Nasinu Secondary School maintained their unbeaten streak in the Vodafone U18 Deans competition with a narrow 17-13 victory over Tailevu North College in the quarterfinals held at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva today.
Tailevu North surprised the southern zone champions by taking an early 6-0 lead, thanks to two penalties successfully converted by Ratu Kolinio in the 5th and 12th minutes.
Nevertheless, Nasinu quickly regrouped and leveled the match when Josevata Vaibete scored a try in the 26th minute, followed by a successful conversion that put them ahead 7-6.
The match was fiercely contested, but Tailevu North faced disciplinary challenges, leading to a yellow card against them. Despite being a man down, they managed a try, which was initially not awarded by the referee.
Nasinu seized the opportunity and scored another tough try to increase their advantage. Tailevu North then managed to score a spectacular try, eventually recognized by the referees after some discussion.
However, discipline once again played a critical role, as a second yellow card left Tailevu North with reduced numbers. This allowed Nasinu to capitalize on their advantage, concluding the match with a late penalty to secure the win at 17-13.