Victory lets Martinborough stay alive in Cup

Results went much as expected when premier division rugby matches continued in Wairarapa-Bush on Saturday, although the wintry conditions meant some of the winning margins were less than predicted.

Big talking point was the 13-5 victory secured by Martinborough over East Coast, a win which means Martinborough are still an outside chance for Kapene Cup honours and that, conversely, East Coast are virtually guaranteed to finish among the also-rans in that regard.

The match was a hard-fought affair, with Martinborough managing to largely keep the lid on the attacking flair in the East Coast backline and scoring two tries to their opposition's one.

Pioneer picked up the maximum five points - four for the win and a bonus for scoring four tries - and maintained their unbeaten record when they beat Puketoi 29-5 at the Jeans St grounds in Masterton. Yet again promising outside backs Damien Kamo-Paku and Nikora Ewe were among the try scorers for a Pioneer side who certainly didn't have everything their own way against a plucky Puketoi side.

Bush Sports bounced back from their loss to Martinborough the previous weekend with a 27-7 win over near neighbours Eketahuna, with three of their star performers in Greg Archibald, Jake Tipene and Hamish Walker all getting their names on the scoresheet.

Carterton also ran in three tries in their 23-6 defeat of the Rams, and Greytown gave their hopes of qualifying for the Tui Cup main championship a little further down the track a boost with a 25-14 win over Marist. Marist were celebrating their old-timers' day and, while on the losing end, produced one of their better displays of the season.

Scoring details

Martinborough 13 (N. Hunt, E. Tilford tries; K. te Whare penalty), East Coast 5 (S. Allsop try).

Pioneer 29 ( N. Ewe, D. Kamo-Paku, J. Mason and G. Paku tries; T. Haira 1 penalty and 3 conversions), Puketoi 5 (B. Power try).

Bush Sports 27 (G. Archibald, J. Tipene and H. Walker tries; D. Bennett 2 penalties and 3 conversions), Eketahuna 7 (R. Tamani try, T. Meuli conversion).

Carterton 23 (D. Higgison, J. McFadzean, T. Vatuloka tries; D. Brown 2 penalties, 1 conversion), Rams 6 (M. Henderson 2 penalties).

Greytown 25 (S. Duffy, T. Isaac, G. Van Dalen tries, penalty try ; H. Meyrick 1 penalty and 1 conversion), Marist 14 (A. Balks, D. Mitchell tries; J. Goodger 2 conversions).