NPC talking points: Early signs of increased parity promising for competition

Stuff

09 August 2023

NPC talking points: Early signs of increased parity promising for competition

Parity. It’s the most important ingredient if a competition is to be competitive. The flow on is fans will be more invested.

That couldn’t be more important this season, given New Zealand Rugby’s premier men’s domestic competition will overlap with the FIFA women’s World Cup, the Rugby World Cup and the Cricket World Cup.

Obviously, the NPC can’t compete with them for sheer interest, but an absorbing season wouldn’t go astray for a competition that will have to scrap for eyeballs and media coverage in the coming months.

The opening round featured four games decided by eight points or fewer, including a couple of two-point thrillers, and there wasn’t a true blowout.

Yes, Canterbury’s 43-11 win over Northland looks a drubbing on paper, but it was a tight tussle until the red and blacks took advantage of a couple of yellow cards and eased clear in the final quarter.

Heck, even Southland, a team which has won just three piddly games the past two seasons, fought back in a 29-21 loss to fancied Waikato after falling into an early hole.

Manawatū, a year after failing to win a single match, led defending champions Wellington 6-3 at halftime, but had Josh Taula red carded for an ugly late hit and ultimately lost 22-6.

And Taranaki, mighty underachievers last year, are already one win away from matching last year’s total of scalps (three) a week into the season.

Past battlers hanging tough and pushing the big dogs can only be a good thing.

Now, for it to continue.

All Blacks boost

The good thing with it being a World Cup year and Ian Foster not being allowed to name the type of ridiculously bloated squad of past years is there are more quality players running about.

Indeed, the squeeze going on means players such as Joe Moody, Ethan Blackadder, Jack Goodhue, Akira Ioane, Hoskins Sotutu, Stephen Perofeta, Dallas McLeod, Folau Fakatava and Cullen Grace have already played or soon will.

There’s plenty incentive for fringe All Blacks, too. After all, there’s every chance Foster’s 33-man squad takes casualties.

A few players that won’t be seen in the next wee while are Waikato’s Samipeni Finau, Canterbury’s George Bell and Hawke’s Bay’s Brad Weber – all three have been added as training partners ahead of the All Blacks’ warm-up match against South Africa in London later this month.

Already without fellow Crusader Brodie McAlister for the season due to injury, red and black fans might well bemoan the temporary loss of Bell, who missed the Super Rugby campaign with a broken ankle, and got the nod after Wellington’s Asafo Aumua hurt his calf last week.

Essential viewing

Give the schedule makers some love for dishing up one of the better Saturday lineups in recent memory.

It all starts with a rematch of last year’s enthralling quarterfinal between Waikato and Bay of Plenty, who put a one-point loss to the Mooloos during the group stage behind them to advance to the semis.

Yes, Waikato and BOP almost never fail to produce quality contests, which can also be said for when Otago and Wellington clash.

A year after the Lions pipped the blue and golds, they go at it again on Saturday afternoon, before Tasman host Auckland in Blenheim in a rematch of the 2020 final, won by the Mako.