Venom aplenty as red and blacks topple Aucks

Daniel Carterwas a class above, especially his kicking. Simon Fergusson / Getty Images

Canterbury 27 Auckland 22

No shield, no spice - yeah, right. The rivalry between Canterbury and Auckland is fierce enough without needing any stimulants to brew things up as evidenced by one of the most thrilling finales seen in recent provincial championship history.

Canterbury will be wondering how on earth they managed to hold on to a victory Auckland seemingly had one hand on for the entire second half. The home side probably need to tip their hat to the gods for dealing them a slice of luck and to Scott Hamilton for pulling off a superb tackle on Isaia Toeava in the last seconds.

It wasn't just Hamilton, though, who threw himself about for the cause. Every man in red and black had to be on deck as Auckland kept coming and coming and coming to the point where it is hardly believable they didn't escape with at least a draw.

There was obvious frustration that the chance to land a famous win had slipped through their fingers but coach Pat Lam was far from despondent. "I think that second half will hold us in good stead through the knock-out rounds," he said. "The message at half-time was to just play football. I was really proud of the commitment and, if we can play like that second half, we will achieve our goals."

It wasn't much of a consolation to Auckland that they had taken part in easily the best game of this year's championship, but they should take some pride for finally announcing that this competition is heating up.

The teams are not best buddies. There was venom in the defensive exchanges and the breakdown was very much alive, with referee Steve Walsh allowing both sides to compete frantically. That was what was needed - tangible evidence that someone, somewhere still cared about provincial football, its history and emotional connection with the people.

It became compelling when Auckland got a bit lively in the second half and started to believe they could claw back the 24-6 half-time deficit.

Auckland gained their belief they could win at precisely the same time that Canterbury also started believing Auckland could win.

Auckland benefited from the arrival of Keven Mealamu and Joe Rokocoko who both got their hands on the ball and got the whole operation going forward. That seemed to remind their team-mates of the basic objective and Sam Tuitupou, Brad Mika and Isaia Toeava all decided that running straight and hard was a sensible ploy.

When Ben Atiga slotted his third penalty after 65 minutes to close the gap to 24-22, the game appeared to be in the bag for Auckland. Canterbury had barely touched the ball in the second half and their defensive line had become porous. They were, definitely, on the ropes. But Canterbury have built a legacy by finding reserves even they didn't know they possessed. Somehow they avoided the sucker punch and somehow they scrambled to such good effect to crawl back to the sheds with theuir scalp intact.

Canterbury probably just about deserved the win. The guts and determination they showed in the second half was impressive and, if they can emulate that character in Wellington this week, they may yet be around for the semifinals. They got back in touch with their ruthless side, making sure that they converted line breaks into points. Auckland gave them a bit of a helping hand, by being strangely soft in areas where they have been cast-iron hard in recent weeks. Casey Laulala was able to bust through the joint tackle of Atiga and Tuitupou and set up Hamilton for the opening try of the game. Tuitupou missing a tackle, very strange.

There was more generosity a minute later when Brent Ward failed to find touch from a clearance kick and then failed to put a hand on Leon MacDonald after the Canterbury fullback had gathered and set-off on a charge. But really, what Canterbury were helped by most was the re-appearance of Daniel Carter. Even in third gear he appeared to have all the time in the world. He threw out effortless skip passes that invited the runner to attack the ball and in the blink of an eye, Canterbury had gone from touchline to touchline. "We knew they were going to come out hard in the second half and we just couldn't get our hands on the ball," said Carter. "We are pleased with the win and a little disappointed not to have got the bonus point as we love playing at home."

Canterbury 27 (S. Hamilton, C. Clarke, W. Crockett tries; D. Carter 3 cons, 2 pens)

Auckland 22 (S. Tuitupou try; B. Ward 2 pens; B. Atiga con, 3 pens)