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At North Harbour Stadium: North Harbour 39 (Ben Grant, Tevita Mafile’o, Shaun Stevenson, Danyon Morgan-Puterangi, Ray Niuia, Lotu Inisi tries; Oscar Koller 3 con, pen) Waikato 17 (Liam Coombes-Fabling, Ollie Norris, Sean Ralph tries; Aaron Cruden con) HT: 24-5
Fringe All Black Shaun Stevenson inspired North Harbour to their first win of the season with a try and some outstanding defence against Waikato.
The fullback’s physicality was questioned by the All Blacks before the Rugby Championship, but Stevenson showed on Saturday that he has taken the feedback on board.
He belted Waikato winger Daniel Sinkinson with one crucial second-half tackle, before stopping a rampaging Quinn Tupaea.
Those vital interventions came as Waikato were threatening to stage a comeback after North Harbour had raced to a 24-5 halftime lead, with Stevenson scoring from short range.
Although Waikato did narrow the deficit to 24-12, North Harbour responded with a maul try after Stevenson’s staunch defensive work, leaving the Mooloos with a mountain to climb.
Big Blues No 8 Cameron Suafoa was also outstanding for Harbour, while Tupaea and Aaron Cruden – on as a second-half replacement – did their best to spark a Waikato comeback.
Tupaea has been excellent in the NPC so far after returning from a serious knee injury, and the All Blacks are sure to be keeping an eye on him in case injuries strike at the Rugby World Cup.
SKY SPORT
Jayson Potroz misses a late conversion for Taranaki as Canterbury survive a late fightback.
At Rangiora Showground Oval: Canterbury 29 (Alex Harford, Ngantungane Punivai, Billy Harmon, Rameka Poihipi tries; Harford 3 con, pen) Taranaki 28 (Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens, Ricky Riccitelli, Vereniki Tikoisolomone, Stephen Perofeta tries; Jayson Potroz con, 2 pen). HT: 17-11
Yellow cards: Chay Fihaki (Canterbury), Heiden Bedwell-Curtis (Taranaki), Reed Prinsep (Canterbury)
Canterbury bounced back after last week’s loss to Wellington, but they had to rely on some good fortune to get the win.
With about six minutes remaining, Taranaki looked set to take the lead after a Stephen Perofeta try but No 10 Jayson Potroz missed a routine conversion attempt.
Canterbury, who lost two men to the sin bin the final quarter, held on in front of an excellent crowd in Rangiora, where the locals turned out in force.
Potroz will be kicking himself after Taranaki replacement winger Vereniki Tikoisolomone sparked a fightback from the visitors.
Discarded All Black Joe Moody was involved in a rugged scrum battle with Taranaki tighthead Reuben O’Neill, and certainly didn’t have it all his own way during his 55 minutes on the paddock.
Moody, who argued his case with All Blacks coach Ian Foster after being left out of the Rugby World Cup squad, coughed up one important scrum penalty from an attacking 5m scrum, and Taranaki scored the first try of the game soon afterwards.
An intercept try to Ngantungane Punivai before halftime, however, changed the complexion of the game.
Punivai perfectly read a Taranaki backline move that was designed to feed to the dangerous Kini Naholo, and ran 70 metres for a crucial try.
Canterbury then raced out to a 29-11 lead, but they were almost reeled in until Potroz’s late miss.
At Rotorua International Stadium: Bay of Plenty 38 (Richard Judd, Manaaki Selby-Rickit (2), Cole Forbes, Lucas Cashmore tries; Cashmore 5 con, pen) Otago 14 (Jermaine Ainsley, Saula Ma’u tries A; Finn Hurley 2 con). HT: 28-7
Yellow card: Naitoa Ah Kuoi (Bay of Plenty)
Bay of Plenty scored three tries in the first 20 minutes against an error-riddled Otago side to set the foundation for a comprehensive win.
Former Highlanders lock Manaaki Selby-Rickit helped himself to two tries in the first half, as Otago fell off far too many tackles in a poor display.
To make matters worse for the visitors, power midfielder Thomas Umaga-Jensen hobbled off after half an hour after twisting his leg in a tackle.
The Steamers, by contrast, were physical in everything they did, while their lineout was also far more accurate.
No 7 Veveni Lasaqa was outstanding with and without the ball, and his efforts were mirrored by midfielder Lalomilo Lalomilo, whose powerful runs and tackles were a feature of the game.
The win puts Bay of Plenty back inside the top eight, with three victories for the season so far.
Otago, meanwhile, are languishing towards the bottom of the ladder, with only a win against Southland to their name so far.
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