A six-try blitz in the second half secured the Tasman Mako a 46-17 win over the Southland Stags in Nelson on Saturday. Jimmy Taylor and Scott Gregory were late scratchings for the Stags. But they had a good start when halfback Nic Shearer threw a dummy and scored. The Stags put in a hearty shift defending their line until Lopeti Faifua broke the line up the middle. The ball eventually found its way to Mako captain Johnny Lee to finish. Sam Fischli charged down the ball as Tasman went to finish and pounced to score Southland’s second try. But the Mako hit back when fullback Maloni Kunawave threw a wide skip ball to Kyren Taumoefolau to score. It locked the game 12-12 at halftime. It was a relatively even game in the first half and the Stags would have been pleased with their performance. But then came the onslaught. The Mako had a beautiful passage, shifting the ball edge-to-edge down the field to eventually score through Will Thornalley. The Stags set a solid rolling maul, Shearer chipped it over and Fletcher Morgan got on the end of it. But there was no stopping the Mako from there. Faifua and Kunawave scored within five minutes of each other to push the score out. The Mako darted around the Stags defence and put on a show to score through David Havili, Taine Robinson and Taumoefolau again. Remarkably, the lethal Taumoefolau has broken the Tasman record for tries in a season with 10 five-pointers in just four games. Southland host table-toppers Hawke’s Bay on Thursday night. NPC The scores Tasman 46 Kyren Taumoefolau 2, Johnny Lee, Will Thornalley, Lopeti Faifua, Maloni Kunawave, David Havili, Taine Robinson tries; William Havili 2 con, Robinson con Southland 17 Nic Shearer, Sam Fischli, Fletcher Morgan tries; Mika Muliaina con Halftime: 12-12.
