It was a case of living up to their promise for Gary Fowell Builders Plains Rangers when they played Ngongotaha in BOP division three on Saturday.
Rangers have been playing good football with little reward for the past few weeks, and they continued to do so from the outset. Excellent passing had Rangers dominating the midfield and freeing up wingers Simon Gowing and Jeremy Hawkes to stretch the visitors' defence. At the back, player of the day Dylan Arthur and Mark Jeynes were strong in their man-marking roles and allowed Ngongotaha's strikers little freedom. Rangers had to be patient and eventually it paid off, a Gowing cross was chested down by Hawkes, who turned and volleyed it into the net. There were scares at both ends with both teams appealing in vain for handballs in the penalty areas. Rangers held a 1 - 0 lead at half time.
In the second half, Ngongotaha pushed more men forward in an attempt to get back on level terms. However, Richie Nillesen and Bas Overdevest kept their control of the midfield and kept the pressure on. With ten minutes to go, Rangers sealed the win when a Nillesen pass found Aaron Muggeridge and he poked it past the well performed Ngongotaha keeper. The final score Plains Rangers 2 Ngongotaha 0.
This was a total team effort from Rangers, and they will need another one this Saturday at Otumoetai so they are well placed for the top seven round to follow.