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Desperate times, desperate rugby.
That was the recipe for Canterbury at Blenheim on Saturday night as they probably produced their best Miter 10 Cup performance of the season to stun the Tasman Mako 29-0 and snap a three-game losing streak in the Crusaders derby. of the Premiership.
The four-shot, bonus-point victory, led by a clock-back display from veteran padlock Luke Romano, achieved two important results for the Reds and Blacks who entered the contest firmly wedged between a rock and a hard place. with a 3-5 record and last place in the Premiership standings.
First, it took them off the bottom rung of the Premiership, three points behind the Bay of Plenty, which visits Waikato on Sunday. The unthinkable prospect of relegation, for the first time since the provincial competition split into two divisions, remains a possibility, but the Cantabs at least now have some leeway.
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Second, the victory gives the 14-time provincial champions an outside chance at an unlikely spot in the semifinals, and some results are likely to have to go well in the final round next weekend.
Canterbury, now with 24 competition points, will host Auckland next Sunday in their latest head-to-head clash and could find themselves in the unusual position of having to win to avoid relegation and reach the semi-finals. Go figure.
Tasman’s third loss of the season could prove costly as they remain anchored at 29 points, now five points behind Premiership leaders Auckland, and possibly needing to win their all-for-all final in Dunedin to secure a semi-final at House.
It was an outstanding display of pressure from the Cantabs, led by a princely effort from Romano, who had four steals at the lineout, led a defensive cast iron display and carried away hard.
He had plenty of help, with Billy Harmon strong on the loose, Reed Prinsep making a good fist from his latest switch to the second row and Josh McKay and teenager Chay Fihaki the best of a dangerous visiting backline.
Evan Barnes / Getty Images
Canterbury midfielder Dallas McLeod plays hard against Tasman Mako in Blenheim.
The visitors brought in all the urgency, feasted on the lineout, and dominated the key forward exchanges to stifle the Mako with their attitude and aggression. The home team never fired a shot.
The Cantabs, with their backs to the wall, went flying through the first 40 to produce arguably their most clinical half of the season, running on two excellent attempts en route to a 17-0 lead that built up the pressure well and truly on their team. Hosts.
Canterbury winger Ngatungane Punivai opened the scoring in just the third minute when he benefited first from a pair of heavy carries from Billy Harmon and Romano and then from an outstanding cut pass from McKay. He still had a bit of work to do on the left touchline, but he was more than even for the initial 7-0 lead.
The local cause didn’t help when they lost influential midfielder Alex Nankivell (to a broken hand) after just 10 minutes and with their starting line struggling during the first half, the Canterbury defense knocked out the dangerous runners from the ball at home and the visitors led the breakout battle, chances were few and far between for Mako.
Then came the last 10 minutes that had the Blenheim faithful scratching their heads. The fins were definitely down after Brett Cameron extended the visitors’ lead to 10-0 just past the half-hour mark and then Canterbury McKay’s fullback produced a moment of absolute magic to bring that lead to an impressive 17. .
Evan Barnes / Getty Images
Canterbury winger Chay Fihaki goes high for the ball in the clash against Tasman at Blenheim.
Nineteen-year-old Fihaki had thrown a punt near the middle and found McKay on the pass about 42 yards. The talented fullback then unleashed an impressive run in which he stepped with his left foot to create the opening, then left a trail of defenders for dead with a succession of forehand shimmies to score an infallible contender for the try of the season.
The Cantabs more or less sealed the deal when they backed up their seven points just before halftime with another shortly after the restart: the cast iron recipe for sports success, they say.
It was the increasingly impressive Fihaki who struck in the fifth minute, when he intercepted a loose pass from Kieron Fonotia and ran 20 meters for the score and the 24-0 lead.
Isaiah Punavai, the 19-year-old brother of the opening try scorer, put an exclamation point on the night for the Cantabs with the bonus point try in the 77th minute, thanks to an excellent pass from Cameron.
Canterbury 29 (Ngatungane Punivai, Josh McKay, Chay Fihaki, Isaiah Punavai tries; pen by Brett Cameron, 3 cons), Tasmania 0. Height: 17-0.
MVP Points: Luke Romano 3, Josh McKay 2, Billy Harmon 1.
