Rugby: Taranaki continue winning ways

Taranaki winger David Smith. Photo / Getty Images

Taranaki continued an impressive start to the ITM Cup by beating Bay of Plenty 24-15 at New Plymouth tonight.

Bay of Plenty had a mountain of possession in their favour but Taranaki defended stoutly while their slick backline showed clinical finishing touches to make the most of their opportunities.

It marked Taranaki's third successive win following a first round loss at home to Northland and meant they will remain near the top of the standings after the fourth round is completed this weekend.

Taranaki, who led 24-7 at halftime, worked overtime on defence to make up for the shortcomings in the possession stakes, particularly in the third quarter as they soaked up continuous pressure from the visitors.

Bay of Plenty lacked a game-breaker and for all their honest toil they rarely threatened to break down a determined Taranaki defensive screen until the 71st minute when Phil Burleigh cut through a gap in the midfield before drawing the last defender and leaving replacement wing Ben Smith with an unimpeded run to the line.

Bay of Plenty had plenty of ball and field position in the first half only to find themselves heavily in arrears at the interval after Taranaki scored three tries, the first to flanker Scott Waldrom, who stretched full length in the tackle after charging on to a pass from Brett Goodin after the halfback skirted around a ruck near the 22.

They only had to wait nine more minutes for their second, with second five-eighth Jayden Hayward touching down in the 20th minute after Bay of Plenty wing Lelia Masaga dropped the ball in midfield and Taranaki wing David Smith toed ahead.

Bay of Plenty had the numbers in defence to extinguish any danger but the ball slipped from their grasp, leaving Hayward the simple chore of pouncing on it over the line as Taranaki stretched out to a 17-0 lead.

The visitors hit back 11min later when a rolling maul from a lineout saw skipper Colin Bourke emerge with a try before Taranaki again extended their advantage thanks to the classy intervention of fullback Kurt Baker.

Baker burst through a hole before chipping ahead, chasing, regathering and offloading in the tackle for Smith to pick up the spoils 6min before halftime.

Taranaki 24 (Scott Waldrom, Jayden Hayward, David Smith tries; Willie Ripia pen, 3 con) Bay of Plenty 15 (Colin Bourke, Ben Smith tries; Dan Waenga pen, Phil Burleigh con). Halftime: 24-7.

- NZPA