Mitre 10 Cup: Northland coach Derren Witcombe believes players can resurrect season

Northland men's rugby team head coach Derren Witcombe, pictured here at last year's North Harbour game, is facing the tough task of instilling confidence into his squad of players. Photo / Photosport

With six losses and only one win this season, it's fair to say 2019 hasn't been the kindest to the Northland Taniwha.

Since their opening round win over Southland on August 8, Northland's men's rugby team have gone on a six-game losing streak which was mostly recently added to by a 46-22 loss to a talented Bay of Plenty (BOP) side at Whangārei's Semenoff Stadium on Sunday.

It wasn't a pretty start to the game as the visitors jumped out to a 22-3 lead after just 23 minutes. Despite a fightback towards the end of the first half from the home side, Northland couldn't stop the bleeding as the Steamers ran in four second half tries despite playing with 14 men from the 53rd minute after a red card was shown to left wing Fa'asiu Fuatai.

The loss left Northland at the bottom of the championship table for the first time this season, thanks in part to Southland's first win in three years over Counties Manukau on Saturday.

In their six losses, the Taniwha conceded an average of 42.8 points per game and scored an average of 19.3 points. Over their seven games, Northland have scored only three more points overall (143) than the competition's lowest scoring team, Manawatu (140). Northland have conceded the most points across the competition (274), seven points more than the second-worst Southland (267).

Witcombe, along with assistant coach George Konia (right), will have to work their magic if the team is to avoid the Mitre 10 Cup's wooden spoon. Photo / File

Despite the grim tale these statistics tell, Northland head coach Derren Witcombe is determined to help his players regain some self-belief ahead of their three remaining games against Wellington, Tasman and Otago.

Witcombe, now in his third year coaching the Taniwha, said his players struggled to recover after being blitzed by BOP early in Sunday's game.

"The way we finished showed some pride but I think it's more of a confidence thing than a pride thing because [the players] are trying," he said.

"It's just when a team lacks confidence and a team like BOP put a couple of quick tries on you, you've got to be really mentally strong to get that back."

Witcombe said his players struggled to recover after being blitzed by BOP early in Sunday's game. Photo / Tania Whyte

With the hopes of a semifinal now almost out of reach, Witcombe said the changing room had become a fairly sombre place to be in spite of the passion shown on the field.

"Seeing what I saw in the changing room, there's no point kicking the dog while it's down because [the players] do care and we are trying our best.

"It's good to see we are hurting because it means we care, so we just need to get ourselves up mentally."

Building mental resilience was a key focus for the Taniwha this year and was proved through the hiring of a mental skills coach, something not previously done for the Northland men's rugby team.

Yesterday, the squad took a break from rugby for a friendly waka ama competition in Tutukaka, which was followed by a meeting between the players and coaching staff about what they wanted to achieve in the remaining three rounds.

A big thorn in the side of Northland's top men's rugby team had been injury. Nine players from their squad were unavailable for Sunday's game due to injury, including experienced Northlander Rene Ranger, Blues star Tom Robinson and hooker Jordan Olsen, who started this season as captain.

Witcombe said he was hopeful to see some of his injured players back before the season's end, but could not confirm any upcoming returns.

While he was quick to confirm the team's injury woes were not an excuse for this year's form, Witcombe said injuries to key players hadn't helped Northland's progress but it did enable new, local players to get on the park.

"I feel for some of our guys but the positive thing is they are getting opportunities and should we hold on to them, they'll have a bit more experience for next year."

The men's team might have to take some notes from the Northland women's rugby team who earned their first ever Farah Palmer Cup win on Sunday over North Harbour, 27-21.

Considering it was the team's first ever season in the domestic competition, Northland's last-minute win was a huge statement to the rest of the competition and one that Witcombe recognised as a real step forward.

"It was an awesome finish, they played with a lot of ticker and pride and they finished the game really well [because] they could have easily lost that.

"It's not only good for their side, its good for Northland women's rugby as a whole moving forward."

The men's team next play Wellington in Wellington on Saturday, kickoff at 5.05pm. The women's team will play Taranaki in Inglewood on Saturday, kickoff at 2.30pm.