a level playing field when you are playing against the junior clubs at your own level, but this gives us the chance to take on the likes of Bay Olympic, one of the big clubs up in Auckland, and it gives the players and the whole football community a bit of a lift. We are going in with the underdog tag, but this would have to be the biggest game for Papamoa for 20 years.”

Lowry said the local Papamoa community is excited and everyone seems is talking about this game. Things are going well for the club with them recently securing a new major sponsor - one of the local establishments in town – who also helped attract former All Whites midfielder Cole Peverley to the club.

The 29-year-old, who played eight games for the national team and more recently enjoyed success as Premiership winner with Auckland City, has given Papamoa a huge boost this season. 

“Cole has just brought professionalism to the club,” said Lowry. “You just watch him on a Tuesday or a Thursday night and the way he strikes the ball, everything about him is calm, everything about him just lifts the team. It is great for the coaching staff as well. It was people from outside the club who brought Cole into the club. Papamoa is one of the fastest growing areas of NZ. Everyone wants to come to the Gold Coast of New Zealand.”

Lowry said it was exciting for the club – which has 45 junior teams, making it one of the biggest junior clubs in the Bay of Plenty - to have a role model like Peverley for the next generation.

“There will be a lot of young boys, future All Whites, coming down to the park on Monday to see Cole Peverley in action for the first time, which is a big coup for the club.”

Lowry said his team started with “a hiss and a roar” this season and then teams have worked them out so they plan to mix things up a bit on Monday. He is expecting a big home crowd to get behind the team.

“Our pitch is magnificent. We trained on it last night and it is perfect. We haven’t played at home in five weeks and we are unbeaten at home. Everyone will come down and watch open, attractive football. We are not here to park the bus. We are a team that scores goals.” 

Lowry said the last time he was involved in the Chatham Cup he was coaching at Tauranga City a few years ago and Bay Olympic knocked them out. He is hoping “they will have a go and reverse the roles on Monday”.

If Papamoa can do that against Bay Olympic then it would certainly make one of the biggest games for the club in the past 20 years one to remember. 

All of the results will be available on Monday evening on www.nzfootball.co.nz

ISPS Handa Chatham Cup Round Two

All games Monday 4 June

Northern Region

Forrest Hill Milford United vs Three Kings United, 2pm, Becroft Park
Metro vs Tauranga City United, 2pm, Phyllis Street
Eastern Suburbs vs East Coast Bays, 2pm, Madills Farm
North Shore United vs University-Mt Wellington, 2pm, Allen Hill Stadium
Mt Albert Ponsonby vs Taupo, 2pm, Anderson Park
Papamoa vs Bay Olympic, 2pm, Gordon Spratt Reserve
Central United vs Waitakere City, 2pm, Kiwitea Street
Waitemata vs Bucklands Beach, 2pm, McLeod Park
Claudelands Rovers vs Onehunga Sports, 2pm, Galloway Park
Franklin United vs Waikato Unicol, 2pm, Drury Sports Complex
Western Springs vs Takapuna, 2pm, Seddon Fields
Birkenhead United vs Waiheke United, 2pm, Shepherds Park
Albany United vs Glenfield Rovers, 2pm, Rosedale Park
Greenhithe vs Hibiscus Coast, 2pm, QBE Stadium 4
Hamilton Wanderers vs Manukau United, 2.30pm, Porritt Stadium
Ellerslie vs Melville United, 3pm, Michaels Ave Reserve

Central/Capital Region

Wainuiomata vs Stop Out, 1pm, Richard Prouse Park
Havelock North Wanderers vs Western Suburbs, 1pm, Guthrie Park
North Wellington vs Victoria University, 1.30pm, Alex Moore Park
Island Bay United vs Wellington Olympic, 2pm, Wakefield Park
Upper Hutt City vs Napier City Rovers, 2pm, Maidstone Park
Wellington United vs Wairarapa United, 2pm, Newtown Park
Lower Hutt City vs Palmerston North Marist, 2pm, Fraser Park
Kapiti Coast United vs Waterside Karori, 2pm, Weka Park

Mainland Region

FC Twenty 11 vs Nelson Suburbs, 11.30am, Avonhead Park
Rangers vs Western, 12pm, A&P Park (Blenheim)
Selwyn United vs Coastal Spirit, 2pm, Foster Park
Cashmere Technical vs Ferrymead Bays, 2pm, Garrick Park

Southern Region

Old Boys vs Grants Braes, 2pm, ILT Football Turf
Northern vs Mosgiel, 2pm, Forrester Park
Dunedin Technical vs Roslyn Wakari, 2pm, Tahuna Park
Green Island vs Queenstown Rovers, 2pm, Sunnyvale Park