It wasn't pretty but Waikato coach Chris Gibbes was more than happy to take his side's 36-27 win over North Harbour at Albany on Saturday night.
The way the competition was starting to shape, he said, any away wins meant you had had a good day.
Parts of the game had not been pretty and North Harbour had played some good rugby to the point where Gibbes was happy to come away with a win.
He felt his side was coping better with the need to develop and achieve from its phase play were the attack needed to be tightened to maximise the work put in.
"We're starting to get there," he said.
Gibbes also felt the experience he was able to call on from his bench was vital, especially considering the competition was not yet at the halfway mark and the further the competition went the more the depth sides could put on the bench would be of benefit.
He especially mentioned prop Ben May who was called into action for the first time in 12 months as the result of injury, after Toby Smith had to drop out during the week.
Both Gibbes and Waikato's captain Nathan White paid tribute to the contribution May made on the night.
All Blacks three-quarter Richard Kahui also added power and thrust when having his first start since suffering a shoulder injury during the All Blacks' pre-Tri Nations series.
White was also frustrated at the way Waikato had kept North Harbour in the game by conceding silly penalties.
North Harbour coach Craig Dowd could only lament the errors committed by his side and was left frustrated for his team who played well enough to create chances only to leave them at their feet.
Missing some one-on-one tackles had also been a problem. But he was pleased at the way the side attempted to hang in and not give up.
It was an extremely fit combination which would play for 80 minutes and be more competitive if it could avoid the mistakes.
However, as he contemplates a Ranfurly Shield challenge on Friday he has injury concerns over flanker Malakai Ravulo (knee), Nafi Tuitavake (hamstring), Michael Reid (foot) and Luke McAlister (calf).