Northland centre Blake Hohaia eyes the ball while the Southland defence closes in during the Bunnings Warehouse NPC clash.
Photo / Michael Cunningham
Northland centre Blake Hohaia eyes the ball while the Southland defence closes in during the Bunnings Warehouse NPC clash.
Photo / Michael Cunningham
Defence is an important string the Northland Taniwha has attached to its bow and it's such a potent weapon it nearly inhibits the opposition from converting pressure into points.
Southland Stags found that out on Sunday at Semenoff Stadium in Whangārei when for the most part, they were uncertain about how to break free from a resilient Northland defence or find ways to force the tempo up and build scoreboard pressure.
The 32-19 loss was Southland's fourth in the Bunnings Warehouse NPC and the men from the winless deep south are languishing at the bottom of the points table.
For the hosts, their first win at home this season secured them the inaugural Peter Hetaraka Te Tai Trophy, named after Northland-born Rugby Southland stalwart Heta Te Tai, and moved them into third position on the points table.
Also in a celebratory mood was the Northland Kauri that held off a strong challenge from Taranaki Whio in the Farah Palmer Cup quarterfinal at the same venue to win 31-19 and advance to the Championship semifinal on Saturday when they play Hawkes Bay in Napier.
Otago and North Harbour battle it out in the other Championship semifinal in Dunedin.
Northland Kauri captain Charmaine Smith sets up an attack in the quarter final win over the Taranaki Whio.
Photo / Michael Cunningham
Tries to wing Tyler Nankivell and former Black Fern Charmaine Smith put the Kauri ahead 17-5 but Taranaki halfback Lucy Blyde hit back to reduce the deficit.
The breakthrough for the Kauri came when they managed to score twice when Taranaki No 8 Brooke Neilson was sent to the bin.
Leilani Erwin, Clare Guest and Tui McGeorge were the other scorers.
But back to the NPC. Northland's game plan to turn defence into attack worked a treat when halfback Lisati Milo-Harris finished off a length-of-the-field move that's got to feature in the top 10 tries scored in this year's NPC.
Take a bow Ofa Tu'ungafasi. The tighthead prop effected a turnover near the Northland tryline after 12 phases of attack by Southland but nothing to show for it.
From the turnover, fullback Josh Moorby bolted down the left flank and for a moment, it appeared he'd go all the way. A host of Taniwha players ran excellent support lines and it was just a matter of who touched down.
There was no shortage of finishers, men with the devastating acceleration and high-end speed to damage the opposition.
Lisati Milo-Harris did the honours— his second try— that pushed the scores to 20-0 with 10 minutes to spare in the opening stanza.
"We've been priding ourselves on defence and we really wanted to turn defence into attack today and score some tries off the back of it and managed to do that... little things like that makes a huge difference," Northland skipper Matt Moulds said.
Northland captain Matt Moulds with Hetaraka Te Tai and the trophy named after the latter.
Photo / Michael Cunningham
There was huge competitiveness at training and everyone was trying to get better which was reflected in the way his side played, he said.
"The facilities that Northland Rugby has got just makes everything so much easier, the professionalism of the place, it feels like a Super Rugby set up. It's really allowing the boys to grow and thrives.
"A good amount of homegrown talent coming through, couple of good recruits, coming in and really bolstering us, good to see Ofa getting some time as well."
Auckland next up would be a huge challenge, but it was one his players were pretty excited about, Moulds said.
Despite playing in the right areas of the field and launching wave after wave of attacks, Southland was guilty of bringing a knife to a gunfight. And so the Stags went bust and Northland went bang and therein lies the story behind Southland's NPC campaign thus far.
The visitors may have had the gun when hot on attack but it was the hosts who were pulling the trigger.
Poor finishing proved to be the Stags' Achilles' heel and despite having ace goalkicker and vice captain Marty Banks running the cutter, the visitors turned down kickable penalties only to make unforced errors off set piece plays.
Former Highlander, Chiefs and Māori All Black Robbie Robinson had his work cut out by the Northland defence and Isaac Te Tamaki knocking the ball off a kick/chase in the Northland half summed up the Stags' frustration.
Te Tamaki had the ability to cut open the Northland defence and needed to start the match rather than coming off the bench in the last quarter.
Former Northland player Scott Gregory turned up in Stags' colours in front of family and friends.
Photo / Michael Cunningham
Stags' captain Josh Bekhuis rued the wasted opportunities.
"We gave away the ball too much at crucial times and although in last couple of games we were a bit unlucky, in this game we didn't really front up against a good Northland team.
"Just the fundamentals like catching the ball, not giving away crucial moments. We really wanted to do it for Pete, he's a great man, he's a calming presence, a legend of Rugby Southland and we really wanted to get our name scratched on that shield for us."
There was quick ball and momentum for Southland but no flow and it looked like a combination of little things added up.
By the 52nd minute, the visitors had conceded 11 turnovers to Northland's one and made four handling errors compared to the hosts one.
The Stags built pressure and opportunity but couldn't see any crevice in the Northland defence.
Former Taniwha player Scott Gregory turned up in the Stags' colours for the first time and will best be remembered for the try he bombed after a thumping tackle by wing Jone Macilai on the tryline.
"That's rugby eh, doesn't always go your way. It's great to be back home, caught up with family and a few friends. It was challenging, few nerves going into the game but I enjoyed it," Gregory said.
Heta Te Tai was Northland Rugby Union's guest of honour and was basking in the company of about 40 family members who came down from the Bay of Islands for the match.
