Error-ridden Turbos blown away
Manawatu¯ Turbos’ players averted their gaze from coach Jeremy Cotter as they trudged off after being whacked 50-17 by Otago on Saturday night.
Skipper Antonio Kiri Kiri apologised to the green brethren after his team had leaked a horrific 31 points in the final 18 minutes, and 43 straight points in 43 mininutes, as they fizzled out.
It was so demoralising that even the buckethead fans abandoned their bleachers early.
This was against Otago, chasing their first win and looking ripe for plucking when down 17-7, with the hot Manawatu¯ backline having bolted in for two tries in two minutes. All Rob Thompson, Junior Laloifi and co needed was a clean supply of ball to put Otago away.
Sadly, they didn’t get it and Otago did the putting away. Again, the Turbos lacked control and missed a bonus point by one try.
Otago’s lineout in the westerly was horrible, operating at 60 per cent, but Manawatu¯ ’s went the same bobbling way, having the same downstream effect as the scrum, which had capitulated in Taranaki the previous week.
A painful re-run of the match tape showed plenty of green bodily effort, even if too much of it was individuals chasing blueclad Fijians. Accuracy and composure were missing and eventually that morphed into panic under pressure.
The Turbos sensibly didn’t box-kick this game, but they seldom rotated through phases before coughing up the ball 22 times. They couldn’t exit their danger zone either.
‘‘I’m stunned, to be honest,’’ Cotter said. ‘‘The lineout had a malfunction and things flowed on from there.’’
That the Turbos were over-run in the final quarter begs investigation. Cotter said the coaches always question themselves first and they will look at the players’ training load last week – and maybe the oxygen expended in the Ranfurly Shield challenge.
‘‘Shipping 50 [points] at home is just not allowed,’’ Cotter said. ‘‘Home games are ones you don’t want to lose.
‘‘You can put it down to errors and the set piece. I think the tails dropped, to be honest, and they [Otago] lifted their intensity.’’
It wasn’t a record home collapse, though. Thompson was in the Canterbury juggernaut who sconed Manawatu¯ 57-7 on the Boneyard in 2015.
This time the Turbos have only a few days to make miraculous amends, before fronting Canterbury at Christchurch on Thursday. Sports psychologist Luke Rowe helped Feilding Old Boys-o¯ roua recover to be club champions this year after two similar hidings, so it was reassuring to see him on the Turbos bench on Saturday.
It seems they have lost Jade Te Rure (elbow), prop Fraser Armstrong (possible broken arm) and flanker Jackson Iose (possible dislocated knee from his Manawatu¯ Development XV game). Prop Faalelei Sione also hurt his neck.
Otere Black (knee) won’t be back before Northland on September 14 at the earliest, so Sam Malcolm will stay at first-five.
Liam Mitchell gave his all, as did Hamish Northcott, Michael Alaalatoa with a sore back, Jamie Booth, with his quickfire bursts and coping with lineout junk, and Thompson, who could easily wear black and who featured in all three tries.
But all that was submerged by the half-ton scoreline after too many no-look passes, kicks charged down, lineouts won and lost, ball carriers left isolated, ball squirting out of fingers and seven tries conceded. It became a pandemic.
Scorers: Otago 50 (Dylan Nel, Naulia Dawai, Michael Collins, Matt Whaanga, Don Brighouse, Jona Nareki, Melani Matavao, tries; Josh Ioane 6 con, pen) Manawatu¯ 17 (Rob Thompson, Junior Laloifi, Faalelei Sione, tries; Jade Te Rure con) HT: 14-17.
The two Mitre 10 Cup pacesetters are set for an early showdown, with Tasman and Auckland putting their unbeaten records on the line when they meet at Eden Park in Auckland on Friday.
Tasman, last year’s beaten finalists, continue to lead the premiership standings after beating North Harbour 32-20 at QBE Stadium. It was the Mako’s first win in Albany since 2009.
Tasman were boosted by the inclusion of All Blacks Shannon Frizell and Tim Perry, Frizell getting himself on the scoresheet when he drove over from a ruck after half an hour.
Leon Macdonald’s men have looked impressive in the early stages of 2018, successfully navigating their way through a reasonably tricky opening schedule. But Auckland away is set to be another tough assignment for a team which has only once won its opening four games.
Auckland trail Tasman only on points differential. They accounted for Waikato 35-17 at Eden Park on Thursday, with Jordan Trainor and Robbie Abel bagging doubles in another impressive performance.
