It’ll very much be a feeling of ‘job done’ within the Men’s Premier side today after Old Boys University picked up a 31-20 bonus point win over Paremata-Plimmerton.
In what was a tight encounter, a strong start to the second half from the Billy Goats was what proved to be the difference between the sides as Teariki Ben-Nicholas and Greg Mullany crossed for tries.
Will Mangos got OBU off to the perfect start at Ngati Toa Domain, snatching the opening kick-off and running down the right flank to dot down in the first 10 seconds.
Dale Sabbagh, who had a flawless day with the boot, slotted the conversion to put the Goats up 7-0 though Pare-Plim fought back with the wind at their backs to kick two penalty goals, narrowing the Goats’ lead to one.
It was then time for Junior Makapelu to show his strength, getting close to the line before reaching out to plant the ball on the chalk to extend OBU’s lead to 14-6 but Pare-Plim provided an immediate response, getting on the end of a ball that was toed through to score and make it 14-13 OBU at the break.
OBU started the second period with a flurry as Dale Sabbagh kicked a penalty goal shortly before the forwards then showed their dominance with Ben-Nicholas grounding a push-over try from a five-metre scrum to establish a 24-13 buffer.
Nathan Blundell then broke away down the left wing, only to be brought down just metres from Pare-Plim’s line. Blundell’s efforts weren’t in vain however, with Greg Mullany crashing over on the following phase to put the visitors up 31-13.
Pare-Plim finished the match in style as Jayden Keats collected a delightful offload to score in the corner but it was all too little, too late with OBU having the 31-20 win in the bag.
With Norths also recording five competition points today, the Billy Goats lead at the top of the table remains at just three points. This means a blockbuster top-of-the-table clash is on the cards next week as OBU travels to Jerry Colins stadium.
A bonus-point win there will get the Goats that much closer to securing the club’s third Swindale Shield title in as many years, though Petone wait the following week in what will be another difficult fixture.