Mako kick off campaign in emphatic fashion

The Tasman Mako kicked off their Mitre 10 cup campaign in emphatic fashion with a dominant 45-8 victory over Wellington in Blenheim today.

The Mako out-muscled and out-classed the Lions in wet conditions at Lansdowne Park.

The home side made an early statement early on as Liam Squire opened the scoring on the back of a timely turnover.

The hooker Andrew Makalio made it two for the Mako as he rumbled over on the back of a powerful rolling maul.

The hosts' dominance continued, the Mako decimating the Wellington scrum with tighthead prop Tyrel Lomax crashing over to take a 19-3 lead after just 25 minutes.

Just as Wellington looked likely to reduce the deficit,creating a three-on-one opportunity on the right, Mako fullback  David snaffled an interception and streaked 80 metres to clinch a bonus point before halftime.

The momentum stayed with Tasman after the break, Leicester Faingaanuku scoring his first Mitre 10 Cup try following a pinpoint cross kick from Mitch Hunt.

Wellington finally got over the line through powerhouse prop Alex Fidow but Tasman's response was swift.

A bizarre comedy of errors handed Faingaanuku his second as the Lions couldn't control a wayward quick lineout, leading to several handling errors before the winger finally put it over the line.

The Mako coaches rung the changes, which disrupted the flow somewhat later in the piece, but the Mako had final say as replacement lock Te Ahiwaru Cirikidaveta was driven over to seal the result.

Scorers:

Tasman 45 (Leicester Faingaanuku 2, Liam Squire, Andrew Makalio, Tyrel Lomax, David Havili, Te Ariwaru Crikidaveta tries, Mitch Hunt 5 cons)

Wellington 8 (Alex Fidow try, Jackson Garden-Bachop pens)