Rugby: Otago wipe out Tasman's playoff hopes

Aaron Bancroft of Otago. Photo / Getty Images

Otago 21
Tasman 0

Tasman's scant semifinal hopes were dashed at Carisbrook as fellow Air NZ Cup rugby also-rans Otago muscled their way to a clinical 21-0 win.

Tasman needed victory and ideally a four-try bonus point to keep their season mathematically alive, a scenario removed from the equation once Otago had banked all their points by halftime.

A week after losing 0-41 to Southland, Tasman were unable to recover in the 12th round match and were soundly beaten, particularly once drizzle swept the ground to hamper their enterprising gameplan.

Tasman's task was made even harder when a refereeing blunder stymied their only genuine scoring opportunity, not that it influenced the outcome.

Wing Lucky Mulipola was quizzical when denied a try in the 29th minute when Jonathon White ruled he had been held -- momentarily at best -- by Aaron Bancroft before crossing in the corner.

Trailing 0-14 at that point, Bancroft compounded Tasman's woes when he chased down former New Zealand Warrior Michael Witt's league-style grubber to the in goal on the cusp of halftime.

While Tasman had a legitimate gripe with the Mulipola score, there was no denying Otago's almost total dominance at the breakdown and set piece while their defence was impregnable.

An early territorial advantage was rewarded with a handy ninth minute penalty by first five-eighth Glenn Dickson following a ruck infringement and the scoreboard ticked over regularly before the match lost its shape as drizzle intensified.

Otago's lead expanded four minutes later on the back of the most compelling movement of the match, sweeping interplay between backs and pack set up the opening try for loosehead prop Ben Nolan.

Midfielder-cum-wing Andrew Parata was the catalyst when breaking the line close to halfway, Bancroft ate up more metres before the forwards took over for hooker Peter Mirrielees to produced a superb offload on the short side for Nolan to collect and surge 5m to the line.

Dickson missed the conversion but added a 19th minute penalty from a similar angle after Tasman were again forced to infringe while camped on their line.

He slotted another penalty before retiring with a head knock as Otago were content to increase their score in multiples of three, a morale-boosting win rather than a four-try bonus point their priority.

Otago improved to 10th -- their finishing position last season -- while Tasman joined the Hawke's Bay's side of 2006 in becoming the only team to be held scoreless in two consecutive matches.

Tasman remain eighth and at least avoided a second half rout ahead of next week's final round match against semifinalists Wellington in Blenheim.

Meanwhile, nomadic former All Black prop Kees Meeuws finally celebrated his 50th appearance for Otago, a dozen years after making his debut for the province.

Meeuws lasted until the final quarter while Otago's current All Blacks forwards Adam Thomson and Tom Donnelly emerged unscathed ahead of tomorrow's naming of the 33-man squad to tour Japan and Europe.

Otago 21 (Ben Nolan, Aaron Bancroft tries; Glenn Dickson 3 pen; Michael Witt con) Tasman 0. Halftime: 21-0.

- NZPA