While the tier 1 women suffered a 5-1 loss to North Harbour, the tier 1 men staged a stunning comeback to beat the same province 5-2.
The Otago men made a terrible start to their clash when they coughed up two goals inside the first nine minutes.
Clearly, it was just a self-imposed handicap, as Otago then ran riot.
Three penalty corners in the space of eight minutes gave the home side a 3-2 lead as Kieran O’Connor (twice) and Jordan Ward found the target.
Ward grabbed his second just before halftime, and brother Patrick completed the rout with a field goal in the 52nd minute.
Otago, which tops pool A in the tier 1 men’s competition, plays Hawke’s Bay today.
So, too, do the Otago women, who showed grit at the start and finish of yesterday’s game but had a poor patch in the middle.
It took 17 minutes for Harbour to score first, but the northerners then took command as they fired in four goals in six brutal minutes.
Tegan Buchanan had the last say with a field goal as Otago played much better in the second half.
North Harbour, Canterbury and Auckland are two from two in the women’s competition, and the spicy battle of the bridge is today.
The Otago tier 2 men beat South Canterbury 4-0.
Josh Stevens (two), Liam Williams and Daniel Torr scored goals for Otago.
