It was Glen Beadle's day. The speedy Taieri winger scored three tries to grab his second hat trick in premier rugby on Saturday.
Last year's champions showed good early season form when they ran in 11 tries to outclass Green Island 65-7 in the local derby at Miller Park.
It is Beadle's fourth season in premier rugby and he also started last season with a hat trick of tries. He has now scored 17 premier tries for Taieri.
He ran 50m down the touch line for his first try and his second came at the end of a crisp passing movement when he gathered the ball from a grubber kick inside the Green Island 22m.
Beadle is keen to find a permanent spot in the champion Taieri team.
There was a big difference between the two teams. Taieri played as a team of 15 against 15 individuals in the Green Island team.
A feature of the Taieri game was the support play by backs and forwards. There was always a man there to take the next pass. The passing was slick and this created gaps.
Taieri scored five tries in the first spell to lead 33-7 at the break and added six more in the second spell.
One of the younger players to impress was busy little halfback Will Cosgriff. He is quick to the breakdown and his speedy passes gave the experienced Hayden Parker and Michael Collins the chance to control the game.
It was Parker who set the game alight with a jinky 18m angled run to the line for the second Taieri try. He scored 20 points with two tries and five conversions.
His second try, midway through the second spell, was the best of the game. It started behind the Taieri goal line when Collins initiated the attack and the ball went through 10 pairs of hands.
Parker is in the Highlander's squad and was released by their management to play club rugby on Saturday.
''I've always enjoyed coming back to club rugby and playing for Taieri,'' Parker told the Taieri Times.
''There are a lot of my mates here and I enjoy having a run around with them.''
Midfield back Michael Collins played with confidence and initiated attacks from his own goal line that ended in tries at the other end.
His play has matured and he is now playing a dominant role in club rugby.
Willis Scott and captain Charlie O'Connell are the workhorses in the Taieri pack.
The blindside flanker has developed the knack of turning up at the right spot. He did this to score Taieri's first try when he crashed over in the corner.
Support play has always been a feature of his game and he showed this at Miller Park to keep up the continuity of the Taieri attacks.
O'Connell has played a key role in moulding Taieri into a winning combination since it returned to premier rugby in 2009.
''We managed to score some tries from good structure,'' O'Connell said.
''But there is still a lot to work on. We have the quality players that can line it up from anywhere but we still need to concentrate on executing our structures.''
The lineout was disappointing against Green Island.
Taieri's first big game of the season is on Thursday when it defends the Speight's Challenge Shield against Harbour at Peter Johnstone Park. Harbour beat University A 24-13 on Saturday.
The best players for Green Island were Jackson Hemopo at No8 and lock Jamie Waller in the forwards and halfback Baker Leota and midfield backs Fapene Popoali'i and Tino Elisara.
Waller has been playing premier club rugby for Green Island since 2005 and scored only his third try in premier rugby on Saturday.
''We have set targets to improve the standards of our game this year,'' he said.
Taieri v Green Island
Taieri 65
Glen Beadle 3, Hayden Parker 2, Michael Collins, Will Cosgriff, Willis Scott, Josh Larsen, Brodie Hume, Ben Miller tries; Parker 5 con.
Green Island 7
Jamie Waller try; Tino Elisara con.
Halftime: Taieri 33-7.
