It was a Saturday evening 11 years ago that Wayne Ormond decided he deserved a couple of beers.

It didn't stop at two. Now he can admit 'it was a couple of beers that went on for two days.”

Wayne Ormond, Steamers only ever Ranfurly Shield winning skipper. Photo: Bruce Barnard.

It was probably an officially sanctioned 48-hour bender because Wayne had just entered the pantheon of Bay of Plenty rugby greatness.

The gritty no-nonsense ‘loosie' had become the first and only captain of a Bay of Plenty rugby team to win the Ranfurly Shield.

'I sure was.” He is still quietly proud, not just for him, for the team, for Bay of Plenty.

'The silent executioner in the pack” was how one leading rugby scribe labelled Wayne that day. ‘Auckland ambushed' screamed one headline. ‘Bay of Plenty Shock Auckland' said another. ‘Huge Upset' said yet another.

And when referee Kelvin Deaker blew full-time the scoreboard read Bay of Plenty 33, Auckland 28. Oh the joy!

'I just remember Glen Jackson's smile. It was pretty special. It was pretty damned cool.”

Wayne is now hoping memories of that glorious day will be carried onto McLean Park in Napier tomorrow to inspire a repeat of history.

‘Fearless' is the word he suggests today's Steamers take into the Ranfurly Shield challenge against Hawke's Bay. 'Do not be scared. Anything is possible. If you have a positive attitude you can achieve anything.”

Attitude and a few star players that is. Because in 2004 the unfancied Steamers had 'class” right across the park that day.

'Adrian Cashmore, Nili Latu, who's Tonga's Rugby World Cup captain, Anthony Tahana, the late try scorer and Jackson.” Jackson bewitched and bedazzled, scoring every way possible – a 23-point bag. Stuff of legends.

And, of course, yesterday's points machine is today's controller – Jackson is off to Europe with his Acme Thunderer where he will join the Rugby World Cup referees panel.

Wayne can't recall any pressure that Saturday afternoon at Eden Park. 'We were playing Auckland and weren't expected to win. That may have helped us.”

But when they ran onto the field they were overwhelmed. There was a relatively small crowd of 12,500. 'But most of them were supporting us. It was amazing.”

Eighty minutes later, when it was all over, Nili Latu sank to his knees on Eden Park. Was the 'electro charged” flanker just spent or was he giving thanks to the rugby gods for a famous victory?

There were tears of joy. BoP's craggy number eight Paul Tupai reportedly wept because he was taking the Log o' Wood home to the Bay. He cried at full time and it's understood he was crying the next day.

Our euphoria was matched only by Auckand's misery.

They bungled try scoring opportunities and penalty attempts. 'Gut wrenching” said a crestfallen Auckland captain Angus MacDonald. The country's richest and most powerful union at the time bumped by the Bay.

'They were definitely hurting,” says Wayne. 'They were expected to win and they felt it.” Especially when MacDonald had to surrender the shield to Wayne.

Is it only sport where you can legitimately delight in someone else's misfortune?

'Look,” says Ormond, 'you have to remember we had fallen short so many times before.” Eighteen times in fact. 'So it was pretty cool.”

The bus must have been rocking on the return trip to Tauranga. 'Oh yeah!” That's when Wayne probably decided to have those couple of beers… for two days.

Two days later he was back at practice. They successfully defended the shield once and then turned it over to Canterbury. '13 All Blacks in that team,” explains Wayne.

But it couldn't take away. Wayne Ormond and Bay of Plenty rugby had become part of Ranfurly Shield folklore.

This year's coach Clayton McMillan and co-captains Culum Retallick and Carl Axtens could do worse than taking this story and message into the sheds McLean Park tomorrow.

Wayne might just be sitting in the stand tomorrow. The player becomes the supporter – time to give back.