It took Brett Mather 40mins to settle into Bay of Plenty rugby on Saturday but only another 15mins to show what he was capable of.

The former Highlanders centre and new Steamers signing shifted up on Wednesday, fronted up at Tauranga Sports training on Thursday and then found himself chucked into a passionate local derby against Mount Maunganui on Saturday.

The prospect of starting on the right wing didn’t faze him and midway through the second spell, he created a crucial try for fullback Matt Hodson as Tauranga left Blake Park with a 32-24 win.

“The first half was a bit shaky and I didn’t get a lot of ball come my way but we had a nice little set move in the second spell which led to the try – we only practiced it for the first time on Thursday so it was nice for it to come off,” the 26-year-old said.

“I haven’t played centre in a while so was a bit out of position but it was good to have a crack when the ball came my way in a bit of space.”

Mather is another product of Christchurch’s Shirley Boys High, which has spawned recent Bay players Phil Burleigh, Culum Retallick and Marcel Cummings-Toone. He’s also no stranger to performing at the Mount, having competed for Canterbury as a beach sprinter and flags specialist at surf lifesaving’s annual surf league.
He shifted to Dunedin in 2006 but decided on a change of scene for this season.

“I want to further my footy and it’s a good set-up up here from what I’ve heard. I’m a pretty keen surfer as well so it really is a dream result coming up here!”
Saturday’s win may not have been a dream result for his Tauranga team but it went pretty close.

They scored five tries, with a bonus point, and lifted them four points clear at the top of an ever-changing Baywide points table.

For the second week in a row, Tauranga leaned heavily on the influence of Chiefs flanker Luke Braid, who was a colossal presence, able to stand in tackles seemingly at will.

Mount found inspiration from former Counties-Manukau halfback and sevens star Chad Tuoro, who scored a try and set up another, while their midfield of Cory Aporo and Zion Nordstrom was dangerous.

It represented Mount’s first loss in five games – albeit mixed in with two draws – and first-term coach Marty Bourke seems to have already won the respect of his former teammates.

“We’ve come a long way from last year when we were on the end of some hidings and we’ve got some good players this year,” Bourke said.  “We’ve still got five guys out injured and once they come back, we’ll be right. It’s no use taking off in a sprint – it’s a long race this one.”

In other games, Rotoiti maintained their grip on second place with a tight 15-14 win over Te Teko, while Opotiki pounced into third place with a 34-12 win over visiting Te Puna.

Opotiki welcomed back first-five Sam Howe from golfing duties and he duly contributed 17 points, including two tries.

Rangataua held off Whakatane Marist 18-7 to escape the bottom of the Baywide table, while Whakarewarewa fullback Trent Vatselias nailed an unlikely 40m penalty right on the fulltime whistle to snatch a 21-18 win over Te Puke.