Magpies swoop in a semis thriller
If you had told Hawke’s Bay and Otago before they met yesterday in Napier that it would take 100 minutes and 83 points to separate them, you would have been met with astonishment.
But vying for the right to face Bay of Plenty in the final of the Mitre 10 Cup Championship, the sides played out the season’s most gripping match as Hawke’s Bay claimed a 44-39 win.
With both sides running in five tries, the boot of Tiaan Falcon led Hawke’s Bay to a memorable win as the Magpies No 10 posted 16 points from the tee.
“At times there, I thought we were going all right, then we were under the pump, but we managed just to get it back there in the end,” Hawke’s Bay captain Ash Dixon said. “There was nothing in it. We’re just excited we’ve got another week.”
With the win, Hawke’s Bay book a chance at promotion and a shot at redemption against Bay of Plenty after being on the wrong side of a 51-24 punishment when the two bays clashed three weeks ago.
Bay of Plenty booked their spot in the final with a 64-3 thrashing of Manawatu on Friday night.
● There was a touch of controversy to Tasman’s 18-9 win over Auckland in the first Premiership semifinal in Blenheim, with Auckland having a try ruled out with the scores at 6-6.
A Harry Plummer kick found Salesi Rayasi on the left wing, who then put in another kick for Tumua Manu to pick up and take the ball across the chalk. Ruled a try on the field, the TMO overturned it and judged Rayasi’s kick landed on the touchline before Manu got to it.
Tasman went on to take the lead nine minutes later through a try to Quentin Strange and hung on to continue their unbeaten season.
● They will meet Wellington in the Premiership final, after they fought off Canterbury’s attempted comeback to close out a 30-19 win in the capital last night.
Wellington worked their way to a 17-0 lead at halftime before extending the gap to 24 points just six minutes into the second stanza.
With his side needing a spark, Canterbury captain Luke Whitelock drove across the line from close range. He was followed over by Shilo Klein, who bagged a double in quick succession to bring Canterbury within eight points inside the final 15 minutes.
However, their efforts for a miraculous recovery were put to bed by a 77th-minute dropped goal from Jackson Garden-Bachop, who finished with 15 points for the game.
As is the case for Hawke’s Bay heading into their final against Bay of Plenty, Wellington will be hoping to put the fixture between themselves and Tasman earlier in the season out of their memory ahead of next weekend.
When the sides met in round one of the competition, Tasman routed their foes from across Cook Strait 45-8.
Wellington 30 (T. Renata, J. Blackwell, B. Lam tries; J Garden-Bachop 2 pens, drop goal, 3 cons) Canterbury 19 (L. Whitelock, S Klein 2 tries; B. Cameron 2 cons). HT: 17-0.
Tasman 18 (Q. Strange, A. Nankivell tries; M Hunt 2 pens, con). Auckland 9 (H. Plummer 3 pens). HT: 6-3. Hawke’s Bay 44 (N. Fomai, P. RaketeStones, L. McClutchie, D. Flanders, M. Emerson tries; T. Falcon 5 cons, 3 pens). Otago 39 (M. Collins 2, S. McDowall, A. Morris-Lome tries; J. Ioane 4 cons, 2 pens). HT: 14-24.