Soccer: Ngongotaha slump to 3rd

Rotorua United's victory eases relegation worries After leading the WaiBop Federation League for the past several weeks, Ngongotaha now find themselves sitting in third place after a 3-1 loss to Waikato Unicol.

Taking just one point from six in their last two games, Ngongotaha are six points away from the top of the table. While it was a disappointing result for the Villagers, it was not totally unpredictable as Unicol have shown they are capable of beating any team on their day.

At Neil Hunt Park, Rotorua United delivered the result their supporters wanted, when they beat Melville 3-1.

The win lifted United above Melville, and although their relegation worries are far from over, the singing in the dressing room post-match showed how much this win meant.

With much at stake for both teams, it was a tentative start but United opened the scoring in the 10th minute when a good free kick was met by Shadley Peterson, who made no mistake. Melville had a chance to level late in the game but United hung on to take a 1-0 to the break.

Five minutes after the restart, Gary Hamilton-Irvine latched on to a through ball with a powerful finish. Minutes later it was 3-0 when Peterson scored from a good cross to the far post. Melville were rewarded with a late consolation goal.

Matamata attacked Taupo from the start and were worth their 1-0 lead at half time but, after the break, it was Taupo on top and only the Matamata keeper kept his side in the game. Alan Lamb equalised late from the penalty spot to give Taupo a valuable point.

AFC Fury retained their lead after a 3-1 win over Tauranga City while Tauranga Old Blues moved into second place after beating Otumoetai 5-0. Whakatane Town beat Cambridge 2-1.

In division two, Rotorua United were thrashed by Papamoa 7-1, HRFC beat Tauranga City 4-0, Te Awamutu beat Matamata 5-1 and West Hamilton lost to Cambridge 1-0.