The Kia Toa Tigers and the South Pacific Raiders that notched up first-round victories when the Otago Rugby League Premier competition kicked off on Saturday.
The Tigers earned a tightly contested 26-22 win over the East Coast Eagles.
The momentum shifted regularly throughout the match but it was the experience of the Tigers that allowed them to close the game out.
Led by stand-in captain Vila Apuula in the absence of Shane Unahi, they seemed to slide straight back into their form from last season, despite having plenty of new faces in their line-up. Apuula and Taua Piri co-ordinated the attack from the halves and utilised their strengths by putting players into space regularly, leading to points being scored.
The Eagles have had to work a lot of new players into their team this season and despite the absence of key playmakers Sam Johnstone and Rawiri Manley, they looked threatening with ball in hand.
Hyrum Martin led the charge and scored an early try before succumbing to an injury that had him sidelined for the rest of the match. Terrence Reid was also impressive with several strong carries and solid defensive work.
The Eagles will be ruing a missed opportunity to edge a win over the reigning premiers, but look to be in a strong position early in the season.
The South Pacific Raiders put on a solid display of defence and came away with a 26-16 win over University.
The University side looked to have the upper hand early in the contest and was the first to score when James Devoe went over the line. However, the Raiders struck back shortly after and dominated the rest of the first half, going into halftime with a lead of 20-4.
Captain Manassah Kutia was crucial to the Raiders' success. He ran the ball hard into the University defenders and got his side plenty of metres. The Raiders' back line was also impressive. Jordan Ruatoe orchestrated play, and linked up well with Steven Campbell-Paniona to send the opposition scrambling.
University exhibited plenty of fight in a losing effort, though, especially in the second half. James Devoe and Tyson Ball showed their teammates how it was done. Devoe directed the play from hooker and scored three tries, and Ball crashed through the Raiders' line at will, while racking up 31 tackles.
Next week's round of games at Kensington Oval has the Tigers up against the Raiders, and University facing the Eagles.
