Tauranga's Arataki Park came alive with the sights and sounds of schoolboy rugby on the first day of the 2013 Tai Mitchell tournament.
Five matches on two fields across four hours made for some exhilarating running rugby in fine conditions yesterday.
A number of contenders have already emerged for the
ultimate prize to be decided on Wednesday afternoon at Blake Park.
Te Puke announced themselves with a quality 71-0 win over Whakatane early in the day, before Galatea staged a remarkable comeback to pip Rangataiki 24-22.
Opotiki looked full of running in beating Rotorua Gold 30-5, while the battle for Tauranga ended up split right down the middle. Tauranga East and West shared the spoils 17-17 in a high quality affair that ultimately does more for the competition's other sides than it does for either of the combatants.
