United into second with Island Bay win

Wairarapa United moved to a clear second place in Capital Soccer's premier division competition with a deserved 2-1 win over Island Bay United at the Pugh Sports Bowl in Masterton yesterday.
They have accumulated nine points from their four games, three less than unbeaten Tawa, to whom they lost in Masterton a fortnight ago.
While noone could argue Wairarapa United were good value for their one-goal victory yesterday the match was marred through both sides often being confused by what could best be described as "interesting" refereeing decisions.
None more so than that which saw Island Bay awarded a second half penalty after fullback James Oxtoby had made what seemed to be a perfectly fair challenge for possession.
The referee saw otherwise, however, and after their first two successful attempts to convert the penalty into a goal were ruled out because they were taken before everything was in order Island Bay finally got the ball into the net in the approved manner.
Earlier Wairarapa United had scored two spectacular goals of their own, both of them to Pita Rabo. The first of them came when he leapt high above the cover defence to head home an excellent cross from Merick Tuaroh and the second the result of a powerful shot from all of 30m out after Wairarapa United had been awarded a free kick.
Talk before the game had suggested this could be a somewhat tetchy affair with Island Bay including a couple of former Wairarapa United players in Petero Dauniseka and Lai Gataurua in their starting XI but while the number of yellow cards handed out was unusually high the competitive edge was always simmering below boiling point
Their tendancy to give away possession through loose passing was the downside to Wairarapa United's first half effort with several possible scoring chances bringing no reward because of ball being "gifted" to Island Bay just as gaps were starting to appear in their defence.
That situation did improve to some degree in the second half when greater focus was given to ball retention but even then there were times when promising movements were cut short through passes failing to find their target.
There was no denying though that when Wairarapa United had their "A game" in action they looked every bit a side capable of making a bold bid for the premier division title, and the promotion to central league which would come with it.
The ease in which Rabo and Seule Soromon created space for themselves on attack again marked them as special players in that regard with Rabo's two goals highlighting what a devastating finisher he can be when the opportunity arises.
Pleasing too was the solidity in tight defensive situations provided in midfield by Guiseppe Cagliari amd Merick Tuaroh both of whom have that no-nonsense approach which can be so beneficial in physical confrontation, while noone could quibble at the workrate of Andy Robertson, James Oxtoby or perhaps the most impressive of all the Wairarapa United players on the day, Sakeo Valevou.Not only was he stout on defence but he was always a menace when on the counter attack.
Most interest in the Island Bay United effort of course revolved around Gatarua and Dauniseka with the latter's steadiness on defence making him one of their better performers.Gataurua, on the other hand, gave the impression of being short of a gallop and was subbed late in the game.