The Otago Whalers suffered a hard-fought 18-10 loss to the Southland Rams at the Gore Showgrounds on Saturday.
Southland pinned the Whalers to their own try line early and forced them to defend for successive sets.
Rams hooker Daniel Low spotted a gap around the ruck, and snuck over the line to open the scoring less than five minutes into the game.
The Whalers’ woes continued minutes later as Low darted around the ruck to get his second try.
Once the Whalers got some possession, they hit the Rams defenders at pace.
Whalers captain Sam Brame led the charge by taking several powerful hit-ups that sent the Rams defenders scrambling.
The momentum gained in the middle of the field gave the Whalers’ backline opportunities to display their skills.
Centre Tama Apineru used his pace and strong fend to evade tackles and Jordan Ruatoe, who scored three tries for the Whalers last weekend, crossed over in the left corner.
The remainder of the opening half was a fierce contest.
Both sides had opportunities to score but could not find the finish.
The Rams held the lead 12-6 at halftime but it was the Whalers who scored first in the second spell.
Fullback Taua Piri took advantage of a penalty by taking a quick tap and running straight over the try line.
The conversion was unsuccessful, leaving the Rams nursing a 12-10 lead.
The score remained unchanged for the next 30 minutes.
The Whalers had to play a man down after losing Hagan Free to the sin bin for 10 minutes.
Free had had a phenomenal work rate in the match, making countless tackles and taking a lot of hit-ups for his side, but frustration got the better of him and after one too many complaints to the referee, he was sent off.
With the game in the balance, Rams centre Logotaeoao Peteru grabbed the match-winner.
The Whalers’ next assignment is against the Tasman Titans in Nelson next weekend.
