Wanganui and South Canterbury, the winner and runner-up for the Meads Cup last year, continue to set the pace in the Mitre 10 Heartland Championship putting a buffer between themselves and the chasing pack in seventh round action on Saturday.
Wanganui demonstrated their dominance of the competition with a 28-0 win over third-placed Buller in Westport. They added to their cause by also claiming the four-try bonus point.
South Canterbury also claimed the maximum points when beating North Otago 44-14. Wanganui goes into the last round on 34 points and South Canterbury on 32.
Mid Canterbury slipped into third on 27 points, two ahead ahead of Buller with their 38-22 win over Thames Valley. Wairarapa Bush have a share of fourth with Buller after their 32-30 win over Poverty Bay.
Wanganui will play Horowhenua Kapiti at home in next week's final round while South Canterbury will be home to Mid Canterbury. Buller will play King Country in Taupo while Wairarapa Bush will be at home to East Coast.