Napier City Rovers have staved off Team Taranaki's threat to relegate them to the bottom rungs of the table after coming from behind to draw their soccer match at Park Island this afternoon.
The Conroy Removals-sponsored Blues made hard work of it and, at times, looked content to end their season meekly but found some much-needed zest in the last 20 minutes to salvage a valuable point to see where they finish in the bottom half of the Lotto Central League standings.
Rovers made their intentions clear in just the second minute from veteran Chris McIvor, running from an oblique angle down the left flank before curling it into the top of the net on the far post to leave Taranaki goalkeeper Santiago Fernandez stranded for a 1-0 lead.
The visitors kept a poker face and soldiered on. They were rewarded in the 12th minute when striker Sandro Grandi couldn't believe his luck to find all the time and space inside the 18m box, after receiving a feed, to tuck the ball away to the bottom left corner for the 1-1 equaliser that goalkeeper Ruben Parker Hanks could do little about.
A relieved Hanks collected the ball again in the 27th minute when Taranaki captain Paul Cunningham's worm-burning free kick from the top edge of the box, after Blues centreback James Hoyle tripped a player, landed into his hands although the keeper appeared to be unsighted behind the wall.