Football: Tauranga Boys' College lead Waibop Premier table

Tauranga Boys' College are top of the Waibop Premier table.

The unpredictable nature of the 2018 Loaded WaiBOP Premiership was underlined on Saturday after the previous top two sides were defeated and new leaders emerged.

Papamoa and Melville United both suffered 3-0 losses away from home, while the fine run of Tauranga Boys' College continued. Their fourth win in six mean they now lead the pack.

Tauranga Boys' ability to find the back of the net was the difference as they were forced to grind out a 3-1 victory at a West Hamilton United side that had topped the table several weeks ago.

Hashim Noorzai's spot kick for West Ham had the teams level at one apiece in the second half, but the students weren't to be denied. Regular goal scorers Lewis Reid, Adam Davidson and Stanley Rust all hit the back of the net to ease their side to a well merited three points.

This form is something of a turnaround for Tauranga Boys' who toiled at the wrong end of the table in recent seasons.

It's clearly something that was coming, however, as a good group of players have been working and growing together for several years and are now playing the type of football that is good to watch and, just as important, successful.

Papamoa and Melville both faced tricky looking away trips and that's how things played out.

Melville lost to Waikato Unicol while Papamoa never looked like scoring against Taupo at Crown Park as they dropped to their first defeat of the season.

Taupo's victory took them level on 10 points with Papamoa in a reshaped top four.

With boys' college on 13 points and Melville second on 11 any slip-up will see another reshuffle.

Further down the table things were compressed even more.

Comag Matamata Swifts' 3-2 win over Mercury Tokoroa moved them into a group of five teams on seven points that all sit just two points behind West Hamilton and Tokoroa.

Joel Roil's first half double meant Te Awamutu also moved on to seven points after they beat Tauranga Blue Rovers 2-0.

Blue Rovers' goal difference mean they sunk into the bottom two but their seven points mean they sit only six points off top spot. That's how tight the premiership table is presently.

In the other game, Otumoetai hammered Hamilton Wanderers for the second time in three weeks, with an 8-2 win at Porritt Stadium ensuring they also moved to seven points.

Nicholas Barnes helped himself to four goals and Jordi Langton grabbed a double as the men in green made no race of it.

Otumoetai are now the league's second leading scorers behind Boys' College but 17 of their 19 goals have come against a Wanderers side that have yet to claim a point.

WaiBOP Championship leaders Ngaruawahia United had the bye so the focus was on their challengers this weekend.

Taupo's Reserves fell 6-2 at home to a resurgent Kawerau Sports, Waikato Unicol's Reserves joined Ngaruawahia and Taupo on 12 points after they ground out a 3-1 victory over Te Puke United, while Tauranga Blue Rovers' Reserves moved level on points with Kawerau following a 2-1 win at Otumoetai's Reserves.

Waharoa Transport Matamata Reserves picked up their first win of the season, 2-0 at home over Cambridge, to move off the bottom of the table.