SAS College Rugby League review - May 28

29/5/2014
AUCKLAND RUGBY LEAGUE
SAS College Rugby League review – May 28
For Immediate Release

SAS College Rugby League Game of the Round - Otahuhu 40 beat Papakura 18

It shaped as a tight contest between two schools tied on points at the end of pool play, but one of them had other ideas at Otahuhu College on May 28.

Papakura had lost a host of players just prior to kick-off, but didn’t let that affect the way they started, scoring first through centre Brodie Boyce.

Fullback Tipene Turiranga converted to take his side out to a 6-0 lead after five minutes.

The home side were quick to reply, with bulking prop Ilola Oneone striding 60 metres to score under the posts.

A spate of Papakura errors allowed Otahuhu to cross for three more tries in rapid succession, with fleet-footed centre Alfred Smalley, interchange player Jamel Hunt and back-rower Brandon Nangaiti all going over.

Sitting on a 22-6 lead at the break, Otahuhu were completely in control, but a slow start to the second stanza meant they conceded first.

Back-to-back sets saw Papakura wear their opponents down, with hooker Justin Wave dotting down to get the margin back to 22-12.

Dreams of a comeback didn’t transpire however – Otahuhu instead running in further tries to Nangaiti, who collected a double, David Pala and Aviata Tanielu to blow the margin out.

The final score of 40-18 made ugly ready for Papakura, with a late consolation try doing nothing to improve their mood.

They will be sweating on the fitness of star playmaker Arthur Crichton and a host of other experienced players looking ahead to next week.

Wrap of the rest

There are no guarantees in this year’s SAS College Rugby League.

Mt Albert Grammar proved that last week with an upset victory over St Paul’s, and Western Springs reinforced it with a 22-16 win against 2013 runners-up Kelston seven days later.

Kelston dominated much of the game, scoring four tires, compared with Western Springs’ three.

Goal kicking was the difference though, with Nikora Ngaropo kicking 3/3 for Springs, and Kelston failing to convert a single attempt.

Staying out west, competition newcomers Massey pushed Henderson all the way before eventually going down 20-14 in the local derby.

The Challenge Cup was up for grabs out at Mt Albert Grammar, with the holders hosting Tangaroa College. In a tight affair it was the strong running game of prop Junior Lisone, younger brother of Junior Warrior Sam Lisone, which kept Tangaroa in the contest.

In the end Mt Albert proved too strong, making the most of the impact offered by Sydney Roosters-signed second-rower Rueben Porter to win 20-14.

Westlake cruised to a 34-0 victory over Auckland Seventh-day Adventist, while St Paul’s bounced back from last week’s loss to record a comprehensive 32-0 win over Aorere.

A hat-trick of tries by hooker Iese Aiga helped Papatoetoe run out 34-4 winners over Lynfield, and Southern Cross got the better of James Cook, victorious by 24-16.

Out at Manurewa the home side claimed a 30-0 win to continue their excellent start to 2014, while Pakuranga took care of Mt Roskill 34-14.

SAS College Rugby League full round results

Westlake 34 Auckland Seventh-day Adventist 0. HT: 28-0
Henderson 20 Massey 14. HT: 10-8
Kelston 16 Western Springs 22. HT: 12-4
Mt Albert 20 Tangaroa 14. HT: 16-10.
Aorere 0 St Paul’s 32. HT: 22-0
Pakuranga 34 Mt Roskill 14. HT: 16-10
Papatoetoe 34 Lynfield 4. HT: 22-0
Otahuhu 40 Papakura 18. HT: 22-6
Southern Cross 24 James Cook 16. HT: 10-10
Manurewa 30 Sir Edmund Hillary 0. HT: 30-0.

ENDS

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