Cool weather as All Blacks take on Tonga before Rugby World Cup starts

More rain is on the way this weekend. Photo / File

Instead of a warm-up, the All Blacks might be in for more of a warm-down as cool weather is forecast for their last game before the Rugby World Cup.

As the men in black take to the field against Tonga in Hamilton tomorrow, they will be met by a brisk southwest breeze and a chilly 15C - about half the expected 30C and high humidity of Japan.

MetService meteorologist Rob Kerr said a band of rain affecting the North Island today should be bumped away by a weak ridge tonight, bringing mostly fine weather across much of the country tomorrow.

But along with that ridge will come some fresh southwesterlies that should keep things cool for kick-off in Hamilton at 2.35pm. There is also the potential for a few scattered showers.

"It will be nothing like Japan," Kerr said.

Tomorrow, Auckland is in for a relatively fine day, with isolated showers, southwest winds and a high of 15C.

The settled weather will not hang around long though, as a cold front makes its way up the South Island on Sunday, bringing snow to 400m, including around the Canterbury foothills.

In the north, a warm front will move down from the northwest Sunday, bringing another band of heavy rain for most places.

"Sunday is looking like a wet day for most of the country, and especially in the north."

Are you 💙 or 💛?

Saturday's temps will be chilly for the time of year! pic.twitter.com/4pN3s58AyE

— NIWA Weather (@NiwaWeather) September 6, 2019

The Bay of Plenty will likely get the heaviest falls, but Auckland is also in for another dowsing, with particularly heavy falls forecast in the early hours.

Those falls will turn to showers late morning in Auckland, persisting most of the day with northwesterlies and a high of 17C forecast.

Aotearoa here is your weekend weather forecast in 30 seconds (well... 39 if you count the outro...). Aaaaaannnd GO! ^AH pic.twitter.com/Jtzsj3nEKf

— MetService (@MetService) September 6, 2019

The week ahead was looking "very changeable", Kerr said.

"Each day it is changing - very typical for spring, classic four seasons in one day."

This RGB loop shows blue water and orange/red ice/snow. Convective storms sweeping over Northland (& 1 offshore Westland!). Swathe of orange cirrus atop rain cloud layer over central NZ. Showery open and closed cell cumulus sweeping up from Southland to Canterbury. ^RK pic.twitter.com/VKTTraSRSe

— MetService (@MetService) September 6, 2019

The front affecting the North Island on Sunday will lie over the island on Monday before moving away to the northeast on Tuesday.