Tech snatch last-gasp win
Fraser Tech snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to beat University 31-26 in a thrilling, highquality encounter played in soaking wet weather at Waikato University on Saturday.
Lock Peniasi Iowane came off the bench to score the matchwinning try on the last play, after Chiefs midfielder Charlie Ngatai coolly converted Ezra Dunlop’s late score that had put University 26-24 ahead in round five of Waikato premier club rugby.
The hosts – bottom of the ladder prior to kick-off – were on course for their second win of the season despite Tech scoring three opportunist five-pointers through Mastaka Tsuruya and Matty Lansdown’s brace of intercept tries.
Tech led 17-6 before University fought back with Phillip Manako touching down on half-time.
Ngatai’s boot kept scoreboard ticking over.
The one-cap All Black was flawless from the tee – kicking six from six – and looked assured at first five-eighth in his third match in seven days since returning from his 11-month absence because of concussion issues.
University were trailing by eight when Tech’s replacement halfback Jayden Watene was sinbinned for an off the ball incident.
The hosts took full of advantage of jis absence with Ngatai’s fourth penalty and Dunlop’s try giving them a two-point lead with five minutes left.
Tech applied late pressure, breaking from deep as they had done so often, and the tables turned when Watene returned from the bin a minute before University replacement Brogan Connor was yellow carded.
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Skipper Du’Plessis Kirifi boldly turned down two difficult penalties - that would have won the game - to push for a try in the dying minutes, which came courtesy of Iowane’s score that secured Tech a bonus point victory.
University deservedly got something - a losing bonus point that sees them rise two places above Te Awamutu Sports and Southern United and move off the bottom, but more importantly above the relegation trap door.
Tech trailed 6-0 in the early stages and had Chiefs hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho sinbinned before Lansdown - back after travelling to Hong Kong with the Chiefs development squad - put them on the front foot with breaks from his own 22, which led to Tsuruya scoring the game’s first try with the visitors going almost 90 metres.
Then two Lansdown intercepts - either side of Manako’s try and Ngatai’s third penalty - saw the Waikato juniors first-five go the distance twice to score under the posts.
Dunlop’s converted try was University’s match-winner until Iowane scored at the death for Tech’s fourth win of 2017, which
keeps them third on the ladder with University climbing to eighth in defeat.
Hautapu are the competition’s runaway leaders after securing maximum points for the fifth game in a row and they scored seven tries to beat Te Awamutu 45-15 at Memorial Park in Cambridge.
Te Awamutu are now bottom after Bradley Slater, Peni Rokoduguni and Sekope Moli each grabbed a brace to keep Hautapu top and they move five points clear of second-placed Hamilton Old Boys, who slipped to their first defeat of the season after losing 22-16 at Otorohanga.
Viliame Seuseu, Tamaki Kopa and Sanivalati Ramuva touched down for Otorohanga, who stay fifth after beating last year’s finalists - Melville and Old Boys - in consecutive weeks.
Fourth-placed Hamilton Marist moved to within a point of Tech after holding off a stern effort from United Matamata Sports to win 39-33 at Marist Park.
Matamata’s losing bonus point lifts them to seventh on seven points and champions Melville, who stay sixth, returned to winning ways by beating Southern United 26-13 at Collins Road.