The hosts took the lead early in the second, quickly followed by Mohdeep Sodhi equalising for Te Puke from the edge of the box. Te Puke fired up a bit. but a counterattack from Ōtorohanga caught them off guard and, after going 2-1 up, the hosts took control of the match, scoring another before the final whistle to secure the win 3-1.
Player of the day: Matt Morison. On Saturday Te Puke United host Claudelands at 3pm.
Reserves
Te Puke Reserves scored a comprehensive 8-0 victory over Ōmokoroa Fury at Litt Park on Saturday.
A fierce start by Te Puke had Kyle Eaton scoring two goals, with Ronan Wotten adding two more goals. Jeevn Singh and Marek Tomaszyk also got on the scoresheet for Te Puke Reserves within the first 25 minutes. The team kept pushing, but Ōmokoroa tightened up at the back to hold off until the end of the half.
The pace of the game slowed in the second half, but the hosts kept up the pressure, giving the away team little hope of a comeback. The game was fully put to bed when Eaton secured his hat-trick and substitute Josh Falken finished it off.
Player of the day: Caleb Pepperell. On Saturday the reserves travel to Ōtūmoetai. Kickoff at noon.
Women’s team
Te Puke Women secured a convincing 3-1 victory over Pāpāmoa Legends at Litt Park.
Both teams were looking for the three points, which showed in a competitive first 20 minutes, but it was Te Puke who strucke first with Shanaye Fox opening the scoring from a Chynna Davie cross. The hosts doubled their lead before the half when a corner was won, and Samantha Parish headed home a Jaclyn Grant cross.
Another competitive start could have had the game go either way, but when Grant stepped up to take a free kick, smashing it past the keeper, the Black and Whites looked confident and held on for the win despite Pāpāmoa pulling one back.
Player of the day: Shannon Fox
Te Puke Women play Ōtūmoetai away on Sunday, kickoff 11am.
Wahine Toa
Wahine Toa went down 13-0 away to Lakes Development.
The hosts took the lead early as Wahine Toa found themselves in an uphill battle from the get-go. Te Puke tried to put a stop to the Lakes attack, but were unable to as they found themselves 7-0 down at the break.
The second half was much the same with the Lakes scoring six more before the final whistle. Solid solo performances were good to see as the team continue to learn from these harder games.
Players of the day: Barbara Dunovits and Anahera Mark
Wahine Toa host Plains Rangers on Sunday, kickoff 12.30pm.