Old rivals Taniwha and BOP square off in ITM Cup

There have been some good old fashioned ding-dongs between Northland and Bay of Plenty, and tonight's ITM Cup clash at Toll Stadium should be no exception.
Northland, who have won two of their four matches to date, head into the round seven match against premiership leaders the Steamers, without two key players - skipper Jared Payne and Rene Ranger.
Payne injured his hip in Northland's match against Taranaki a week and a half ago, while Ranger suffered a kidney laceration on Saturday, during Northland's home game against Otago.
"I saw Rene yesterday and he is back home after a few days in hospital," Taniwha coach Adriaan Ferris said.
"He will be out for a while yet - he's still tender but he's getting bored not doing anything."
Ranger's Super 15 Blues teammate Payne ran freely at the captain's run and will undergo another assessment this morning , but Ferris was doubtful he would be ready for tonight's game and did not name him in the game day 23.
Losing two players of Ranger and Payne's calibre was a huge blow to Northland but Ferris was confident the squad would step up for the occasion.
"It does affect us, we are not immune to it, but we have been working hard with the entire squad to get them to understand what we are trying to do," Ferris said. "I'm confident the players coming into the team are more than capable. I'm sure Derek Carpenter coming in at 13 has the ability to operate well there tonight and he's excited and we're excited for him. It's another string to his bow and it will show he's versatile and can play 12 or 13."
With a strong young forward pack, including New Zealand under-20 players Sam Cane and Carl Axtens, and a backline including Lelia Masaga on the wing and halfback Taniela Moa, Bay of Plenty have the ability to open up Northland, so the Taniwha defence needs to be on song, the coach said.
While the short turnaround between matches has meant limited practical training sessions, the team have spent time analysing and addressing where they have been making errors.
"The fact that [the Steamers] are at the top of the table is concerning for us, and it won't be an easy match but we are capable of getting out there and beating them," Ferris said.
Carpenter replaces Ranger at centre, while Aaron Bancroft returns from injury to play inside centre.
In the forwards, Mark Burman replaces an injured Marty Veale, and will line up against his old province at lock. No8 Cam Eyre and halfback Rhyan Caine start this week after coming off the bench during Otago's match. Joel McKenty will captain the side.
Tonight's game kicks off at 7.35pm.
Northland: 1 Justin Davies, 2 Ross Wright, 3 Scott Vessey, 4 Bryce Williams, 5 Mark Burman, 6 Joel McKenty (c), 7 Dan Pryor, 8 Cam Eyre, 9 Rhyan Caine, 10 Ash Moeke, 11 Bryce Heem, 12 Aaron Bancroft, 13 Derek Carpenter, 14 Simon Munro, 15 Lachie Munro.
Reserves: 16 Tevita Vaipulu, 17 Aterea Davis, 18 Cam Goodhue, 19 Dan Faleafa, 20 Wayne Ngaluafe, 21 Jack McPhee, 22 Warren Dunn, 23 Jamie Corsi.
Bay of Plenty: 1 Pingi Talaapitaga, 2 Dan Perrin, 3 Bronson Murray, 4 Leon Power, 5 Leighton Price, 6 Carl Axtens, 7 Sam Cane, 8 Luke Braid (c), 9 Taniela Moa, 10 Dan Waenga, 11 Lance MacDonald, 12 Steve Kefu, 13 Jason Hona, 14 Lelia Masaga, 15 Chris Noakes. Reserves: 16 John Pareanga, 17 Tristan Moran, 18 Culum Retallick, 19 Tanerau Latimer, 20 Jamie Nutbrown, 21 Toby Arnold, 22 Ben Smith, 23 Greg Pleasants Tate.