Mitre 10 Cup: Northland looking for strong end to tough season

First five Peter Breen has been in top form for Northland over the latter stages of the Mitre 10 Cup. Photo/John Stone

As the end to a long season draws near, Northland will be looking to go out on a positive note.

They take on North Harbour at Toll Stadium on Sunday in their final Mitre 10 Cup match of 2016 in a game where youngsters are encouraged to come along.

Children under 14 will receive a free hot dog and chips voucher.

After they looked like they turned a corner with a streak-ending win over Waikato two weeks ago, Northland backtracked against Southland, not showing the execution on defence they had before.

Meanwhile, North Harbour are coming off a 27-all draw with Tasman as they look to lock up a Championship playoff berth.

Harbour are currently three points ahead of Bay of Plenty, so a draw will be enough to see them sneak in.

However, Northland could prove to be spoilers as they look to move off the foot of the ladder.

It will take a highly disciplined effort from the Taniwha.

While Northland concede a lot of penalties (third-worst in the competition), Harbour are by far the most disciplined team in the competition, giving away just eight penalties per match.

One area that the Taniwha hold a major advantage in is offloads.

With the likes of fullback Solomon Alaimalo and flanker Kara Pryor, Northland are one of the best offloading teams in the competition.

First five Peter Breen (13) ranks eighth in the competition for shifting the ball in the tackle. Meanwhile, Harbour rank dead last.

This means Northland won't have to worry too much about defending the threat of the offload, which hasn't been a strength this season.

Both sides have been mid-table in terms of missed tackles, but Northland have been the most susceptible to lapses.

That's not to say they can't defend. Their performances against Waikato and, to a lesser extent, Wellington prove that.

If they can get up for one last match against Harbour, who rank second to last in points scored, they should have the attack to beat them.

Northland haven't had an issue with scoring points, having scored at least 20 in all but one of their contests.

This is largely driven by Breen, Alaimalo and the threat of wingers Jone Macilai, Wisea Lawebuka and Jordan Hyland.

However, Harbour aren't without their attacking threats.

Young first five Bryn Gatland runs the cutter well and can utilise the threat of Blues player Matt Vaega, Tevita Li and Matt Duffie.

Another area where Northland hold a decisive advantage is in the loose forwards.

Northland have plenty of players to choose from, with the likes of Pryor, Matt Matich, Jack Ram and Michael Faleafa all starting at some point this season.

Tom Robinson and Aorangi Stokes have also added impact when they've been called on.

Despite this, all that really matters is what's on the scoreboard after the full-time siren.

The match kicks off at Toll Stadium at 4:35pm on Sunday.

Played: 37 (1985-2015) North Harbour wins: 25 Northland wins: 10 Draw: 2
Last match: North Harbour 36 Northland 12 - 11.10.15 in Albany
Last Northland win: Northland 58 North Harbour 27 - 03.10.14 in Whangarei
Biggest Northland score: 58 (58-27) - 03.10.14 in Whangarei
Biggest North Harbour score: 56 (56-17), 04.09.05 in Albany
Biggest differential: North Harbour by 39 (42-3) - 21.09.02 in Whangarei; and North Harbour by 39 (56-17) - 04.09.05 in Albany