Federation football: Lamb inspires Taupo
Taupo underlined their dominance of this season's WaiBop Federation League when they beat second-placed Claudelands Rovers 5-1 to lead the competition by six points. The win also returned the Challenge Shield to Crown Park, where Taupo repelled 22 consecutive challenges in the 2008-09 seasons.
What other sides would give to have the services of veteran striker Alan Lamb, who scored four goals for Taupo. He may have lost a yard or two of pace but he certainly hasn't lost his ability to find the net.
Rovers started positively and had the better of the first quarter, but Taupo took the lead through a Lamb volley with Robbie Williams scoring to make it 2-0 at halftime. Early in the second spell Rovers had what looked like a reasonable appeal for a penalty turned down and that proved to be decisive in the game.
Lamb scored to increase the visitors' lead and completed a second-half hat-trick with two goals from the penalty spot.
It was another frustrating day for Rotorua United coach Neil Rush. After an even opening quarter against Otumoetai, Laurie Scott gave United the lead they held until the break.
They took heart from that and dominated the early stages of the second half without adding to their tally.
Otumoetai gradually got back into the game and in the 70th minute Matt Fisher scored to tie the game up.
With 10 minutes left Otumoetai were unlucky when a rocket of a shot beat Andrew Gibbs but struck the inside of the post and bounced out, but within seconds they went ahead through Matt Collins.
Otumoetai then dominated and although Niki Te Miha was denied by a great reflex save from Otumoetai keeper Graeme Blisset they closed the game out with a Tim Miller goal.
At Stembridge Rd, AFC Fury were convincing 3-0 winners over an understrength Ngongotaha side, Melville United bounced back from last week's 7-1 loss to Taupo to beat Otorohanga 7-0 at Gower Park and the small pitch at Southey Park didn't yield any home ground favours as Tauranga Boys' College were beaten 3-1 by Old Blues.
The schoolboy side led 1-0 at the break but Old Blues coach Andy Legget re-jigged his formation for the second half, with Andy Cooper (2) and Hayden Fowke scoring the goals.
Federation 1 League: Claudelands Rovers 1 Taupo 5; Melville United 7 Otorohanga 0; Rotorua United 1 Otumoetai 3; Tauranga Boys' College 1 Old Blues 3; Ngongotaha 0 AFC Fury 3; Waikato Unicol 2 Whakatane Town 0.
Federation 2 League: Matamata Swifts 1 Rotorua United 3; Cambridge 1 Katikati 0; Tauranga City 2 Te Awamutu 0; Tokoroa 1 West Hamilton 0. HRFC Clube Alegria bye.
Motorsport: Stanaway stumbles
Tauranga racing driver Richie Stanaway had a weekend to forget on the streets of Monaco.
Competing in the second round of the World Series by Renault, Stanaway crashed early in Thursday's sole 45-minute practice session which left him with the task of learning the Monaco street circuit during a short qualifying session on Saturday.
He qualified 15th in the 26-car field and made some early passes in last night's race to reach 10th place before a jammed throttle put him into the barriers at the swimming pool chicane on lap 19.
Stanaway will be hoping for improved fortunes at the next World Series by Renault event at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium next weekend.
Yachting: Kiwi pair second
Tauranga's Jason Saunders and his Auckland teammate Paul Snow-Hansen have finished second in the men's 470 at the World Cup regatta in the Netherlands.
The Kiwis led for much of the Delta Lloyd regatta, the fifth of seven events on the World Cup circuit, but were adjudged to have been on the wrong side of the start line in the medal race which dropped them out of the gold medal position and into second.
The Irish crew of Owens Ger and Scott Flanigan got up to pip the Kiwis, with the Austrians in third.
It was still a good weekend for Snow-Hansen and Saunders, who were outside the top 20 at the 470 world championships in Barcelona earlier this month.
The Olympics-bound sailors, who qualified for the big show with a top-10 at last year's world championships, had four wins and did not finish a race outside the top three all week, at least until their medal race mistake.
They're now headed for Weymouth on England's south coast to prepare for the Sail for Gold World Cup regatta at the Olympic venue, which starts next week.
Crosscountry: Close run for twins
Tauranga's MacDonald twins have gone one-two to win the Tauranga Open crosscountry titles at Welcome Bay's Waipuna Park at the weekend.
