Rugby: Pryor returns to haunt North

Northland Barbarians first five Peter Breen looks to clear under pressure from Blues prop Sam Prattley. The Blues won the match 73-8 at Toll Stadium. Photo / Michael Cunningham

While it didn't look pretty on the scoreboard, there were some positives to take from the Northland Barbarians heavy defeat by the Blues at Toll Stadium.

The Super Rugby franchise completed an 11-try rout of the Northland selection, finishing with a 73-8 victory.

A familiar face for Northland fans was prominent throughout the fixture.

Blues flanker Kara Pryor, who plays for Northland, was all over the Barbarians.

He did the dirty work in the rucks, ran the ball well in open space and capped it off with two tries on his home ground.

The Barbarians were competitive, but coach Richie Harris said the result was never really in doubt.

"From a scoreboard perspective, obviously we weren't happy. But that was always going to be the case," he said.

Getting a win wasn't the real focus of this Barbarians side, as all players had the platform to press their claims for Mitre 10 Cup selection.

Harris was somewhat happy with the progress they made, but some areas of their game left him wanting.

"Before the game we looked at the set piece, where we have traditionally struggled. The scrum went really well for us and we only lost two lineouts," he said.

"On the other side, I was disappointed that we kicked away as much hard-earned ball as we did."

Winger Wisea Lawabuca crossed for their sole try, with Peter Breen slotting a penalty goal to add to their side of the ledger.

The Barbarians at times were willing to spread the ball wide, but became trapped on defence when they kicked away valuable possession.

The Blues loose forwards were far more accurate at the breakdown due to their familiarity with the new laws not used at club level.

The performance gave Harris a few ideas on selections.

"Most of the guys played well, but a few of them confirmed they weren't up for it," he said.

Harris now has eight weeks before their season starts, and is looking for more improvement from his side.

"We made progress, but now it's not going backwards on things. We need to keep working on accuracy going forward," he said. "We'll be working with the side twice a week to prepare for the Mitre 10 Cup."

- Northland begin their campaign on August 19, when they host Manawatu at Toll Stadium.