Watch: Ex-NZ U20 playmaker's clever try as Hawke’s Bay stay unbeaten

Former New Zealand U20 playmaker Will Cole took the opportunity to start an NPC match at 10 with both hands, finishing with an 11-point haul as Hawke’s Bay maintained their unbeaten run with a 36-21 win away to Southland.

Cole made a series of appearances for New Zealand’s age-grad side at The Rugby Championship U20 in South Africa last May, before starting at first five-eighth in two of four matches at the World Rugby Junior World Championship in Georgia.

Harry Godfrey held down the fort at the starting 10 for the opening four games, with Cole instead lining up at fullback against Wellington and Tasman. But after making a couple of cameos off the bench against Auckland and Manawatu, Cole was back in the First XV.

Cole was named in the starting side for the trip down south to face the Stags, and the 21-year-old looked comfortable as the chief game-driver, scoring one try and knocking over a few conversions in the 15-point triumph.

Frank Lochore and Folau Fakatava struck early for the visitors in Invercargill, before Cole’s first successful shot at the poles made it a 12-point ballgame. The first half was one-way traffic, with Cole leading the way as the Magpies ran out to a 31-0 advantage.

Magpies unleashed waves of attacking pressure close to Southland’s try line, but Cole was the one who broke through for five points, having thrown a well-worked dummy. The No. 10 pinned the ears back and managed to dive in for the score just inside the right post.

Fakatava and Lochore both completed doubles during the relentless first half performance, but the Stags fought their way back a bit during the second 40. All Blacks Sevens ace Scott Gregory got Southland on the board with an effort in the 46^th minute.

ADVERTISEMENT

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Provincial Rugby NZ (@provincialrugby.nz)

Hunter Morrison hit back for Hawke’s Bay, but the ladder-leaders didn’t end up scoring again. Instead, the final 30 minutes was controlled by the Stags on a point-scoring front, with NSW Waratahs prop Jack Barrett crashing over next.

Sean Withy crossed for what ended up being the final try of the contest with about six minutes left, with the conversion from Mika Muliaina making the scores 36-21. Hawke’s Bay conceded a yellow card late but no more points were scored.

“The Stags down here are tough, tough as. And the weather, in Hawke’s Bay we’re not really used to this weather so we knew it was going to be a scrap,” Lochore said post-game on Sky Sport.

“We wanted to just hold the ball a little bit. Obviously our get-to line was a little bit shorter, we wanted to play our jag sides. But to be fair, Southland came out well and just starved us of pill and our ill-discipline put them down in good spots and they did well.”