But while Auckland are flying high with three wins from three – their best start since 2013 – the same can’t be said for Waikato, who are are treading water in the championship and remain winless after three weeks.
The Mooloos’ task doesn’t get any easier this week either, hosting Wellington in Hamilton on Wednesday.
Wellington will enter that match after an impressive 52-7 rout of strugglers Southland at Westpac Stadium on Friday.
Ben Lam continued his prolific 2018 by collecting a hat-trick of tries as the Lions scored at a rate of one point every minute in the first half. All Blacks flanker Ardie Savea also crossed for a five-pointer.
To Southland’s credit they put
At a glance
Taranaki 26 (Lachlan Boshier, 2 Beaudein Waaka try; Beaudein Waaka 3 pen, con) Counties Manukau 19 (Kalolo Tuiloma, Tevita Nabura, Tony Pulu try; Latiume Fosita con, Luteru Laulala con). HT: 8-12.
Auckland 35 (Jordan Trainor 2, Robbie Abel 2, Salesi Rayasi tries; Harry Plummer 2 pens, con; Jacob Umaga con) Waikato 17 (Mosese Dawai, Samisoni Taukei’aho, Kylem O’donnell tries; Fletcher Smith con). HT: 20-7.
Wellington 52 (Ben Lam 3, Thomas Umaga-jensen, Asafo Aumua, Tolu Fahamokioa, James Blackwell, Kaliopasi Uluilakepa tries; Jackson Garden-bachop 5 con, TJ Va’a con)
Southland 7 (Bill Fukofuka try; James Wilson con). HT: 40-0.
Canterbury 31 (Josh Mckay 2, Daniel Lienert-brown, penalty try tries; Brett Cameron 3 con) Bay of Plenty 19 (Chase Tiatia, Tyler Ardron, Terrence Hepetema tries; Mike Delany 2 con). HT: 14-12.
Otago 50 (Dylan Nel, Naulia Dawai, Michael Collins, Matt Whaanga, Donald Brighouse, Jona Nareki, Melani Matavao tries; Josh Ioane 6 con, pen)
Manawatu¯ 17 (Rob Thompson, Laloifi Junior Laloifi, Faalelei Sione tries; Jade Te Rure con). HT: 14-17.
Tasman 32 (Tima Faingaanuku, Will Jordan, Shannon Frizell, Finlay Christie tries; Mitchell Hunt 2 pen, 3 con)
North Harbour 20 (Gerard Cowleytuioti, Matt Duffie tries; Bryn Gatland 2 pen, 2 con). HT: 22-13.
Counties Manukau 29 (Tevita Nabura, Dan Hyatt, Joe Royal, Matiaha Martin tries, Latiume Fosita 3 con, pen) Hawke’s Bay 25 (Jonah Lowe 2, Josh Kaifa, Folau Fakatava tries, Tiaan Falcon con, pen). HT: 7-10.
Northland 18 (Tom Robinson Tamati Tua tries, Matty Wright con, 2 pen) Taranaki 17 (Latu Vaeno, Manasa Mataele tries, Beaudein Waaka 2 con, pen). HT: 10-17. in a much more competitive showing in the second half and managed to avoid their record 84-0 defeat, which came against Canterbury in 2012. But still, things are looking pretty bleak down south.
Canterbury, meanwhile, remain just one point behind Wellington after a double to Josh Mckay lifted the defending champions to a come-from-behind 31-19 win over Bay of Plenty at Tauranga Domain on Saturday.
Bay of Plenty, who already had two Premiership scalps to their name, led 19-14 early in the second half but were unable to close out the game as they suffered their first defeat.
Otago banked their first win of 2018 after a second-half blitz catapulted the side to a comfortable 50-17 victory over Manawatu¯ at Central Energy Trust Arena on Saturday.
Down 17-14 at halftime, Otago scored 36 unanswered points in the second half. They have now won six of their last seven against the Turbos.
To make matters worse for the home side, Manawatu¯ lost firstfive Jade Te Rure to a suspected broken arm which could be a season-ender.
Sitting behind Canterbury in fifth place are Taranaki. The Ranfurly Shield holders banked their second win of the season as fullback Beaudein Waaka scored 21 points himself to anchor a tight 26-19 win over Counties Manukau earlier in the week.
Counties bounced back yesterday though, with captain Matiaha Martin scoring a 77th-minute matchwinner as the Steelers came from behind to edge Hawke’s Bay 29-25.
In the last match of the round, Northland kicked a penalty on fulltime to beat Taranaki in Whangarei 18-17.