Harbour 38
Alhambra-Union 6
Here is a tip — you have to push if you want to get the ball back from a scrum.
Alhambra-Union was amiss in that department and a little forgetful when it came to tackling as well.
Harbour shunted the home side off the ball at the North Ground to claim a series of tightheads and none was more important than the one shortly after the break.
Powerful No8 Solomon Pole suddenly found the ball at his feet. He drafted behind the scrum for a few metres and then crashed over to extend his side’s 17-6 halftime lead.
Harbour scored two more late tries to secure a 38-6 win, its first win for the season.
It was a convincing victory in the end but Harbour spent most of the opening 20 minutes pinned in its half and has plenty to work on to regain the form which enabled it to reach the final last season.
Alhambra struggled to take advantage of its early territorial superiority. First five-eighth Brady Kingan knocked over two penalties to give his side a 6-0 lead.
But having dominated, Logan Allen was able to slip through some weak defence to score between the posts.
Another defensive blunder allowed halfback Vinnie Isherwood to gallop through a large gap. The move swept 60m upfield before impressive lock Sione Misiloi swatted aside two tacklers to score from 10m out.
Read the full ODT write-up here.