Alhambra-Union captain Oliver Thode tries to get through Dunedin defenders Joe Cooke (left) and Tim Hogan at the North Ground on Saturday. Photo: Gerard O'Brien Dunedin 26 Alhambra-Union 22 This was truly the dance of the desperates. Dunedin went into the game at the North Ground with an unrecognisable pack due to injury and illness but still dominated the first 20 minutes of the game and had two tries to show for it. The first came after seven minutes when Highlanders first five Andrew Knewstubb fed centre Joe Cooke, who scampered 40m to score. Winger Max Morgan gratefully intercepted an errant pass after 20 minutes and had too much pace for the opposition. Things then started going wrong for the Sharks when Morgan was sinbinned. AU exploited the advantage and scored two tries of their own, both to blindside Oliver Church. The first came from a break down the blindside when he took the in-pass to go over, and the second was from a sustained period of attack close to the Dunedin line, leaving the game tied at 14-14. AU hid the ball from Dunedin for the first half of the second spell. The Sharks were not helped by a spluttering lineout. First five William Thode kicked a penalty then scored a bizarre try from broken play to give AU an eight-point lead with 20 minutes gone. Dunedin finally got their game together to apply real pressure and AU cracked. From a scrum close to the line, replacement loosie Louis Lepionka showed pace to score a try, and the Sharks hit the front with three minutes to play when No 8 Hame Toma crashed over for the converted try to give Dunedin their first win of the season. Dunedin lock Ben Joseph was all over the paddock on attack and defence, and won crucial lineout ball in the first half. Toma was a handful with ball in hand and Cooke was a rock in the midfield. For AU, Church showed his talent in the loose with an aggressive display and capped his game with two tries. — Paul Dwyer University 38 Harbour 19 How do you win a game of rugby from deep within your own half? You tackle, tackle, tackle. University mastered the art of attacking defence. They spent the best part of the first 20 minutes doing just that against Harbour at Watson Park on Saturday. The Hawks had a stiff, warm breeze at their back and they pounded away. But University put up a wall and then launched several raids to steal a 19-point march. Highlanders squad member Stanley Solomon provided the inspiration for the first try. He made a lovely run to the line and delayed a pass until a hole opened up. Centre Joe Parkinson finished off the move. Solomon pounced again moments later. He sprinted up, picked off a pass destined for the unmarked Peni Havea, and scampered 95m to score. That was a 14-point turnaround. University scored again to lead 19-0 before Harbour replied with a couple of tries to close the gap to 19-12 at the break. The score stayed that way until the final 20 minutes. University ran in three tries and secured a bonus-point win. Harbour scored on fulltime through centre Villiami Lea, who had a strong game. Hawks loosehead Benjamin Fakataha threw himself at the defensive line and No 8 Senita Lauaki tried hard to crack University’s impregnable defence. Lock Preston Moananu impressed for the Hawks as well. Will Stodart put in some hard yards on defence for University. Lock Mitchell Tinnock was a towering presence in the lineout. Solomon’s pace made a difference early and Rico Muliaina was assured at first five. Veteran prop Daniel Lienert-Brown rolled back the years with a standout performance. — Adrian Seconi Southern 38 Zingari-Richmond 20 Veteran Southern midfielder Paul Tupa’i posted a hat-trick before halftime to help set up a 38-20 win over Zingari-Richmond at Bathgate Park. The centre is one of the more seasoned players in the competition. Three years ago, he reached 150 combined games for Southern and Pirates, and he is