In 1976 Pioneer lost to Mataura in first round but were more dominant.

After reading about the 1976 Eastern Teams I remember a game Pioneer had against Mataura.  It was gutting as we should have won this game as we were the dominant team but we just did not get the points on the board.

We were definitely the underdog on this occasion and it was about the opportunites that were lost through bad decisions and not getting kicking easy goals.  It was a great game for being first up and Pioneer matched Mataura in the forwards which was encouraging for the team.  Gus McAlister, Graham  McGowan and Gary Findlay dominated the lineouts for Mataura and when they received the ball and tried to pass it to their backs the Pioneer loose forwards spoiled it for them by ripping the ball off them or putting that much pressure on them they could not get the ball away.  Without a doubt I remember Jack Mulqueen who was playing at hooker kept harassing the Mataura forwards into making mistakes.  Captain for Pioneer Colin Pascoe supported him well and led by example, and Lindsay Pritchard inspite of being up against some great Mataura locks never gave up trying and always let the Mataura guys know that he was around.  In the tight Denis Murcott used his strength effectively.  Both backlines were as bad as each other and did not have the understanding of each other and lacked basic skills at times, and it was unfortunate that the ball seldom got out to the wingers.  Neville Broderick, the Mataura full back was probably the one that stood out and was always trying to do something with the ball, in his support was Kevin Merilees who was back from a break last season and if this is his first game for a while he will be a force to be reckoned with.  Paddy O'Sullivan first five for Pioneer kicked long and hard to try and gain ground for his team and at centre Lloyd Proctor made the most of the little ball he had.
Against the run of play Mataura led 8-0 at half time through tries from Merilees and Neville Broderick.  In the second half Melvin Robertson scored for Pioneer which gave the final score of 8-4.  It was very disappointing for Pioneer as this was the one aspect of their game they were trying to improve on.