Halfback Daniel Kauika took over the captaincy from the injured Ben O’Leary and, despite a heavy ruck blow which saw his eye nearly swelled shut, maintained strong game management.
Lock Rongomai Mclean-Wanoa set up tries for fullback Te Heru Reu Koro and reserve Lachlan Fisher with excellent offloads, while stealing several throws from Rātana’s lineout.
Hooker Cyprien Bernard matched it well with Rātana up front and showed good speed to race out to the wing and score what proved the decisive second-half try – set up by Mclean-Wanoa and reserve back Jamie Robertson.
Veterans CJ Stowers and try-scorer Brett Joyes put in a solid day’s work.
While missing a couple of key players through injury, Rātana welcomed the return of player-coach Jamie Hughes, the Steelform Whanganui incumbent coming on early in the first half.
Fullback Rangi Kui kept his side in touch with a couple of long-range penalty kicks, and then went all-out to score in the corner on full-time to bring in the bonus point.
Having lifted up to third on the table, Marist coach Steelie Koro was pleased to have buried the ghost of their 2024 loss on the same ground, which cost them a semifinal berth.
“It wasn’t a flash win, but we’ll take those ugly wins and learn from it, but it’s a good stepping stone.”
Koro praised the injured Kauika’s effort.
“He’s hard as nails, you’d have to prise him off the field – he won’t sub off.
“We got a few leaders capable of stepping into those captaincy roles, because he’s going to have to put his face in an ice bath.
“But that just goes to show the mana he has for this club, the commitment he has to his rugby, because a lot of players would have looked to the sideline and said ‘get me off’.”
Mclean-Wanoa’s three try assists and excellent set-piece performance stood out.
“He’s been a great player over the last couple of weeks with his ability to pick up loose forwards – he’s just about as fast as the wingers and he’s been huge in the lineouts.”
For Hughes on a personal level, he was happy enough with his comeback game.
“Went on a little earlier than I thought I was going to go on, but got through – good shift.”
Key for his side with a lot of young players is staying cool in the pressure moments.
“Just [conceding] penalties and last passes – dropping the last passes when it could have led to something else.
“Still proud of the boys today, especially the forward pack, a lot of young fellas as we had three to four injured out of last week’s game.
“Hopefully we’re on for a good second round – hopefully everyone’s back and fit and good to go."
