The gap between the top three and the bottom three in Citizens Shield rugby widened on Saturday, with a total of 31 tries scored in the three games.
Leader Old Boys scored nine tries as it beat Athletic Marist 54-15, Valley ran in 10 tries on its way to beating Maheno 64-0 and Excelsior scored seven tries as it defeated Kurow 50-18.
Old Boys piled on 32 points in the first half against Athletic Marist. Etuini Latui and Tai Aholelei swapped penalties in the first 10 minutes before Unga Kefu scored for Aholelei to convert and take Old Boys out to a 10-3 lead.
A try to Athletic lock Jon George and a Latu conversion made it 10-10 midway through the half. Old Boys then piled on the points with tries to Una Ofa, Adam Barnard, Sale Pi'I and Aholelei, with only one converted, to give Old Boys a 32-10 halftime lead.
A second try to Halelei took Old Boys out to 37-10 before Dylan Winter scored for Athletic. Old Boys finished with a rattle with Kefu, Pi'I and Tala Fagasoia scoring tries with Ralph Darling adding a conversion.
Excelsior produced a blistering final 20 minutes to beat a gutsy Kurow side 50-18 after leading 15-10 at half time with tries to Tyron Davies and winger Tafuga Sa who scored the first of his three with Ray Gutsell adding a penalty and a conversion.
First-half tries to Kurow No 8 Fred Manthe and prop Elliott Booley kept Kurow in contact. A second Manthe try early in the second half saw Kurow draw level before the gates opened as Malu Falepaaini, Sa (2) and Jamie Rhodes touched down, for Chris Talanoa to convert all the tries. Willie Tree kicked a penalty for Kurow.
Valley led Maheno 28-0 at halftime at the Maheno Domain with Blair Malcolm (2), Josh Collier and Mark Roney touching down and Roney converting all four tries. Second-half tries to Eric Duff, Roney, Brad Oliver, Collier, Rowan McKenzie and Shane Sole, with Roney adding a further three conversions, took Valley clearly into third place.
- Terry O'Neill
