Hawke’s Bay made a hot start and the Counties Manukau PIC Steelers couldn’t fight back enough as they fell to the Magpies 31-17 at McLean Park in Napier on Sunday.
The Magpies came out of the sheds in an aggressive mood and dominated territory and possession while the PIC Steelers struggled with their discipline.
Sam Slade and Matiaha Martin spent time in the sin bin during the opening 25 minutes – there was a period where the visitors had only 13 men on the field.
It meant they needed to play catch up through the rest of the game and the PIC Steelers couldn’t quite find any ascendancy with the ball in hand to make serious in-roads.
They bounced back in the second spell and drew within touching distance for a split second before Hawke’s Bay responded immediately and killed off the hope of a fight back.
“The first half was a tough one,” skipper Orbyn Leger said. “Being down a couple of players was tough but we just had to stick with it.
“We came out firing in the second half and we showed a bit of fight but we couldn’t make up for that first half.
“We struggled to find rhythm there but we will go back to the drawing board on Monday and get focused for next Sunday.”
All Black loose forward Dalton Papalii had a superb game despite coming on and off throughout with a gash above his eye.
The PIC Steelers return home in week three of the Mitre 10 Cup when they face Northland at Navigation Homes Stadium in Pukekohe.
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