The opening day of the 2017 Loaded WaiBOP Premiership, the Waikato Bay of Plenty region's top regional football league, saw 29 goals fly into the back of the net across six contrasting games.

Cambridge, slight title favourites heading into the season, bagged a point at Taupo, while Otumoetai FC and Matamata Swifts were both big winners.

The match at Taupo's Crown Park began superbly for the locals as Finlay Smith gave his side a second minute lead. Taupo maintained a good chunk of the possession through the first half but the match changed when they were reduced to 10 men as half time loomed.

Donovan Latham, on his Cambridge debut, grabbed the equaliser for the visitors in the second half as they eventually wore Taupo down to secure a point. Both sides would have been relatively happy with the draw but Cambridge may be ruing their inability to make the most of the extra man for more than half of the match.

Otumoetai FC registered the healthiest win of the day after beating SGS Papamoa 4-0 at Gordon Spratt Park.

Jay Silcock scored a first half brace to give Otumoetai a comfortable half time lead, before two further strikes, from veteran Russell Wakeley and Ben Jackson, completed the rout after the break.

Nearly a third of the Saturday's goals came at the Matamata Domain where the Swifts defeated Tauranga Boys' College 6-4 in the most open encounter of the weekend. Goals from Chris Walker, Bjorn Vossen and Dayne Willemsen saw Matamata into a 3-1 half time lead, before Walker and Willemsen struck again, either side of a Brad West goal to stretch the lead to 6-2.

The students, however, looked sharp on the break and a couple of goals in the final quarter gave the final scoreline a quite remarkable look. Alexander Elliott, with a brace of his own, Adam Davidson and Scott Walpole hit Boys' College's goals.

Swifts coach, Paul Richardson, focused on the positive elements of his team's performance. 'Our attacking play looked great at times, and we probably should have had a few more goals. Obviously we're not pleased to have let in four, though, so we have a bit of work to do on our defensive transitions.”

West Hamilton United was the only one of the three promoted sides to pick up three points, winning by the odd goal in seven at Rotorua United.

As a bonus, they also lifted the Federation Challenge Shield after Rotorua began the season with it following Ngongotaha's promotion to the Northern Region Football League. A Reuben Henderson hat trick was the standout individual showing for the visitors who led 2-0 at the break before fending off a second half comeback from their hosts.

It was something of a self-inflicted decline, however. Leading by three goals and cruising, West Hamilton then lost two players to dissent-related red cards as Rotorua pulled the scores back level, before Henderson's penalty four minutes from the end settled the match. Rotorua had a player red carded after the final whistle.

West Hamilton coach, Shane Ridgway, says it was a crazy afternoon for his side.

'At 3-0 and with the game under control it's then about game management.

'The match could have gone one of two ways and unfortunately we chose to take the more difficult path. I don't have any complaints about the two red cards. We talked about being disciplined before the match, so that was disappointing. But we went to Rotorua looking for the three points, so in that sense it was job done.”

In the Premiership's other games, Tauranga's Old Blues won 3-1 at Edmonds Judd Te Awamutu thanks to goals from Andy Cooper, Jarrad Bailey and Karl Bryant, while first half strikes from Nick Brooke and Gavin Clark saw Waikato Unicol ease to a 2-0 home victory over Melville United.

In the WaiBOP Championship, Edmonds Judd Te Awamutu Reserves beat their Old Blues counterparts 7-1 to score the largest win of the day, while Cambridge Reserves' 5-1 victory at Crown Park wasn't too far behind. Jamie Bowen notched a first half hat trick for Te Awamutu to set his team on the way, while a strong Cambridge side shared the goals around against Taupo's Reserves.

In a league containing eight Premiership reserve sides, Otumoetai FC's second string had probably the most telling win of the day, defeating Wanderers 4-1 in Hamilton. Goals from Mo Gunfield, Richard O'Regan, Kris Pennock and Xavier Simmons made short work of a Wanderers side expected to challenge for promotion.

Tokoroa AFC is another side expected to push for promotion, but they dropped points in being held to a first up 1-1 draw at Unicol Reserves. Unicol scored at both ends during the first half, through Gareth Webb to give themselves an early lead before Curtis Warner put through his own net, but neither side could find a winner after the break.

The match between Richardson Racing Stables Matamata Reserves and Tauranga City United also finished 1-1, while a Sam Keane double gave Te Puke United a 2-1 win at Rotorua United on their return to the Championship.

Full results list here: http://www.waibopfootball.co.nz/results-april-1-2-2017/