Auckland in ominous form

Photo:AllBlacks.com/Getty Images

Perennial champions Auckland were in devastating form in the third round of New Zealand’s Farah Palmer Cup – the inter-provincial competition.

Whakatane, home of Bay of Plenty, was witness to an unanswered ten-try demolition job by Auckland, though it has to be said that the 62-0 result was an improvement on the 101 points the hosts conceded last year.

Hooker Faio'o Fa'amausili scored two tries for the third week running, with Delzea Salamo-Tu'a and Malia Love this time joining her with braces of tries. Bay of Plenty had no answer to Auckland, who were 34-0 up at half-time before adding four more scores in the second half.

Canterbury also ran riot at the University Oval in Dunedin, touching down 12 times against Otago with Kendra Cocksedge scoring a hat-trick as well as kicking seven conversions, her personal haul of 29 points ending one short of her record set against Taranaki in 2013.

Phillipa Love and Chelsey Smart also scored two tries as Canterbury ran up their biggest ever win over the home team. However, Otago still went away with something as Greer Muir matched Cocksedge’s hat-trick which, with Georgia Mason’s try, insured they got an attacking bonus despite going down 24-69.

Wellington picked up their first win of the season with a tight 25-17 home win over Waikato, the difference between the teams being Amanda Rasch’s boot after both teams cross the line three times.

Finally North Harbour travelled down to Papakura but were well beaten by Counties Manukau. Eight tries by Counties, with Krystal Murray, Langi Veanu  and Te Kura Ngata-Aerengamate sharing six of them, were answered by a single Chelsea Alley penalty. The game had been quite tight for the first 40 minutes, with the home team only going in 10-3, but in the second half they ran away with the game, scoring six unanswered tries eventually recording a record home win.

Results:Otago 24 (Greer Muir 3, Georgia Mason tries; Megan Manson 2 con) Canterbury 69 (Kendra Cocksedge 3, Phillipa Love 2, Becky Davidson, Chelsey Smart 2, Stephanie Te Ohaere-Fox, Olivia McGoverne, Sam Curtis, Kaiamarita Pouri-Lane tries; Cocksedge 7 con). HT: 7-24Bay of Plenty 0 Auckland Storm 62 (Fiao'o Fa'amausili 2, Delzea Salamo-Tu'ua 2, Malia Tova 2, Lose Mafi, Karina Stowers, Teuila Fotu-Moala, Naite Faitala-Mariner tries; Tova 5 con, Emma Jensen con). HT: 0-34Wellington 25 (Brooke Tauaneai, Sanita Levave, Kiri Mei tries; Acacia Claridge con; Amanda Rasch con, 2 pen) Waikato 17 (Huia Harding, Victoria Edmonds, Honey Hireme tries; Tenika Willison con).Counties Manukau 42 (Krystal Murray 2, Victoria Subritzky, Langi Veanu 2, Ariana Hira-Herangi, Te Kura Ngata-Aerengamate 2 tries; Hazel Tubic con) North Harbour 3 (Chelsea Alley pen). HT: 10-3

Province

AucklandCanterburyCounties ManukauManuwatuNorth HarbourWaikatoWellingtonOtagoBay of Plenty

Played

322233223

Won

322111100

Lost

000122123

Points

151010755510