NPC: Hawke’s Bay Magpies fly into NPC semifinals, keep Taranaki tryless

Miracle Faiilagi on the charge. Photo / John Cowpland, Action press

The Hawke’s Bay Magpies have screamed into the Bunnings Warehouse NPC semifinals with a take-that, four-tries-to-none 26-12 win over the Taranaki Bulls in Napier on Saturday.

Fitting with the occasion of a barracking home crowd on a classic night with temperatures above 20C throughout, but a gusty wind from the embankment end, the Magpies out-thought the visiting Taranaki side, who were looking for a fifth win over the Bay in a row.

They thus justified both the TAB favouritism and the home-match ranking for an eighth win in 11 matches in 2025 and the last at McLean Park for the year.

The Magpies, playing from the embankment in the first half, barely made it out of their own half in the first 20 minutes, which ultimately set a launching pad for the victory that followed – the Bulls having had little reward for their effort.

With the dead-eye boot of Taranaki first five-eighths Josh Jacomb nailing three points from his first attempt in the 15th minute, Hawke’s Bay needed some confidence to flourish on attack and it came with a try to second five-eighths Le Roux Malan in the tackle and stretching the left arm out to the line in the corner in the 28th minute.

First five-eighths Lincoln McClutchie converted, as he did when flanker Miracle Fai’ilagi scored five minutes before halftime.

With Jacomb adding the second of his four penalties, becoming the top scorer in the 2025 NPC, it was 14-6 at halftime.

McClutchie had to step into halfback as Folau Fakatava was yellow-carded and Jacomb closed the gap to five points by the time the black-and-white No 9 jersey was back on the park.

McClutchie was rewarded with a try in the 52nd minute with a single piece of brilliance, gapping between the Taranaki fullback and flanker to score close to the posts, possibly the most telling part of the game, and with Taranaki also down to 14 men.

Taranaki had plenty of territory and possession but the Magpies’ defence wore the visitors’ imagination down and the game was made near enough to safe with flanker Sam Smith’s try 14 minutes from the end.

There were many heroes among the Magpies, including prop Hadlee Hay Horton, who was a late addition to the starting line-up with Pouri Rakete-Stones unfit to play.

Earlier in the weekend, Otago and Bay of Plenty advanced with wins in their quarter-finals.

On Sunday home side Canterbury needed extra time to beat a fired-up Counties Manukau 23-15, setting up a semifinal against Hawke’s Bay next Saturday (7.10pm) at Apollo Projects Stadium in Christchurch.