Warren Wairau, key player in his Bluff team's upset win over Star in 1986.....

Probably the biggest upset in club rugby for 1986 happened when Bluff beat Star, 31-16 which put the latter team down into third place.  The loss was totally unexpected and this now puts Invercargill at the top and Woodlands in second place.A

It was probably a case of "nothing to lose" for Bluff so they pulled out all stops and took risks, which paid off for them.  Bluff constantly ran at the Star defence, which eventually wore them down and mistakes started creeping into their game.  
The Bluff forwards were fired up and they intimidated Star into making unforced errors.
Warren Wairau, first five eight for Bluff controlled the backline with both his passing and kicking. His decision making was spot on  and was the player of the game. Another Bluff backline player to impress was winger Simon Mareangarau who showed his pace and side steps to run in two great tries.
Although the Star team had some key players missing in Southland representative's Kieren Flynn and Craig Johnson and then Colin Molloy left the field at the 20 min mark with a shoulder injury, it was not excuse as they still had the strong nucleus of the team.
Bluff obviously thought they had the game won as they let in two soft tries to Michael Parry, half-back for Star, which made the score look a bit more reputable.
Bluff: Simon Mareangarau (2), Tony Ladbrook, Greg Fife, Jeff Tongia (1) Rangi Puki ( 4 CON) (1DG)
Star: Michael Parry (2), Alan Monaghan (2PG) (1CON)

Reference:  The Southland Times June 1986 "Bluff Beats Star in Upset"

Article courtesy of The Southland Times 1986.