It wasn't all plain sailing for Eketahuna in their Wellington women's premier division rugby match with Marist St Pats in Wellington on Saturday.
A winning margin of 68-5 might suggest Eketahuna had things pretty much their own way but coach Sid Tatana noted it wasn't until the second spell that they
really took control.
"The first half was scratchy, we got there a bit late and the warm-up wasn't as good as it should have been," Tatana said. "We struggled to get any flow into the game for a while but the second half was excellent, we ran in some really nice tries then."
All told, Eketahuna scored nine tries and for the second week in succession hard-running midfielder Shakira Baker registered five of them. She relished the space provided by the inside back trio of Laura Gavin, Rebecca Mahoney and Maia Tua-Davidson and showed just why she is a member of the extended Black Ferns training squad.
"She (Baker) was outstanding but you couldn't fault any of the backs, they all did a great job," Tatana said.
Up front, Eketahuna struggled to match Marist St Pats in the set pieces through most of the first half but had the better of the battle for possession in the second spell. Props Kelly Hunt and Christine Wolland were top value in the tighter exchanges as were locks Raylene Reiri and Angie Taiaroa, while flanker Jess Bennett stood out for aggressive defence.
Just who Eketahuna will play on Saturdayhas yet to be confirmed but Tatana expected it to be defending champions Northern United, whom they beat comfortably on their way to winning the Fleur Trophy first-round series.
Tatana was wary, though, of a Northern United side who would be thirsting for revenge: "They will be gunning for us, we won't be taking anything for granted."
