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Te Maire Martin was in sublime touch as he led the One New Zealand Warriors to a huge 46-12 New South Wales Cup win over the Sydney Roosters on Friday, moving the club to the top of the points table.
Rattling on five tries in the first half to lead 28-0 at the break, the Warriors stretched to 46-0 early in the second half before the Roosters snared two late tries.
With three straight wins the Warriors are on six points with a healthy points for and against differential of plus 47.
The catalyst for the victory tonight was unquestionably the experienced Martin.
On fire from the outset he scored the first of his two tries just six minutes in.
Centre Moala Graham-Taufa broke to just inside the Roosters’ half creating the momentum for the Warriors to hit their left where Tanah Boyd bit into the line and found Martin in support.
Match: Warriors v Roosters
Round 3 -
home Team
Warriors
1st Position
away Team
Roosters
12th Position
Venue: Go Media Stadium, Auckland
And seven minutes later they swept downfield irresistibly from their own 10-metre line, going left on their 40-metre line where prop Tom Ale released Martin with a sweet pass, the half carving through a ragged defensive to race 50 metres to dot down.
By the 20-minute mark the lead extended to 18-0 on the back of some good fortune for fullback Geronimo Doyle when his last tackle grubber cannon-balled off legs and back into his hands for a gift try.
In the 27th minute Martin was the provider, nudging a cross-field grubber wide to the right where winger Morgan Harper pounced after the Roosters failed to clean up.
Then right on halftime it was Martin again in the thick of it, showing quick reactions to glove a Roosters grubber kick and setting centre Rocco Berry free on an 80-metre run to the line.
There was no slowing up in the early stages of the second half.
Hitting a short side in the 47th minute, Makaia Tafua, Eddie Ieremia-Toeava, Tafua again and Martin all off loaded to give second rower Kayliss Fatialofa a passage to the line.
Martin’s touch was all over the seventh try in the 51st minute as well, his last tackle kick into the Roosters’ in-goal not covered, taking a right turn and enabling Kalani Going to collect the easiest four-pointer.
The play came left in the 54th minute, Martin again on the ball, swinging it to Boyd who steered a storming Ieremia-Toeava to the eighth try. With seven conversions from Boyd, the Warriors had bolted to a 46-0 lead with 25 minutes to play,
The score might have been anything but they lost some of their intensity allowing the Roosters to score the last points of the contest.
The Warriors are in Sydney next Sunday facing bottom-of-the-table Western Suburbs.
