The win breaks a seven-year losing streak for the Whalers against their southern opponent.
The first half was hotly contested and both sides capitalised on opposition errors to put points on the board. After being forced to defend repeat sets against some strong ball-runners, the Whalers applied some attacking pressure of their own.
Strong-running centres Terrence Reid and Hyrum Martin bolstered the Whalers’ attack.
Reid collected three tries from some elusive running and impressive footwork at the line to send the defence scrambling.
Martin scored a try of his own and carried the ball with great strength to lay the attacking platform, busting tackles with his incisive running lines.
At the halftime break the scores were level at 20-20 and coach David Reedy told his side that if they were to eliminate some of the basic errors, and hold on to the ball for longer periods of time, they would take the game away from the opposition.
The Rams’ determined first-half efforts came at a cost and several interchanges were used to sustain the high work rate required to keep the Whalers at bay.
The pace of the game did not slow in the second half, and fatigue seemed to set in for the Rams’ defence.
Otago was able to find gaps out wide, built on solid performances being put in around the middle of the field.
Hagan Free stood out, topping the tackle count for his side with 37 hits, and his 16 hit-ups were, again, the most of any Otago player.
Free was supported in the middle by hooker Sam Johnstone who was named man of the match for his two tries, 37 tackles, and countless dummy-half runs that caught the defensive markers off guard.
The Whalers lifted their intensity in the second half and ran in seven unanswered tries.
The conditioning levels of the Whalers were tested and their impressive second-half showing was a testament to the efforts of their trainer Dallas Wade.
A full 80-minute performance was needed to put away a good Rams side, and that is exactly what the Whalers provided.
The Whalers have a bye next weekend before travelling to Greymouth to take on the West Coast Chargers, who defeated the Tasman Titans 40-26 on Saturday.
Reedy said it was great to finally get a win over the Rams, but every game matters in this competition, so he will be making the most of the bye week to refresh and refine his side’s game plan, and start preparing for a strong West Coast team.
- Ricki Allan