Kyle MacDonald snared the win over the undulating 8000m course in 27min 41sec, with sibling Iain second in 28m 2sec, five seconds clear of Hamilton's Tim Stewart.
Masters runner Sally Gibbs was runaway winner of the women's title, covering the 4000m in 15min 4s, 42 seconds ahead of Tauranga Girls' College's Isabella Kirk and Hamilton Arianna Lord.
Tauranga Open crosscountry (Waipuna Park, Welcome Bay):
Men 8000m: Kyle MacDonald (Tga) 27m 41s 1, Iain MacDonald (Tga) 28m 2s 2, Tim Stewart (Ham) 28m 7s 3. Women 4000m: Sally Gibbs (Tga) 15m 4s 1, Isabella Kirk (Tga) 15m 46s 2, Arianna Lord (Ham) 15m 46s 3.
Hockey: Rare defeat
Outmoetai's Intercity hockey women's rivals are breathing easier after the reigning champions proved they are fallable by suffering a rare defeat at the weekend.
Rotorua Aces scored the upset in the first match of the women's Intercity trophy round when they downed Otumoetai 2-1 in a tense encounter.
In the game at Rotorua's Smallbone Park, Aces built up a 2-0 lead in the first half.
Bayleys Otumoetai's Dani Maunder reduced the margin to one in the second spell but the champions could not find the equaliser.
Bayleys Otumoetai salvaged a 3-3 draw in their men's premier match against Pukekohe Indians at Pukekohe. After opening up a two-goal lead they then felt the force of the skillful passing and dribbling of the experienced Indians players, conceding three unanswered goals before halftime.
An equaliser was scored in the second stanza but Otumoetai could not find the winner to give them the points advantage they so dearly required leading into the final week of matches after Queen's Birthday before the top six clubs are identified for the men's trophy round.
CMS Mt Maunganui were handed a painful lesson by the defending Intercity men's champions Thames Valley, whose penalty corner machine totally flummoxed the Mount's goalie Sam Elliott.
Ricky Clarke, a member of the national development squad, showed why the New Zealand selectors are keeping their eye on him as his rocket drag-flicks went left then right, high then low, to accumulate a tally of seven goals in the match, won 8-2 by Thames Valley.
The only goal Clarke he did not score came from a rebound from his PC flick which was gathered by Kobe Nicholson and slotted into the goal. In the final quarter of the game Mount managed a couple of goals from Lincoln Churchill, while Shaun Matthews, a new signing, displayed some speedy skills up front.
Mt Maunganui women are still searching for their first win of the season after being beaten 3-2 by Waikato University.
Mount produced their best form of the season and despite being 2-0 down at the turn they kept playing attacking hockey and were rewarded with two goals, both finished by young Katie Horan.
Samantha Savory worked industriously at pivot for the Mount, while her counterpart Brooke Neal performed well for Uni, particularly on defence.
Intercity hockey scores:
Premier men:
Otumoetai 3 (Jono Simmonds 2, Eli Bigwood) Pukekohe Indians 3, HT 2-3.
Thames Valley 8 (Ricky Clarke 7, Kobe Nicholson) Mt Maunganui 2 (Lincoln Churchill 2), HT 4-0.
Fraser Tech 7 Suburbs Old Boys 1, HT 3-0.
Waikato University 7 Waiau Pa 0, HT 2-0.
Rotorua Aces 10 Rotorua Indians 2, HT 6-0.
University Reserves 2 Onewhero 1.
Kohekohe 2 Te Awamutu 0.
Points: Pool A: Fraser Tech 15, Thames Valley 12, Mount 12, Kohekohe 6, Suburbs OB 6, Varsity Reserves 3, Onewhero 0. Pool B: Rotorua Aces 12, Uni 12, Otumoetai 10, Pukekohe Indians 10, Waiau Pa 6, Te Awamutu 3, Rotorua Indians 0.
Premier women:
Rotorua Aces 2 (Pirihita Rangitauira, Oriwa Hepi) Otumoetai 1 (Dani Maunder), HT 2-0.
Fraser Tech 8 Hamilton Old Girls 0, HT 5-0.
