Second half power surge shuts down Turbos
Mitchell Scott is held by the Manawatu cover defence as he attacks the Turbos' line at Lansdowne Park on Thursday night.
Tasman continued their blazing start to the National Provincial Championship rugby season, bagging their third consecutive five-pointer against Manawatu in Blenheim on Thursday.
The Turbos came to play, but were no match for a hungry school of Makos who prevailed 41-21 at Lansdowne Park, scoring 20 points in a scintillating 11 minutes during the second spell to put the match out of reach.
Leading into this one there were fears of over-confidence in the Makos camp. After all they were sitting pretty atop the premiership table and meeting the winless Manawatu, recently promoted from the championship division. But the senior players, and their coaching staff, were well aware of the dangers posed by the Turbos and demanded a lift in intensity, which they got.
As it did last week, the Makos' scrum set the platform. The lineouts functioned efficiently, despite the absence of shot-caller Joe Wheeler, and the defensive line was solid, except on two notable occasions.
With a proliferation of ball the backline operated effectively, finding space out wide on occasion and testing the Turbos' defensive patterns with some clever interpassing.
Marty Banks had his kicking boots on, nailing five penalties and three conversions for a total of 21 points while dynamic loosie Pete Samu bagged two tries, the second an effort a winger would be proud of.
The Makos' bench also came to the party. Coaches Kieran Keane and Leon MacDonald ensured all the reserves entered the fray, with several making a significant impact.
Banks opened the scoring after 10 minutes with his first penalty before his team mates, and the 3500 fans gathered on a crisp night, were given a huge wake-up call.
It was all too easy. Almost from the kickoff rangy winger Ambrose Curtis sliced through a gaping hole in the Makos defensive line to put halfback Kayne Hammington over beside the posts. First five-eighth Otere Black converted to give the visitors their first, and only lead of the match.
Four minutes later the home side had their first try. After opting for a lineout instead of a shot at goal from a penalty, Makos hooker Quentin MacDonald crashed over after his fellow forwards had mauled their way within a metre of the line.
They weren't finished. Concerted pressure, with the ball being used laterally, eventually paid off as the Turbos ran out of defenders on the left, allowing Samu to stroll over. Banks missed the conversion but nailed his second and third penalties before the break to push the margin to 21-7. In contrast, Black missed two reasonably handy chances to close the gap.
After oranges the visitors enjoyed some early dominance. A Robbie Malneek tackle saved what seemed a certain try but the veteran could do nothing about their second shot at the line. Black produced a pop pass for Semisi Masirewa to burst on to and the big winger was unstoppable as he swerved his way to the line. Black's conversion reduced the margin to seven but, unfortunately for the visitors, that was as good as it got for them.
Trael Joass and Jimmy Cowan entered the fray, for Kieron Fonotia and Billy Guyton respectively, and made their presence felt as the Makos took the wind completely out of the Turbos' blades.
The points came thick and fast. Banks kicked his fourth and fifth penalties before replacement winger Viliami Lolohea created the home side's third try, the best of the night. He chased a Cowan bomb and came to ground with the ball, then got back in play to set Samu free on the right flank with a clever flick pass. The flanker never looked like being stopped as he galloped to the line.
Six minutes later Cowan banked the bonus point try with a typical snipe around the fringes of the breakdown and the Makos fins were well and truly up.
But Manawatu, who had defended gallantly all night, had the final say on attack when they were awarded a penalty try by referee Glen Jackson after skipper Shane Christie was alleged to have tripped Turbos opposite Callum Gibbins as he went for the ball in the in-goal area.
The introduction of Makos' favourite Vernon Fredericks from the bench thrilled the home crowd, who nearly had a fairy tale finish as the big loosie, recently recovered from brain surgery, was held up over the tryline on two occasions.
His fellow loosies again had a big say in proceedings. Christie, Samu and number eight Liam Squire, who the Makos used as an effective "exit man" on most occasions, were outstanding. Props Tim Perry and Siosuia Halanukonuka, hooker MacDonald plus locks Alex Ainley and Marco Kotze were a powerful and hard-working tight five while Banks and midfielder David Havili were always threats to the line.
The Turbos will be disappointed by this performance. Their best were flanker Heiden Bedwell-Curtis, No 8 James Oliver, prop Michael Alaalatoa and Curtis, but overall it was an untidy effort. Highlanders midfielder Jason Emery was kept quite all night as the Makos held a mortgage on quality ball.
Keane was well satisfied with the outcome and the "very welcome" five points. "I thought that in the first half we played some of our best rugby," said Keane. "With a couple of more judicious calls we could have opened them up a few times, but that's to come.
"They scored pretty much a gift at the other end and we could have gone into our shells, but we didn't and I was really pleased about that. The boys got a bit annoyed and they hoed back in. That was a good sign for us.
"At times we looked in control. That's a real big plus for us now and we can take a lot of heart out of it."
The Makos coach said a bonus from the match was that the side had sustained no more serious injuries. "We have had a couple of [injury] issues which we have had to overcome. We have rotated players in and out of position and were able to give Vernon [Fredericks] a run tonight.
"It was quite delightful to see him back on the field and he made a great impact. He looked hungry."
Tasman now have an eight-day turnaround before meeting Otago in their fourth round clash at Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium next Friday.
TASMAN MAKOS 41 (Pete Samu 2, Quentin MacDonald, Jimmy Cowan tries; Marty Banks 5 pen, 3 con) MANAWATU TURBOS 21 (Kayne Hammington, Semisi Masirewa tries, penalty try; Otere Black 3 con) HT: 21-7
