The Super Rugby Aupiki defending champions have beaten Matatū 46-38 at FMG Stadium Waikato in Hamilton.
While the scoreline blew out in patches - Manawa lead 34-19 at the break - Matatū remained in the game and fought back in the final 10 minutes to close the gap.
Matatū got first points on the board when Amy du Plessis hit the line, fended off one defender and drew in another to offload the ball to Renee Holmes in the tackle.
She pushed it to winger Cheyenne Robins Reti to lead 7-0 early.
Its defensive structure was strong, keeping Manawa’s electric backs quiet for most of the first half, until Mereangi Paul scored in the corner.
But Matatū was lethal on attack, when Rosie Kelly scored in the corner and Grace Steinmetz twirled out of two tackles to take off and score under the posts.
Suddenly, Matatū was out to a 19-8 lead.
It looked strong when it had the ball in hand, with Kelly driving the side around the park, but as its defensive worked hard, the penalties began to stack up and played into Manawa’s hands.
Hooker Luka Connor, as she does so often, peeled off the back of a maul to score, captain Kennedy Simon dotted down after a steamrolling scrum and Georgia Daals ran in too.
The visitors tried to run the ball out from its try line after the first half and it proved to be a risky move.
Manawa turned the ball over, Tynealle Fitzgerald scored and took a 34-19 lead at the break.
Daals scored her second early in the second half but otherwise it was much of an arm wrestle for most of the third quarter.
Matatū put good pressure on Manawa, stymieing Manama’s opportunities on attack.
But it was just the finishing touches and failing to push on when needed that let them down.
Manawa showed why its line out is one of the best in the competition, with Grace Houpapa-Barrett scoring off a pick and drive.
Matatū had the best of the final 10 minutes, with Natalie Delamare running a nice angle to score and hardworking flanker Lucy Jenkins finishing off a nice team try.
Grace Brooker followed it by chasing on a hack forward, putting her foot down and running in a 50m try with two minutes on the clock.
It was a good fight back from the South Island side, showing plenty of heart and determination as it now heads into next week’s semi-final.
