Bay makes Manawatu pay

Bay of Plenty 33 Manawatu 15

Bay Of Plenty notched its first win in the Air New Zealand Cup but are still staring at that new element in first-class rugby: The repechage.

Formerly the province of rowers and canoeists, the repechage allows a second chance for teams like the Bay, who have been struggling a little after a draw which dished up Wellington, North Harbour and Auckland in successive weeks. Not surprisingly, they failed to paddle freely in those rapids but showed something of a return to their free-flowing ways against lowly Manawatu yesterday.

Manawatu's close-in defence left much to be desired at times and Bay halfback Jamie Nutbrown had a field day, slipping around the rucks and mauls before defenders knew he was there. He is a solid unit, perhaps not the fastest passer and mover in a No 9 jersey, but strong and equally useful on defence or attack.

When Manawatu forgot to plug the gaps close in - which was often - he made them pay. Manawatu's defence further out wasn't flash either and it was when Nutbrown got the ball in midfield that he wriggled past defenders and then turned on the gas for a fine try.

Another who benefited from the room available in this fixture was fullback Charles Baxter. A New Zealand sevens representative, he is a slippery customer and he scored his first try acting at dummy half and then sprinting away from the barely-existing Manawatu close cover. His second came from a simple double-miss pass and, 33-8 up at halftime, the Bay looked like they might keep adding value as quickly as beachfront properties at Mt Maunganui.

They lost their way in the second half as Manawatu performed the basics better - being rewarded with a penalty try after plenty of Bay of Plenty offending - as Bay emptied their bench with the game won.

However, though it was flawed, the win will still be a tonic for the Bay as they seek to maintain this form heading into the repechage rounds.

To beat Taranaki or Tasman out of a spot in the play-offs, however, the Bay might need better second half displays than managed here.

Bay of Plenty 33 (C. Baxter 2, J. Nutbrown tries; M. Delany 3 cons, 4 pens)
Manawatu 15 (N. Crosswell try, penalty try; R. Bambry pen, G. Smith con).
HT: 33-8.