KEY POINTS:
It's become clear in the past two weeks that the Air New Zealand Cup is the new club rugby. What's also clear is that the competition is more exciting and willing than it ever was.
Canterbury and Otago went at it for 80 minutes yesterday and while there were some loose moments - too much ball spilled in contact and some wild passing - it was fast, furious and relentlessly entertaining.
It went to the wire, with Otago getting to within a metre of the try-line in the last second when they were seven points down.
That they were still in the game at that stage will have been a source of frustration for Canterbury. The visitors scored after three minutes when Mose Tuiali'i burst up the middle, fed Kieran Read and the captain got the ball away with a neat pass to the unmarked Tyson Keats.
The combination of Tuiali'i and Read was prominent and all the time they were making big yards, throwing clever passes and smashing into rucks, it was hard not to wonder if they really should have been in Dunedin. Both looked as if they could be more gainfully employed in Cape Town, adding a dynamism to an All Black squad in a way Sione Lauaki never will.
Read in particular continues to impress with the amount of ground he covers. He's not just a hard worker, though. Every time he was out in the open yesterday he made a good decision - made a contribution rather than convince himself just being in the right place was enough.
Too many Canterbury players failed to make a contribution last week against Manawatu but there was an obvious lift in intensity yesterday.
The Canterbury locking pair of Michael Paterson and Isaac Ross is definitely one to keep an eye on. Both men challenged well in the air and were also conspicuous in open play.
That put some pressure on the more senior Tom Donnelly to respond which he did, beginning to come more into the game in the final quarter. It was Donnelly who blasted down the right in the final minutes to give Otago their last chance of salvaging a draw and it was Donnelly who started to secure more ball from the lineout to give his side a stable platform.
Otago set themselves up for that last push after Toby Morland scored a neat try. Aaron Bancroft made a sharp break attacking right off scrum ball and then kicked ahead. Morland had the pace to get to the ball first, nudge it behind the sticks and then stay in front of the cover to secure the try.
It was a try the home side deserved for their improved efforts in the second half and their willingness to attack. It was also the pick of the three tries scored.
Counties Manukau were unable to build on last week's rare win over Auckland, conceding seven tries in a 45-3 loss to Bay of Plenty in Rotorua.
Hawke's Bay soared six places from the bottom of the table with a 43-31 victory over Northland in Napier.
Otago 13 (T. Morland try; C. Noakes pen, con; D. Bowden pen). Canterbury 20 (T. Keats, P. Williams tries; C. Slade 2 pens, 2 cons) HT: 13-3.
Bay of Plenty 45 (C Bourke 2, J Pareanga, J Hona, Z Lawrence 2, T Latimer tries; M Delany con, 2 pens; K Haimona con) Counties Manukau 3 (D Cummins pen). HT: 23-3.
Hawke's Bay 43 (I Dagg, J Kupa, G Naoupu, J Shoemark, M Jackman, K Lowe tries; M Berquist pen, 5 cons) Northland 31 (J Payne 2, F Vainikolo, D Goodwin, R Ranger tries; Payne 3 cons). HT: 22-19
