Waikato overwhelm Wellington

Jerry Collins gets tackled by Waikato's Marty Holah. Sandra Mu / Getty Images

Waikato 37 Wellington 21

Waikato overwhelmed Wellington 37-21 in an Air New Zealand Cup top six rugby match in Hamilton today.

Waikato's five tries-to-three victory was stoked by a powerful performance from their pack, where lock Keith Robinson, blindside flanker Steven Bates and No 8 Sione Lauaki were outstanding.

Robinson was a revelation in his first top flight domestic match since 2003 when his career was threatened by a serious back injury.

His knee heavily strapped, Robinson was totally involved in the game, snaring lineouts and making some important tackles, while Bates and Lauaki outplayed their Wellington counterparts, Luke Andrews and Jerry Collins.

Waikato's dominance was not due to just their pack.

Backs Stephen Donald, David Hill and Richard Kahui shaded their Wellington counterparts, Jimmy Gopperth, Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith, while wing Sitiveni Sivivatu ran rings around Lome Fa'atau in the first half.

The only Wellington back to emerge in credit was Cory Jane, who started on the wing and then moved to fullback after 28 minutes when Tamati Ellison came off injured.

Ellison's exit was fortuitous for Wellington because it allowed Tana Umaga to replace Nonu at second five-eighth and put some steel into a creaking midfield where Nonu's tackling technique was given a searching examintaion by Kahui.

With a win crucial to both sides' hopes of a home quarterfinal, the game was played at pace.

Waikato slipped into the lead with a penalty to Hill in the second minute.

Wellington's reply was not long in coming as Nonu made a typically powerful burst to hand the ball to lock Ross Filipo, who transferred to Smith.

Smith wrongfooted the Waikato defence with a kick that found Jane in the try zone.

Two tries by Sivivatu put Waikato comfortably in the lead.

The first came in the 10th minute after sustained pressure from a ruck set up by Hill.

The second came after Kahui stepped inside Smith and outside a loose tackle from Nonu in the 22 before slipping the ball to Sivivatu, who only had to saunter over for his touchdown.

Umaga's arrival into the game had an immediate and positive effect on Wellington when he helped Herring to roll across for a try in the 29th minute.

Another Hill penalty gave Waikato a 20-14 halftime lead and it took just three minutes after the break for halfback Brendon Leonard to grab his side's third try after Hill, Lauaki and Bates played prominent parts setting it up.

Wellington were a shadow of the side who beat Canterbury with a try in injury time last week.

They turned up in Hamilton with a wobbly lineout and their combinations in key areas such as the base of the scrum and in the midfield were found wanting.

A polished Waikato exploited Wellington's frailties and collected their next two tries through second-half substitutes Liam Messam, who came on for Lauaki, and Byron Kelleher, who replaced Leonard in the 50th minute.

Bates set up Messam's bonus-point try while Kelleher signed off the match, diving over from a ruck close to the line in injury time.

In between, Wellington got a try in the 61st minute through Gopperth.

Waikato 37 (Sitiveni Sivivatu 2, Brendon Leonard, Liam Messam, Byron Kelleher tries; David Hill 2 pen, 3 con)
Wellington 21 (Cory Jane, Ben Herring, Jimmy Gopperth tries; Gopperth 3 con)
HT: 20-14.

- NZPA