NPC talking points: More than just playoff spots on the line during final round

Stuff

28 September 2023

NPC talking points: More than just playoff spots on the line during final round

It’s certainly going to go down to the wire, given the final playoff seedings won’t be clear until about 4pm on Sunday.

That will be at the conclusion of the Bay of Plenty vs Tasman fixture in Tauranga, a tasty clash between the fifth-placed Steamers and third-placed Mako.

As it stands, only unbeaten Wellington are locked into a playoff seed, having clinched top spot with their ninth straight win of the campaign last week.

Not that they don’t have anything to play for when the Magpies roll into the capital on Saturday.

They’ll put the Ranfurly Shield on the line for the last time this season, against Hawke’s Bay, the team they snatched it from last year, knowing they can stash it for a second straight summer if they get the job done.

And that’s not all. Another victory will ensure they’re the first team since Taranaki (2021) to complete an unbeaten regular season. Tasman also achieved the feat on their way to their first crown in 2019.

Just five points separate second-placed Canterbury and sixth-placed Hawke’s Bay, while two teams currently outside the eight - Counties Manukau and North Harbour - remain a chance to snaffle a quarterfinal spot.

They’ll certainly be rooting for Canterbury to topple Waikato on Saturday afternoon, a result which would also ensure the red and blacks secure the No 2 seed, and a home semifinal, should they advance beyond the first round of the playoffs.

Getting chopped down

Speaking of Canterbury, they will need to address their second half wobbles if they’re to be taken seriously as title contenders.

For so long the masters of closing out games, they’ve struggled to do so this season, including against Tasman last weekend, when they almost butchered a 27-3 halftime lead in Christchurch.

Auckland and Counties Manukau pipped them at the post, as did Wellington, while Taranaki also almost came back from the dead to mow them down.

“We need to be better at finishing games off,” head coach Marty Bourke said.

Pivot Alex Harford, back playing after being sidelined for a chunk of the season with a quad injury, and loose forward Dominic Gardiner reiterated their coach, saying it had been a focus this week at training.

“It's probably just our individual skill sets, individual moments. I’m 100% confident we've looked at that, and going forward we'll be all over it,” Gardiner said.

One last chance for the Stags

Having missed a couple of late chances to snatch a one-point win and bank their first victory in more than a year, the Stags are down to their last chance if they’re to avoid their third win-less season since 2017.

The good news for Southland is they won’t get a better chance, not with Manawatū on the menu in Palmerston North on Sunday afternoon.

Sure, the Turbos have two more wins to show than Southland, but they’ve been dreadful since upsetting Auckland earlier in the season, suffering four-straight heavy defeats.

They also boast the worst defence in the competition, having conceded an eye-popping 386 points, 105 more than the next worst team, Southland.

With just eight wins to their name since 2016, Stags fans can only hope.

POINTS

Wellington 42, Canterbury 35, Taranaki 33, Tasman 31, Bay of Plenty 30, Hawke’s Bay 30, Auckland 28, Waikato 24, Counties Manukau 23, North Harbour 22, Northland 15, Otago 13, Manawatū 12, Southland 4