Rugby: Northland Taniwha and Kauri teams notch up wins in NPC, FPC

A gleeful Heremaia Murray on his way to scoring Northland's second try in the 32-5 pasting of the Tasman Mako. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Many pundits and fans alike may have felt as the weekend drew closer that victory for the Tasman Mako in Whangārei was a foregone conclusion, given their pedigree.

That the Southerners would roll in and get the job done without having to break too much of a sweat. Instead, the Mako came unstuck against a fiercely-determined Taniwha side that wished more fans would have turned up through the turnstiles on a wet night.

As former All Blacks mentor Sir Steve Hansen once said: “The team that took the game won the game,” Or, as Mike Tyson famously put it: “Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the mouth.”

Northland reminded the Mako of just that with a 32-5 victory at Semenoff Stadium on Saturday evening to register their first win in the Bunnings Warehouse NPC after losses to Canterbury and Taranaki, and a draw with Southland.

In a double blow for Tasman, their Farah Palmer Cup side lost to the Northland Kauri 31-6 in Blenheim on Saturday afternoon and the win means the latter have qualified for the playoffs with four wins and a loss.

Matt Moulds powers his way for the last try just before fulltime. Photo / Michael Cunningham

At Semenoff Stadium on Saturday, Northland had many facets to their game and with a coruscating performance like that, the hosts played as if they have a blueprint for winter rugby embedded in their DNA. They reminded everyone that if the weather stays bad, stick the mortgage on the Taniwha.

And as hard as the Mako muscled their way to the right parts of the field, it was apparent as the game wore on that they were second-best. This was a slow, grinding job that got the Mako reeling until former Northland skipper Matt Moulds landed the killer blow a minute before fulltime.

One could argue the win was more a sign of the weakness of their opponents than the quality of the Northland pack. That may well be the case, given Tasman’s meek display on an evening when their game plan went totally up the spout. They hit an invisible wall after multiple phases of play as Northland employed multiple facets to their play that paid off in spades.

The Mako wanted to play much the same way they have done for years but the slickness wasn’t there in the rain and dangerous ball runners Timoci Tavatavanawai, Alex Nankivell and Levi Aumua struggled to break open an almost-impregnable defensive line.

The basics deserted them. There were multiple passages where Northland’s stoic defence not only repelled the Tasman attack for more than 10 phases but forced the visitors into conceding penalties.

Young Taniwha fans had a night to remember following their team's big win over the Mako. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Northland exuded confidence and ran from everywhere and the Mako simply couldn’t compete with a team that not only did all the right things but did them so well.

Sam Caird goes hard into the tackle of a Tasman defender, while Dan Hawkins watches on. Photo / Michael Cunningham

“Northland really turned up, they hung in there but we just didn’t function as a team. The last couple of weeks, we’ve been really good, doing the simple things really well but tonight, we just weren’t there,” Mako skipper Quinten Strange offered post-match.

“The weather potentially played a part but... we don’t make excuses. We were beaten by a better team tonight. We knew it was going to be tough. Everything we talked about during the week, we didn’t do.”

Strange said at halftime, with Northland leading 15-5, that his team spoke about getting back to the basics and trying to get go-forward ball - but they managed to do those in patches only.

“These are easy fixes - effort and skillset - so it’s nothing special to turn it around. The little things in our game, like catch-pass, the carry, the clean and when we got those things right, we’re a completely different team,” he said.

Heremaia Murray scored a brace while Moulds and loss forward Liam Hallam-Eames got one try each.

Fullback Rivez Reihana threw a cut-out ball to skipper Rob Rush who drew in the last defender for Murray to get over for the first try, but the Mako levelled the scores 10 minutes later through hooker Quentin MacDonald, who barged over off a rolling maul.

Northland upped the ante and quick thinking by Josh Moorby got his side the second try. A quick tap, followed by patient pick and go saw Hallam-Eames crash over from close range for a healthy halftime lead.

Blake Hohaia squandered a wonderful opportunity on the stroke of halftime. He intercepted a Mako pass and bolted down the left flank, only to throw a forward pass as the Tasman defence dragged him into touch.

After extending Northland’s lead to 18-5 with a penalty just after the break, Murray struck again as Northland turned defence into attack. A turnover at the halfway mark caught the Mako defence napping. A yawning gap opened in the midfield and Murray put the accelerator on and galloped 45 metres to touch down.

Northland swept left, they swept right, they bashed up the middle and the tries flowed in - as did the rain.

Northland captain Rush dedicated the win to their loyal fans.

“It’s been a rough first couple of rounds for us and just to get this win and because of who they are, it makes everything feel more awesome.

“The whole time I was thinking, and I said it in the changing room, that Northland’s not known for the best things but to see people come out in the stormy weather and to give up their Saturday night, we had to do it for them.”

To restrict the Mako to just one try and win with such a big margin was a credit to Northland. Tasman have a short turnaround, playing Wellington on Wednesday, while Northland get back on the road and face winless Manawatū at Palmerston North on Friday.