They took a while to get going but Bays ran out comfortable 4-1 winners over Tauranga City United at Bays City Park giving Phil Edginton a farewell present on his leaving for the United States. Edginton, one of the outstanding players for New Zealand in the Under 20 World Cup, was playing his last game for Bays before leaving to take up a scholarship at the University of Louisville. For the first half hour play flowed back and forth with Ryley Webster and Dan Peat testing the Tauranga keeper and player/ coach Ian Stringfellow doing likewise to Sam Jewell. Scoring commenced in the 37th minute and followed some great interplay between Glen Forrest and Dan Morgan-Howell taking the ball down the right for Morgan-Howell to lay over a cross which Arek Kubicki ghosted in to get a touch and steer it past the Tauranga keeper. Bays were now in charge and Webster put a chance high and a Forrest cross had everyone beaten but no one to put it away before an individual piece of brilliance from Morgan-Howell saw him set off on a great run, cut inside and plant the ball in the back of the net just before half-time. The second half was barely two minutes old before Tauranga were back in the game. Bays were slow in defending a corner, allowing Stringfellow to get his header on target. This got Bays going and they pressured the Tauranga goal with Peat (twice), Jason McKeown, Webster and Joe Bresnahan all being denied until the 72nd minute when a great passing movement involving Bresnahan, Kubicki, and Webster culminated in Bresnahan putting Webster through and he calmly slotted the ball past the oncoming keeper. Substitute Paul McCarthy, making his debut, had a header denied by the keeper with six minutes remaining before in the last minute of the game, a McKeown cross found Kubicki who glanced his header wide of the keeper. Good games by Glen Forrest,Arek Kubicki, Ryley Webster, Phil Edginton and Dan Morgan-Howell all part of a fine team effort. Team: Jewell, Forrest, Zoghby, Hyde, Edginton, Webster, McKeown, Bresnahan (Broderson 80), Peat, Kubicki, Morgan-Howell (McCarthy 76). Scorers: Kubicki 37, 90, Morgan-Howell 44, Webster 72
