Pioneer outplay Eketahuna

Pioneer gutsed out a 6-3 win over Eketahuna in their Wairarapa-Bush premier division rugby match played at a wet and gloomy Park Sportsground in Masterton on Saturday.
Down to 14 men from late in the first half when midfield back Tommy Harmon was sent from the field, allegedly for a punching offence, Pioneer were often forced to rely on the desperation of their tackling to keep their line intact.
It spoke volumes for their tenacity that Eketahuna were unable to turn any of their attacking forays into five-pointers but it also told a story about the poor choices made by their opposition.
Often Eketahuna only needed to move the ball through another couple of hands to have Pioneer outflanked but on each occasion the ball carrier chose to either hold on to the ball or cut back inside and were gratefully swallowed up by the Pioneer defence.
General expectations were that Eketahuna, even without injured lock Dan Griffin, would have the better of the forward exchanges but as it happened there was very little between the two packs.
Pioneer certainly gave as good as they got in the scrums and mauls and were just as convincing too in broken play where the aggressive running of hooker Porky Henare and loosies Lee Ewe (before he left the field injured) Nathan Rolls and skipper Mike Harmon often made them valuable meterage.
Lock Brandon Young was a standout in the Eketahuna eight through his ability to take down clean lineout ball and his ruggedness in the mauls while Brendan Walker used his strength to good effect in the tight and Joss Tua Davidson and Rupeni Temani were prominent in the loose.
The sending off of Tommy Harmon placed huge pressure on the Pioneer backs to cover for his absence and they owed plenty to the organisational skills of fullback Joe Papaali, who not only "talked" a big game but also set a fine example with the sureness of his own defence.
There was a lot to like too about the swiftness of the service provided by halfback Victor Thompson, the hefty punting of first-five Tipi Haira and the sure tackling of centre Damien Paku.
The Eketahuna backs will look back on this game, which was filmed by Maori TV, as one of lost opportunities.
All too often took the wrong options when the goal-line beckoned. The pick of them was solid halfback Joe Hull.
Tipi Haira kicked two penalties for Pioneer and Joe Hull landed a penalty for Eketahuna.
While the gutsiness of the Pioneer win had to be the highlight of Saturday's premier division play there was also good cause for celebration in Greytown where the home team, who finished second-to-bottom in the Kapene Cup, beat Marist 24-6 to chalk up their second successive victory in the main championship. They now have an excellent chance to reach the semis while Marist's prospects of making it that far are looking anything but bright.
Brett Aitken, Johnny Avatea and Kingi Kaiwai scored the Greytown tries with Kaiwai kicking one conversion and Reece Lett two conversions and a penalty. James Goodger kicked two penalties for Marist.
Carterton picked up the maximum five points with their 38-3 victory over Featherston. Tomasi Kedrabuka, Cory Price, Sam Hull, Glen Bunny, Brock Price and Deon Field all touched down for the maroons and Jared Nyssen added four conversions. James Spicer kicked a penalty for Featherston.
East Coast maintained their unbeaten record with a 21-0 beating of Martinborough. Joe Feast and Dan Porter were the try-scorers with Porter also kicking two penalties, Nic Olson kicking one conversion and Zeb Aporo landing a field goal.
Friday's match under lights at Gladstone saw the home team score the necessary four tries to pick up a bonus point from their 25-0 win over Masterton Red Star. Bevan Morland, Inia Katia, John Bailey and Joesa Naivalu all scored tries and Bailey managed one conversion and one penalty.
The Eketahuna women's team are still unbeaten in the main championship round of their Wellington premier division competition, scoring nine tries in Saturday's 68-3 thrashing of Marist St Pats at Trentham.