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Patumahoe Hotel has taken out the first round and consolidated its position atop the standings thanks to a nail-biting 26-24 win over Ardmore Marist South Auckland Motors at Patumahoe yesterday.

A mid-range penalty attempt with time elapsed could have seen the visitors steal victory but the kick sailed wide and Jeff Maka’s side celebrated a job well done.

Star representative forwards Fotu Lokotui and Joe Royal led the way with strong performances while the class of midfield back Sam Furniss was again at the forefront of everything Patumahoe did.

First-five Jonny Wilkinson had 16 points to join his Ardmore Marist counterpart Solomona Paraki at the top of the AS Wilcox and Sons leaderboard on 84 points on the season.

“It was really good,” Maka said after the game. “I think the boys really deserve it.

“We never thought we would come out of the first round in first place so they need to take all the credit for that.

“I think that is what winning does to a team. It brings the boys together. The brotherhood is really important in our team culture so the winning helps them continue to grow that.”

Experienced halfback Shae Furniss was heavily involved on an emotional day for Patumahoe. His grandmother and respected member of the local community passed away in the lead-up to the game.

The win comes at a cost for Patumahoe however with skipper Tamati Fromm picking up an MCL injury while outside back Harley Jenkins pulled up with a hamstring injury.

Ardmore Marist had to fight to get back into the game late and gave themselves a chance of grabbing victory late in the game. They debated whether to attempt the shot at goal from a wide angle or bang the ball into touch and keep attacking.

Having led the competition for the majority of the first round Ardmore-Marist reaches the halfway point in fourth spot.

Manurewa Kidd Contracting took a 31-17 win over Waiuku Brian James Contracting in the Counties Power Game of the Week.

Experienced referee Simon Brown controlled his final match in the fixture.

Manurewa did all the hard work early but had to hold off a charging Waiuku in the second spell

“We started well,” coach Josh Levi said. “I think the first half was where we just wanted to build on last week and we did that. Credit to Waiuku they came back and scored 17 points, which shows they are a team that won’t give up. We went off structure and folded back to lazy kind of rugby.”

Levi’s side faces a huge hurdle to start the second round as they meet fourth-placed Ardmore-Marist. A win would really close the gap to the top sides while a loss would make it difficult to chase down.

“We still have a mathematical chance of making that top four if we win our games and other results go our way,” Levi said.

“Next week will be a huge game.”

Bombay Gough Cat finished the first round a solitary point behind Patumahoe after a 38-20 win over Te Kauwhata EnviroWaste.

The visitors raced out to an early lead and took a 33-6 lead into the break but lost their way in the second spell as Te Kauwhata fought back.

“It was a bit frustrating to be honest,” coach Jeff Marr said. “We went out there and had a really good first half but it was a case of the old cliché of it being a game of two halves. We went off the boil and didn’t really get any impact in the second half, a few errors and frustration at some refereeing decisions.

“We had the four tries in the first quarter and we were ticking all the boxes. We lost our structure and they took advantage of that.

“They are building nicely down there.”

Onewhero Bulk Haulage continued their strong finish to the first round with an impressive 17-13 win over Pukekohe Mitre 10 Mega.

It means Onewhero is clear in fifth place and will look to continue that momentum into the second round.

“It was a great result for us,” assistant coach Elliot Hira said.

“We utilized our possession and made some in-roads through our midfield. Our forwards were really strong, we probably dominated them up front and our set piece was really strong.”

The result is the third straight win for the club and gives them momentum heading into the second round.

“We set a goal from the start of the season to try and compete with the big boys and make the top four,” Hira said.

“If we can stick to our game plan then I think we can do that.”

Karaka ended the round with a 93-5 thrashing of Papakura Ray White to hold third place at the completion of the opening round.

Craig Hill’s side piled on a staggering 15 tries in the dominant display after leading 57-0 at halftime.

“We kept our structure pretty well and a lot of good options were taken,” Hill said.

“We certainly let loose that’s for sure.

“We had three guys on debut so it was good to get them out there.”

While the competition has thrown up so upsets and remains wide open Hill thinks the leading sides – Patumahoe, Bombay, Ardmore-Marist and his Karaka team have been the sides that have been better on average most weeks.

“I think it has been the most consistent sides. As you’ve seen some of the results have been up and down but those four teams have been the most consistent.”

In premier 2 action Pukekohe and Ardmore Marist Ross Roof Group reversed the results of their premier sides as they picked up wins over Onewhero and Patumahoe Hutton Builders respectively. Other teams to get wins were Bombay Pokeno Bacon, Karaka and Manurewa.

Weymouth and Te Kohanga recorded victories in premier 3 play while Patumahoe Albycon Ltd, Karaka, Pukekohe and Papakura all had wins in Under 21 action.

McNamara Cup (Premier 1) 

Te Kauwhata EnviroWaste 20

(Peniueti Lausii, Taniela Tuivai tries; Vilitati Sabani 2 cons; Vilitati Sabani 2 pens)

Bombay Gough Cat 38

(Faafouina Loau 3, Shaun Muir, Mitchell Thackham, Tulolo Tulolo tries; Ki Anufe 4 cons)

HT: 6-33

Onewhero Counties Bulk Haulage 17

(Richard Paulsen, Luke Makris tries;  Luke Makris cons; Luke Makris pens)

Pukekohe Mitre 10 Mega 13

(Sione Olive tries;  Joe Reynolds cons; Joe Reynolds pens)

HT: 17-6

Karaka (Counties Power Cup Holders) 93

(Kalione Hala 3, Deniro Refiti 2, Nicholas Worthington 2, Sunia Vosikata 2, Dylan Du Plessis 2, Seluini Molia, Ralulu Bavou, Desma Liaina, Cardiff Vaega tries; Cardiff Vaega 7, Antonio Lavemai 2 cons)

Papakura Ray White 5

(Taafaga Tagaloa tries)

HT: 57-0

Patumahoe Hotel 26

(Siosiua Pole, Fotu Lokotui tries; Jonny Wilkinson 2  cons; Jonny Wilkinson 4 pens)

Ardmore Marist South Auckland Motors 24

(Sione Tuipulotu 2, Viliame Rarasea, Cameron Flavell tries; Solomona Paraki 2 cons)

HT: 13-12

Waiuku Brian James Contracting 17

(Irwin Finau 2, Zachariah Tupu tries; Zachariah Tupu cons)

Manurewa Kidd Contracting 31

(Loiloa Vea, Gene Te Amo, Viliami Taulani, Michael Robertson, Paki Afu tries; Bradford Lemalufaito 2 cons)

HT: 0-7

Bob Chandler Memorial (Premier 2) 

Te Kauwhata 3 Bombay Pokeno Bacon 56; Onewhero 19 Pukekohe 32; Karaka 57 Papakura 20; Patumahoe Hutton Builders 15 Ardmore Marist Ross Roof Group 22; Waiuku 3 Manurewa 31

Sid Marshall Shield (Premier 3)

Weymouth 67 Maramarua 10; Te Kohanga 33 Puni 24

Massey Cup (U21) 

Manurewa 0 Patumahoe Albycon ltd 32; Karaka 39 Bombay 20; Pukekohe 37 Ardmore Marist Ross Roof Group 19; Waiuku 12 Papakura 26

Under 85kg: 

Karaka 41 Bombay Lincoln Farms 15; Patumahoe Pak N Save 23 Drury 10; Waiuku 17 Ardmore Marist 26

Women’s:   

Ponsonby 0 Ardmore Marist 24; College Rifles 27 Manurewa 27; Waiuku 5 Waitakere 52

First Grade – Manurewa 19 College Riffles 11

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