The Magpies controlled the lineout.
They were too strong in the scrums.
They defended well when they had to and they actually played some pretty enterprising rugby despite the bleak conditions.
It rained quite hard at times but first five Mackenzie Palmer was a handful.
He was as unpredictable as ever. Sometimes he would run it. Other times he put his teammates into a hole with a fabulous pass, and his attacking kicks proved dangerous as well.
Experienced winger Josh Buchan dotted down twice.
Hooker Bede Dodd-Edgar tucked himself in the boot and scored twice from lineout drives.
Powerful loose forward Konrad Toleafoa grabbed a brace of tries as well and made a solid impression at both ends of the field.
The other games threw up a few surprising results as well.
Dunedin beat Harbour 23-0 at Kettle Park. The Hawks were previously unbeaten.
Kaikorai cruised to a 40-14 win against University at Bishopscourt.
The win has seen them climb into the top six, while the students drop to seventh in the competition standings.
Taieri brushed aside Zingari-Richmond 53-19 at Monticello Park and lead the competition.
