Rugby: Bay make intentions Crystal clear

The Bay of Plenty Secondary Schoolgirls' rugby team have made an excellent start to their section of the Northern Region competition with a 27-0 win over Counties Manukau.

In order to give the Bay side the ideal build-up, the team travelled to the Counties region the day before the game and were hosted by James Cook High School in Manurewa. The team used the time together to further develop the team culture head coach Charlie Hurihanganui said.

"The girls arrived at the game venue fresh and ready to go."

The Bay side started well and led 15-0 at halftime and went on to post 12 more points in the second stanza.

"They stuck to their game plan, defended with authority and we used our impact players off the bench to good effect."

The Bay try scorers were Crystal Walters who dotted the ball down twice, with captain Kathleen Kelly, Shanelle Conwell and Maumahara Peita grabbing a try apiece, with Peita converting one of the five-pointers.

Hurihanganui singled out his team forwards of Kelly and assistant leader Lorelei Punga along with Natalie Delamere for praise.

In the backline, Walters, Mereseini Tuita and Peita had stand out games for the visiting side.

The team - drawn from throughout the Bay of Plenty and the Taupo region - will play their next match against Waikato at the Rotorua Girls' High School on Saturday.

The finals will be held on September 22 in Auckland.