The Bay of Plenty Under-16 representatives posted a convincing Northern Region competition victory against Counties Manukau at the weekend.

A good number of Bay Under-16 supporters accompanied the side to the Counties region, as the Bay of Plenty team threw down the gauntlet to the other Northern Region contenders with a 32-18 victory.

After leading 17-5 at the break, the Bay of Plenty age group representatives powered away in the second half to post a five-try win.

The Bay touchdowns were awarded to Wemin Kapia, Brock Smith, Jayden Tane, Te Roiroa Tahuriorangi and Isaac Te Aute, with Ryubyn Vaipo adding two conversions and a penalty goal.

Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi excelled with a superb attacking display at centre running around the Counties defence on several occasions, before moving to half back at the break.

Caleb Aperahama was superb in the lineouts stealing the Counties throw-ins on four occasions, with Ryubyn Vaipo having a strong game steering the backline with long raking kicks down field and accurate passing to his outside backs.

While the Bay of Plenty Development team didn't finish the Northern Region championship with the desired victory, they gave the best of the young Auckland emerging talent a real shake.

Facing Auckland Juniors (Under-21) at the Waitemata Rugby Club grounds, the Bay side suffered a narrow 35-29 defeat.

The Bay second XV again started well to lead 14-13 after the first 20 minutes of the game.

Three penalty goals from the boot of Lewis Hancock, and a fine forward display which saw Dan Schuster, pushed over for the Bay first touchdown, resulted in the Bay taking a narrow lead.

A converted try to Whakataki Cunningham put the Bay side further in front, before lapses in concentration allowed Auckland to post 12 points in five minutes late in the first half, to lead 25-24 at the halftime break.

Auckland fired away immediately after the start of the second spell, to run in two quick tries to lead by 11.

Another strong Bay forward attack late in the game, led to Daniel Schuster scoring his second touchdown of the game to narrow the gap to six points.

In spite of the Bay of Plenty forwards dominating the closing minutes, the Auckland defence held on to take out the encounter.

Bay of Plenty team management singled out solid performances by Whakataki Cunningham, Dan Schuster, Lewis Hancock and Matt Rolston, with Brayden Flannery making an impact from the bench.

In spite of being competitive for much of the match-up, the Bay of Plenty Under-20 team were beaten by North Harbour at Blake Park.

Missed tackles and loss of concentration cost the Bay side dearly as they were defeated 45-12.

The Bay points came from two touchdowns awarded to Andrew Tuise and Carlos Basham, with Basham converting one try.

A good start from the Bay of Plenty Under-18 team wasn't enough, as they went down to Auckland B in the City of Sails.

The Bay side took it to the opposition in the opening quarter, and led 3-nil courtesy of a penalty goal slotted by Bay halfback Jordan Ngamata-Poi.

However, two lapses in defence, resulted in Auckland grabbing two first half touchdowns to lead 17-3 at the break.

A stirring half time talk from coach Daryl Going lifted the Bay side in the second half, with a good backline move resulting in Te Aihe Toma crossing for a try.

A third Auckland touchdown resulted in the home side taking out the encounter 22-8. Bay of Plenty team management selected loose forward Aaron Carroll as their player of the day.

BOPRU Representative Results September 17

Development: Auckland Juniors 35 BOP 29 (Dan Schuster 2, Whakataki Cunningham tries; Lewis Hancock 4 pen con)

Under-20: North Harbour 45 BOP 12 (Andrew Tuise. Carlos Basham tries; Basham con)

Under-18: Auckland B 22 BOP 8 (Te Aihe Toma try; Jordan Ngamata-Poi pen)

Under-16: BOP 32 (Wemin Kapia, Brock Smith, Jayden Tane, Te Roiroa Tahuriorangi, Isaac Te Aute tries; Ryubyn Vaipo 2 con pen) Counties Manukau 18.