Hawke's Bay 8 Wellington 6
KEY POINTS:
It was hard to say what was more shocking: Clint Newland's brutal right hook that floored All Black prop Neemia Tialata, the fact it happened under the noses of the referee and touch judge and neither saw it, or Hawke's Bay toppling Wellington.
The Bay summoned all their
anger and energy to beat their franchise neighbours but the match might live longest in the memory for a first-half incident that would have had "bring-back-the-biff" proponents drooling.
Newland took exception to a hand being laid on him while he was lifting his lock in a lineout. He lashed out, crashing a fist into the unsuspecting Tialata's jaw.
It had all the makings of a cheap shot and while the prone prop was being attended to there was a general expectation that Newland would be following Tialata off the field courtesy of a red card. Inexplicably, neither referee Bryce Lawrence nor his assistant Gary Wise spotted the infringement and Newland was free to wreak havoc for the rest of the match.
You suspect he won't be so lucky when he faces the judiciary.
Wellington coach Aussie McLean refused to comment on the incident, saying he did not want to detract from the home side's victory. He did say, however, that Tialata most likely suffered a concussion and his condition was being monitored by doctors.
The incident cast a small shadow over what was otherwise a fantastic effort by Hawke's Bay in front of an enraptured McLean Park crowd.
The victory started in the front row, too, where loosehead prop Faka'anaua Taumalolo destroyed All Black John Schwalger, who was switched to tighthead when Tialata was incapacitated.
With time running out and the Bay clinging to that tenuous two-point lead, Wellington launched a series of attacks. Somebody obviously got into Taumalolo's ear because he launched a withering verbal attack on No 8 Chris Masoe and Schwalger before almost single-handedly peeling back the Wellington scrum.
He did it again as time ran out, ensuring the Bay a famous victory.
The vaunted Wellington side that embarrassed Otago in their cup opener missed the flight to Napier, leaving in their place a shadow of that side.
Piri Weepu and Jimmy Gopperth handled the atrocious conditions in a manner which suggested they had never come across inclement weather in the capital.
The only thing that kept Wellington in the match was the fact that the normally reliable Matthew Berquist's radar was off and his replacement kicker Aayden Clarke was little better.
The spectre of the first 0-0 championship draw loomed until Gopperth nailed a 53rd-minute penalty.
He kicked another one, too, but that was just the signal for the Bay forwards to get rolling. A penalty and a driving try completed their scoring but it was enough.
"The boys are ecstatic, that was a great team effort," Michael Johnson, skipper in the absence of injured Danny Lee said. "We're bloody happy with that."
No kidding. Whether the smiles are as wide after the judiciary has met is another matter.
Hawke's Bay 8 (G. Naoupu try, A. Clarke pen) Wellington 6 (J. Gopperth 2 pens). HT: 0-0.
