Blues claim scrappy win over Kings

While seven tries may have been scored, the match was littered with numerous handling errors which contributed to a start-stop affair.

The Blues were penalised early in the encounter for taking out a line-out jumper and Kings flyhalf Elgar Watts made no mistake with the kick at goal to hand the home side a 3-0 lead after 4 minutes.

The Blues were on the board five minutes later when they got a maul rolling going close to the Kings' line. Captain James Parsons emerged with the ball from the bottom of the pile to hand the visitors a 5-3 lead.

The Kings looked confident with ball in hand and took the ball through numerous phases as they made their way up the field. After sustained pressure on the Blues' defensive line, James Hall sniped from the back of a ruck to score against the post.

Watts added the extras from right in front to ensure the Kings held a 10-5 lead after 15 minutes.

The Blues sparked back into life from that point and were once again camping inside the Kings' half of the field. The territorial dominance paid off with two Melani Nanai tries before the half hour mark.

First, he broke through the Kings' rush defence in the 24th minute and then benefitted from some poor Kings tackling in the 28th minute to grab two crucial scores. West added the extras on both occasions to hand the Blues a 19-10 lead.

The Kings looked to work their way back into the contest as the half drew to an end but a number of handling errors stopped their progress and they had to settle for a 10-19 deficit at the break.

The Blues began the second half on the front foot and extended their lead to 22-10 after 43 minutes when West slotted his penalty of the night.

The visitors seemed to take their foot off the gas from that point which allowed the Kings to build up some momentum. The home side camped in the Blues' 22 for a long period and all the pressure soon came to fruition as hooker Edgar Marutlulle bashed his way over the Blues' line.

Watts' conversion was unsuccessful, however, the Kings were now trailing 15-22 with 25 minutes remaining in the contest. The Kings brought themselves within five points of the Blues in the 60th minute when fullback Jurgen Visser slotted a 50 metre penalty.

Although somewhat subdued, the Blues kept grinding away at the Kings and grabbed their fourth try of the night through replacement Billy Guyton in the 69th minute. West landed his third conversion to extend the Blues' lead to 29-18.

The Kings did all they could to get themselves a losing bonus point as the match fizzled out but it would be the Blues who would have the final say. Tevita Li's magic break after the final hooter saw him score in the corner to cement the bonus point and hand the Kings yet another defeat in the competition.

Man of the match: Kings hooker Edgar Marutlulle continued his good form in the competition while CJ Velleman was certainly no slouch either. The Kings' standout player was certainly Chris Cloete, who was a menace in every facet of play. James Parsons set the tone for his side and Steven Luatua put his body on the line more often than not. However, for his brace and finishing ability, Melani Nanai gets our nod.

Scorers:

For the Kings:

Tries: Hall, Marutlulle

Con: Watts

Pens: Watts, Visser

For the Blues:

Tries: Parsons, Nanai 2, Guyton, Li

Cons: West 3

Pen: West

Teams:

Kings: 15 Jurgen Visser, 14 Lukhanyo Am, 13 Stefan Watermeyer, 12 Shane Gates, 11 Luzuko Vulindlu, 10 Elgar Watts, 9 James Hall, 8 Cyril-John Velleman, 7 Thembelani Bholi, 6 Chris Cloete, 5 John-Charles Astle, 4 Steven Sykes (captain), 3 Tom Botha, 2 Edgar Marutlulle, 1 Sithembiso Sithole.

Replacements: 16 Martin Ferreira, 17 Justin Ackerman, 18 Jacobie Adriaanse, 19 Schalk Oelofse, 20 Stefan Willemse, 21 Ntando Kebe, 22 Louis Fouche, 23 Leighton Eksteen.

Blues: 15 Lolagi Visinia, 14 Melani Nanai, 13 George Moala, 12 Piers Francis, 11 Tevita Li, 10 Ihaia West, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Steven Luatua, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Josh Bekhuis, 4 Patrick Tuipulotu, 3 Ofa Tu'ungafasi, 2 James Parsons (captain), 1 Sam Prattley.

Replacements: 16 Matt Moulds, 17 Nic Mayhew, 18 Charlie Faumuina, 19 Hoani Matenga, 20 Kara Pryor, 21 Billy Guyton, 22 Matt McGahan, 23 Male Sa'u.

Referee: Federico Anselmi