Leading 14-13, Otago had the chance to seal the game in the dying stages, but could not hold an offload which would have seen them score. From there Counties-Manukau worked their way up field and mounted a drive from halfway into the 22. They went a handful of phases, before Otago were penalised contesting the breakdown.
It was an error-ridden game, as neither side got their flow on, making too many mistakes and missing too many tackles to apply pressure.
Counties-Manukau got the scoring under way with a try to Jimmy Tupou, before Otago hit back via Craig Millar. Piers Francis kicked a penalty to give Counties-Manukau a 10-7 lead at the break, Naulia Dawai scored for Otago shortly afterwards, before Counties-Manukau clawed their way back with two penalty goals for the win.