Taranaki pay tribute to Wainui by sealing top spot over Manawatu¯
Taranaki have honoured former team-mate Sean Wainui in fitting fashion, on his birthday, sealing top spot in the NPC Championship division with victory over Manawatu¯ in Inglewood yesterday.
Wainui, who died in a car crash on Monday, played seven seasons with the amber-andblacks from 2014 to 2020, and in a clearly emotional team performance, where players frequently celebrated tries by pointing skyward, the Bulls ran out 47-35 winners in the top-of-the-table clash at TET Stadium.
Taranaki remain the only unbeaten team in the competition, now going seven from seven and also making it seven straight wins against the Turbos, who were already guaranteed second spot before this game.
Having not beaten the Bulls away since 1986, Manawatu¯ gave it a decent nudge with a secondhalf comeback seeing them get within four points with quarter of an hour left, but the hosts’ class in the end shone through in their six-tries-to-five performance.
Turning at 25-7 down after Taranaki piled on three tries in the final 10 minutes of the first half – including a double to halfback Liam Blyde – the Turbos needed to smartly get themselves back on track, with their gameopening try feeling like an age ago.
And, with Nehe MilnerSkudder
turning back the clock and putting on some lovely touches, they certainly did.
A Milner-Skudder flick pass saw Tima Fainga’anuku powerfully burst through Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens for the first points of the second stanza.
The Taranaki fullback quickly made up for that, winning a ruck penalty on his own goal-line, and a few minutes later the hosts restored their 18-point advantage when a long lineout throw set play had Stephen Perofeta surging 30 metres to score.
Manawatu¯ hit back on the hour via Ed Fidow, then went