Old Boys' Marist halfback Matty Markwick clears from the deck as his side beat Western Sharks 41-27 in their Bayleys Premier clash. PHOTO/JOHN STONE
Old Boys' Marist halfback Matty Markwick clears from the deck as his side beat Western Sharks 41-27 in their Bayleys Premier clash. PHOTO/JOHN STONE
Five of the best from Old Boys Marist winger Mase Parsons led his side to an important Bayleys Premier victory over Western Sharks.
OBM kept in the top two hunt with the 41-27 home victory despite an impressive showing from the Dargaville travellers.
The hosts had the early running as fullback Renata Roberts-Tenana broke the line with consummate ease, setting up Parsons for his first of a quintet of tries for the day.
Western Sharks showed a lot of ticker throughout the match and particularly early on as the likes of first five Robert Stortz and centre Jone Mateiwai stood out to keep them in touch as they struck the lead.
Sharks first five Robert Stortz heads for the tryline with number eight Daryn Jeffery in support. PHOTO/JOHN STONE
But OBM showed why they are the two-time defending champions as hooker Troy Cullen and Roberts-Tenana scored in quick succession to give them a 17-10 buffer heading towards the halftime break.
Both sides struggled for momentum at various stages as poor handling and errant passing were prevalent throughout.
Western Sharks looked likely to keep within a converted try going into the halftime break but a break from halfback Matty Markwick led to Roberts-Tenana finding Parsons for his second five-pointer.
The visitors, on the back of an impressive 10-0 win over Mid Northern, weren't going down quietly and brought themselves within striking distance again as Mateiwai crashed over from short range.
Sharks centre Jone Mateiwai crashes over for a try. PHOTO/JOHN STONE
However Roberts-Tenana entered the OBM backline once again and set up Brett Weber on the left wing before Parsons reared his head and took over the match.
After shifting to fullback Parsons made a break up the right flank before offloading and working his way to the opposite side of the field.
He then received the ball, made another break and crossed for his fourth try.
Western Sharks picked up a brace of late tries to secure a hard-earned bonus point, a just reward for their efforts.
But the day belong to OBM and Parsons, whose fifth try of the afternoon secured a bonus point victory for the home side.
Western Sharks prop Tevita Tuipulotu was a handful for the opposition defence all afternoon. PHOTO/JOHN STONE
Elsewhere Kamo and Hora Hora maintained their top two positioning with victories over Kerikeri and Hikurangi respectively.
Kamo travelled north to the Bay of Islands to take on the surprise package of the competition keen to maintain their unbeaten run.
While it wasn't an expansive game, both sides did attempt to take the attack to each other.
However the superior defence of Kamo eventually won out as they took the 23-5 win and a flawless 12 of 12 record back home.
Hora Hora meanwhile were sternly tested by Hikurangi in their 22-19 win.
The travellers were desperate for a win on the back of a galling 31-27 defeat to Kamo the week before but that wouldn't come easy despite Hikurangi's lower table positioning.
Hora Hora's ability to close out tight matches - bar the Kamo defeat - came to the fore as they held on and kept their top two spot on hand due to points differential.
Waipu put distance between themselves and the top four chasers with a close 18-12 win over Wellsford.
That victory puts five points between themselves and Mid Northern, who grabbed their fourth win of the year when they toppled Otamatea 37-22.
Bayleys Northland Club Rugby resultsPremier: Kerikeri 5-23 Kamo Hikurangi 19-22 Hora Hora Mid Northern 37-22 Otamatea OBM 41-27 Sharks Wellsford 12-18 Waipu
Premier Reserve: Kerikeri 17-29 Kamo Hikurangi 24-5 Hora Hora Mid Northern 25-22 Otamatea OBM 55-0 Sharks Wellsford 26-29 Waipu