still going strong. The Magpies were dominant early and led 26-5 at the break. Tupa’i’s hat-trick gave them the upper hand. But the Colours are more enterprising this season and they rallied. Openside Rupeni Koroi scored a cracking try from 40m out, and hooker A-One Lolofie and winger Joseph Hola crossed the line as well. The Magpies faithful would have felt a touch nervous. But blindside flanker Quinten Holland scored two tries in the final quarter of the game to help secure the win. Fullback Mackenzie Palmer was threatening whenever he took the ball to the line, and he knocked over four conversions. Lock Corban Agar impressed with another industrious shift, loosehead prop Caleb Hughes had a solid game and loose forward Flavius Roberts-Vili was named Southern’s player of the day. Veteran No 8 Mika Mafi left the field after about 10 minutes with a nasty gash on his head, and powerhouse front-rower Isileli Otunuku was unavailable at the weekend. That robbed the Magpies of two heavy ball-carriers. Lolofie had an excellent game in a spirited effort by Zingari-Richmond. Semisi Maasi showed some skill at first five and made some clever touches, and Koroi bagged two tries. — Adrian Seconi Taieri 40 Green Island 24 Taieri ran amok in the third quarter to leave Green Island floundering in the Battle of the Saddle. The Eels secured a four-try bonus point in the 40-24 victory in the Bezett Trophy and Robb Cup clash at Miller Park. Little separated the two teams throughout the first half. The game was a passionate affair, the forwards going hard at each other and the backs looking for gaps out wide. Shortly after Green Island scored from a quick tap, Taieri centre Josh Whaanga scored the first of his two tries. The conversion and a penalty to Archie Body handed the Eels a 10-5 lead. A yellow card had Taieri down to 14 men soon after, and Green Island pounced, scoring through fullback Reimana Saunderson-Rurawhe to take a 12-10 lead at the break. Straight after the break, the floodgates opened for Taieri. Archie Body converted the second of three penalties to hand the visitors back the lead. But it was only the beginning as the Eels then ran rampant, exposing gaps in the Green Island midfield to run in four tries in 15 minutes for a seemingly unassailable 37-12 lead heading into the final quarter. Both Joseph Cockburn and Marc Rooney proved threats out wide and safe in defence for the visitors. The bench players gave some fresh legs to a stunned Green Island. They assisted the Grizzlies in securing a four-try bonus point with two tries in quick succession. But it was all too little too late as Taieri regrouped for the final 10 minutes to lock the home side out. — Wayne Parsons Round 5 The scores Dunedin 26 (Joe Cooke, Max Morgan, Louis Lepionka, Hame Toma tries; Darcy Porter 3 con), Alhambra-Union 22 (Oliver Church 2, William Thode tries; Thode 2 con, pen). Halftime: 14-14. University 38 (Joe Parkinson, Stanley Solomon, Tom Devery, Oliver Hatch, Charles Engelbrecht, Mitchell Tinnock tries; Rico Muliaina 4 con), Harbour 19 (Benjamin Fakataha, Rique Miln, Jeff Ikani tries; Miln 2 con). Halftime: University 19-12. Southern 38 (Paul Tupa’i 3, Quinten Holland 2, Josiah Sakaria tries; Mackenzie Palmer 4 con), Zingari-Richmond 20 (Rupeni Koroi 2, A-One Lolofie, Joseph Hola tries). Halftime: Southern 26-5. Taieri 40 (Josh Whaanga 2, Sam Fischli, Finn McDonald-Page, Nick Henderson tries; Archie Body 3 con, 3 pen), Green Island 24 (Kane Dynes, Ronan Dynes, Reimana Saunderson-Rurawhe, Bradley McPhate tries; Isaac McAuliffe 2 con). Halftime: Green Island 12-10. STANDINGS.– P W D L PF PA B Pts Green Island 5 4 0 1 193 112 4 20 University 4 4 0 0 167 105 4 20 Southern 5 3 0 2 150 145 5 17 Harbour 5 3 0 2 119 101 3 15 Taieri 4 3 0 1 107 85 2 14 Kaikorai 4 2 0 2 125 94 4 12 Dunedin 4 1 0 3 107 149 3 7 Zingari 4 0 0 4 75 160 2 2 Alhambra-Union 5 0 0 5 90 182 1 1
