Maori Rugby: Northland give Aucks a hiding

A tenacious Northland Maori XV secured a final's berth against Bay of Plenty next weekend when they crushed Auckland 45-0, in Auckland.

North Harbour defaulted last weekend to Northland, and Saturday's win means Northland have maximum points heading into Northern Region's Te Hiku o te Ika tournament at Hautapu Rugby Club in Cambridge next weekend.

North Harbour, Auckland, Counties Manukau, Waikato will also contest the Northern Region tournament, but Northland and Bay of Plenty will battle for top honours and the Northern title.

"Bay of Plenty are traditionally strong at Maori rugby like Northland and they have a lot of ITM Cup players of Maori heritage - plus they are the reigning Northern Region champions," Northland coach Adriaan Ferris said.

In their first hitout together in Saturday's round-robin game against Auckland, Northland played well as a unit.

Moerewa's Maurice Cooper was outstanding on the left wing, while up front the platform was set by Justin Davies and Buster Tahere.

Despite the large scoreline, the first half was close, Auckland playing with the strong wind. "Auckland were hard on defence and physically abrasive but they probably didn't use the wind as well as they could have," Ferris said.

Northland took control in the second half - centre Warren Dunn made several breaks, setting the backline alight, and Northland blew out the score.

Northland Colts also played their Auckland counterparts on Saturday, putting on a dominant display, winning 89-13.

"The Colts were all the better for their hitout against North Harbour (which they lost 34-20) last weekend, and really applied themselves. They were focused and had good structures and put pressure on Auckland," Ferris said.

Northland played into the wind during the first half, but nabbed four tries, and in the second half, camped down in Auckland's half, using the wind to their advantage, Ferris said.

Halfback Kadin Te Nana scored a hat-trick, while Jared Wendt crossed the chalk four times and up front, Hora Hora loose forward Paris Openshaw was dominant.

A total 34 teams - 16 senior men's, 11 colts and seven women's teams - from across the country will compete in this year's tournaments, with the winners advancing to play inter-regional Maori tournaments next month.