Coast win Heartland Opener
West Coast halfback Jin Ho Mun gets his backline under way.
Bill Phillips
West Coast took on the defending Lochore Cup champions King Country on Greymouth on Saturday for a win in the season opener of the Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Rugby Championship.
In a repeat of last year's final, the Coast hosts had a slim 12-11 half-time lead and by the end of the game had won by an impressive 38-18, after a second half blitz of fantastic running rugby.
King Country scored first with a penalty out in front. At the 10-minute mark West Coast ventured inside the King Country 22 for the first time and winger Malaki Cagi dived in wide out on the scoreboard touchline; great build-up paid off as the opening try looked good.
Soon after this King Country kicked the ball into the box and no one was home for Coast. The visitors' halfback Kristian Gent-Standen retrieved the ball and scooted in for the try. West Coast 5, King Country 8.
Both teams looked full of business early on and the outside backs were dangerous on both sides.
Malaki Cagi went in for his second of the day at the half-hour mark. He got the ball just inside the 22, had lots of attention from the defenders and just kept going, powering his way over next to the post as he stretched out with one hand to bring up the chalk. Cameron Burgess added an easy conversion to have the score at 12-8.
Right on half-time King Country were awarded a penalty right out in front and it was kicked successfully, bringing the half-time score to 12-11 in Coast's favour.
Kane Parker scored wide out to get the scoreboard moving again in the second half. The ball was fired round by Coast. Troy Tauwhare put some big drives in, then the ball shifted to the openside for Parker to storm over -- 17-11.
Coast went further ahead halfway through the second half as lock Benny Vauvau went over right by the posts, for Burgess to again convert -- 24-11.
King Country finally scored in the second half as they raced down the scoreboard touchline. Winger Logan Patterson made the extra man in the line as he went over untouched and brought the ball round closer to the posts. Patrick Hedley converted and the score was then 24-18.
Cameron Burgess scored wide out for West Coast as he dived over in the corner and then converted his own try from the sideline to have the home team out to 31-18.
Logan Winter finished off the game scoring. He had just taken a scrappy hit on himself, got back into the play when he picked up a loose ball to then take off to the line and dot down close to the posts. Burgess had an easy conversion and West Coast completed a memorable win, 38-18.
Coast deserved to win this first up game. They defended the whole game and scored four second-half tries as both forwards and backs worked as a team.
Head coach Jared Mitchell said it was a game of two halves.
"We could have had more points in the first half, but in the second the boys' defensive effort started to smack them back. We executed out wide, which was very pleasing to see."
West Coast heads north this weekend to take on East Coast, at Ruatoria.
In the days curtain raiser, West Coast XV went down to the Cantabrian XV 74-26.
West Coast 38 (Malakai Cagi 2, Kane Parker, Ben Vauvau, Cam Burgess, Logan Winter tries; Cam Burgess 4 con) King Country 18 (K Gent-Standen, L Patterson tries; P Hedley 1 con, 2 pen)
West Coast winger Malaki Cagi dives in to score.