Manawatū have fought back to deny Southland their first win of the National Provincial Championship season, prevailing 38-27 in Invercargill on Sunday.
Tries to Tony Lamborn and Solomon Alaimalo gave the Stags a 20-6 lead, before first-five Brett Cameron struck for the Turbos on the stroke of halftime.
The visitors rode that momentum into the second half, as wing Alex Fidow crossed in the corner to level the score at 20-20.
The locals responded quickly, as replacement Mat Whaanga took advantage of a miscalculated Manawatū backline move to claim an intercept and sprint 20m to the chalk.
Five minutes later, Fidow was on hand with his own piece of individual brilliance, reeling in an attempted chip kick with two hands and bolting 40m to score his second try of the afternoon.
With 15 minutes to play, Brett Cameron nailed a penalty to give the Turbos their first lead of the game, with lock Liam Mitchell stepping up to deliver the killer blow with a try in the corner with just five minutes to play.
The win consolidates second place in the championship for Manawatū, while Southland remain mired at the bottom of the standings.