Onewhero 1 Te Awamutu 0, HT 0-0.
Waikato University 3 (Emma Andrews, Vanessa Martelli 2) Mt Maunganui 2 (Katie Horan 2), HT 2-0.
Franklin Barbarians bt Taupo by default.
Club rugby: Heated clash
Two teams that dropped out of Baywide division one met in an ill-tempered clash at Arataki Park on Saturday in the Seeka KI Western Bay of Plenty club rugby championship.
Arataki Black, unbeaten at the top of the table, met Katikati, who had only lost one game this season. Both teams are determined to regain their division one status for next season.
Arataki were first to score with an early penalty before a dominant forward movement had the visitors roll down field for the opening try. Arataki were awarded another penalty before Katikati scored two more tries.
Katikati's forwards were able to disrupt the home side's ball for most of the game and stop the free-running home backs from making headway. With five minutes to go the Katikati first-five's attempted drop kick bounced off the upright and into the hands of his winger, who was following up the kick.
Katikati scored and converted the try to take out the clash 25-6 but both sides will be reviewing playing numbers this week after three reds and two yellow cards were dished out during the game.
Matakana Island travelled to Tauranga Domain for a must-win clash with Tauranga Sports. Home advantage and a high penalty count against the islanders saw the well disciplined and fit Tauranga Sports side take it 22-7.
Mount Maunganui gave away their home ground advantage to travel to Te Puke and be part of the Rangiuru new ground opening, winning 15-10.
Te Puna at home was too strong for Rangataua, giving the visitors a 42-5 lesson.
Week 10 Seeka KI Western Bay senior scores:
Te Puna 42 Rangataua 5, Mount Maunganui 15 Rangiuru 10, Arataki Black 6 Katikati 25, Judea 17 Papamoa 27, Tauranga Sports 22 Matakana Island 7, Te Puke Sports bt Eastern Districts (no score available), Greerton Marist bt Arataki Red by default.
Standings: Tauranga Sports 44, Katikati 44, Arataki Black 43, Matakana 38, Mt Maunganui 35, Papamoa 30, Greerton Marist 19, Te Puna 19, Rangataua 14, Rangiuru 12, Te Puke Sports 11, Judea 11, Eastern Districts 10.
Volleyball: Tauranga teams top
Tauranga's women's teams have continued their dominance of the Midlands volleyball league in Rotorua at the weekend.
Tauranga A played Tauranga C first up, with the C team the only team to take a set off the As so far this season. Tauranga A started poorly, 11-4 down in the first set before losing it 25-22. The second set again started poorly for the As with a 6-1 deficit before they regrouped to win 25-23.
After a good start in the third set the As played well to win it 25-13. For the third time in four sets the As started poorly, finding themselves 8-2 down before recovering to win a close fourth set 25-23 and the match 3-1.
It was an absorbing, fast moving and entertaining game played with a high level of skill. For the C team Andrea Tauai and Melissa Cairns were outstanding.
Due to sickness and other commitments Tauranga A fielded a young team and played a two-setter rather than the normal one-setter system. Holly Boyle and Sally Davenport played the dual setter role well with Beniece Douch and captain Lisa Claassen hitting strongly on the outside.
Amy Hunter and Kim Wiersma controlled the middle of the net and all these players were well supported by experienced libero Leigh Gallagher.
In the second game Tauranga As beat a rapidly improving Rotovegas 3-0 ( 25-19, 25-15, 25-20) with Simone Head hitting well after shaking off a bug to return to the starting line-up.
Tauranga B beat Hamilton A and B with both games resulting in 3-0 victories. Tauranga C also beat Hamilton A 3-0, which must have last year's championship semifinalists wondering how to get their season back on track.
These results put the three Tauranga teams at the top of the Midlands league with two round left before the teams move on the the Auckland-based Northern League competition.
Tauranga A players Amy Hunter, Holly Boyle, Beniece Douch and Lauren Meyer and B players Julia Hartley, Alanah Thwaites and Anilise Fitzi have been selected in the New Zealand junior women's team to play at the Asian junior championships in Vietnam later in the year.
