In the 99 years of Bay of Plenty representative rugby, there have been few victories sweeter than the Steamers win against Wellington in the capital on Thursday night.

Facing another rain swept venue at Westpac Stadium, the Bay of Plenty team, which has played the majority of their games in adverse conditions in this season's ITM Cup, led from the start after Mike Delany slotted a penalty in the opening minutes.

Mike Delany and Colin Bourke were among the standouts for the Steamers against Wellington.

Quickly adapting to the wet weather in the first spell, Steamers fullback Ben Smith crossed for the Bay's first try in the opening half.

An additional four penalty goals from Steamers sharp shooter Mike Delany saw the Bay of Plenty take a 19-12 lead into the halftime break.

Cory Aporo put the Bay side further ahead two minutes into the second spell with a try. Wellington then came back into the encounter with two touchdowns before Lelia Masaga crossed for his eighth try of the ITM Cup season.

Further Steamers attacks in the dying minutes went unrewarded, with Wellington absorbing the pressure, which saw the Steamers finishing the match with a 31-24 victory.

There were a number of notable milestones set in the match-up. It was just the second time since the two sides first met in 1912, that Bay of Plenty had won in the capital and just the fourth occasion that the Steamers have defeated Wellington in 30 encounters.

Four successive 2010 ITM Cup victories and defeating Wellington in two successive seasons are other significant highlights. Flying winger Lelia Masaga also made his mark in the game with his eighth try of the season, taking him to equal top of the ITM Cup try scoring stakes.

The Steamers fourth win on the trot has confirmed the Bay of Plenty side as genuine ITM Cup semi-final contenders. The victory was built upon the Steamers dominance in the lineouts, which set a platform for halfback Taniela Moa to showcase his skills.

Mike Delany continued to prove he is a genuine match winner contributing 16 points. Another to shine was inspirational skipper Colin Bourke who had another grand performance.

The Steamers will now have a couple of days of rest before resuming preparations to meet Tasman in Blenheim on Sunday week.

Result

BOP Steamers 31 (Ben Smith, Cory Aporo, Lelia Masaga tries; Mike Delany 4 cons 2 pen) Wellington 24 (D Coles, A Mathewson tries; L Sopoaga 4 pens con)