Midlands League games (Rotorua GHS Arena):
Men: Rotovegas b Mauao Black 3-2 (23-25, 25-13, 25-23, 19-25, 15-9); Hamilton Blue b Mauao Black 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-11); Tauranga b Hamilton Silver 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-17); Mauao Red b Hamilton Blue 3-0 (25-12, 25-20, 25-18); Tauranga b Rotovegas 3-2 (25-22, 16-25, 25-23, 21-25, 17-15); Mauao Red b Tauranga 3-0 (25-11, 25-15, 26-24).
Women: Rotovegas b Hamilton B 3-0 (25-9, 25-21, 25-16); Tauranga A b Tauranga C 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-23); Tauranga B b Hamilton B 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-13); Tauranga C b Hamilton A 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 27-25); Tauranga A b Rotovegas 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-20); Tauranga B b Hamilton A 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-23).
Rugby league: Pikiao fall short
Pikiao have fallen agonisingly short in their quest to make rugby league's Bay of Plenty premier league grand final.
Needing to beat Taupo by 14 points on Saturday, Pikiao came out on top 32-20 - heartbreak for the Warriors but great news for Tokoroa's Pacific who will now meet Otumoetai in August's grand final.
For Pikiao coach Selwyn Rikiti coming within two points of his club's first grand final for 15 years was hard to take.
"It's an empty feeling," he said. "I am gutted for the players that I pulled out of retirement and the guys that have been with the club all their lives. Heads were down when we walked off the field. There was a little bit of inexperience from our younger guys, plus mistakes and fatigue," said Rikiti.
Tauranga's Bay Sprint Couriers Otumoetai Eels cemented their spot at the top of the table with a clinical 46-14 victory over a Central side that has struggled all season.
The Rotorua team stayed with their more fancied opponents throughout the first half at Puketawhero Park, after the Eels' Matty Mason crossed for a try after just nine minutes. Central struggled to convert possession into points whereas the visitors seized their chance in the 20th minute when Hamuera Brooky glided through weak defence to score.
The home side then staged a mini fightback with two tries to livewire halfback Ypres Williams, making a welcome return from injury. But minutes from halftime Ryan Gordon scored from a cross kick to give the Eels a 16-10 lead.
The home fans may have thought an upset was on the cards but it wasn't to be, Otumoetai showing their class to score five second-half tries to just one from Central.
Otumoetai coach Brett Rodger said he was just happy to come away with a win after his side's "patchy" first half performance.
"We gave them too much ball and we were doing too much tackling but in the second half we started completing sets and ran away with it a little bit in the end," he said. "We had to work pretty hard, it wasn't our best performance but we got the points."
With three months until the grand final match-up, he said the team would now focus on the WaiCoa Bay competition, which gets under way in two weeks time.
"It will be a big step up in intensity and they play 12 interchange so that will make a difference to a few sides," he said. "Hopefully we'll make the finals of the WaiCoa Bay and then see what happens from there."
In the other premier match, Forestland beat Tauranga 32-18 at Grenada Park to finish fifth, while Pacific had the bye and the automatic two points. The top four finishers - Otumoetai, Pacific, Pikiao and Taupo - now have a week off before the WaiCoa Bay competition begins.
They will be joined by Waikato's top four of Taniwharau, Ngaruawahia, last year's champions Hamilton City Tigers and Turangawaewae for top eight round-robin and playoffs.
Tauranga Whalers, Forestland Falcons and Central Lions enter the second tier championship with Waikato's Hukanui and Hamilton Hornets.
Hamilton City Tigers won the Waikato championship by belting top qualifier Taniwharau 32-4. Their first game will be against Otumoetai at the Eels' Mitchell park home ground on June 9.
Premier: Taupo 20 Pikiao 32, Tauranga 18 Forestland 32, Central 14 Otumoetai 46. Points: Otumoetai 12 (points differential +153), Pacific 12 (+96), Pikiao 12 (+95), Taupo 8, Forestland 6, Tauranga 4, Central 2.
Premier Reserve: Taupo 44 Pikiao 38; Tauranga 16 Forestland 58; Central 20 Otumoetai 30; Ngongotaha 16 Pacific 14. Points: Mangakino 14, Pacific and Otumoetai 12, Ngongotaha, Reporoa and Pikiao 8, Taupo and Turangi 6, Central, Putaruru and Forestland 4, Tauranga 2.