The Hawke’s Bay Magpies face a white-knuckle ride to the NPC playoffs after being beaten 38-24 by Taranaki in New Plymouth tonight.
The loss pushed the side back to fourth place in the competition ladder in the 50th year of the annual rugby championship, with two matches to play before the quarter-finals.
It put the Bay at risk of dropping to as low as sixth by the end of the weekend and being left fighting for home-match status first-up in the playoffs.
They scored first when left wing Neria Fomai went over to the right of the posts in the 17th minute, but first five-eighth Lincoln McClutchie’s conversion attempt hit the posts.
Under pressure for most of the next 20 minutes, the Magpies’ defence held out until they were suddenly down 7-5 at halftime, after captain Tom Parsons was yellow-carded and Taranaki hooker Bradley Slater scored in a drive by the forwards from the lineout stemming from the penalty.
First five-eighth Josh Jacomb, the top scorer in the competition, added the conversion, in the first of eight successful kicks from as many attempts in a personal tally of 22 points for the night.
He then converted a try scored by No 8 Kaylum Boshier eight minutes into the second half, opening a nine-point gap that started to tell the tale of the tape.
Fomai scored a second try for the Bay, but Jacomb’s try and conversion in quick reply was a condemning moment which put Taranaki ahead 21-12.
When Taranaki left wing Vereniki Tikoisolomone scored with 17 minutes to go, with Jacomb again nailing the conversion, it was all over.
Taranaki scored two more tries, again converted by Jacomb, but the Magpies bounced back with two tries, to replacements Sam Smith and Andrew Tauatevalu, to snatch a four-try bonus point on fulltime.
The Magpies were notably outclassed in the lineouts, where All Blacks squad member Josh Lord was dominant throughout.
The Magpies also conceded too many penalties to keep in the game.
They’d started their second game in a row on the road with some injury disruption, and five changes from the starting line-up of the previous Saturday’s golden-point win over Bay of Plenty in Tauranga.
They play Auckland on Thursday night, with the sides meeting in Napier for the second year in a row.
Last year, Hawke’s Bay beat Auckland 36-35 after Harry Godfrey kicked a wide-angle conversion in final seconds.
In the same match, Zarn Sullivan kicked 15 points in one of his last of 31 matches before returning to the Bay to front for the Magpies this season.
Some of the wider Magpies squad will have made the two-hour jaunt up State Highway 2 to the Ross Shield primary schools tournament in Wairoa.
Hawke’s Bay union chief executive Jay Campbell said the tournament, which is mainly for intermediate school boys and girls, is important enough for Magpies players to be present, but it is one of the toughest weeks of the NPC, which Hawke’s Bay has never won.
Meanwhile, a Poverty Bay team that fields six Wairoa players in the starting line-up and is coached by former Magpie Paoraian Manuel-Harman, also from Wairoa, play a crucial Saturday-afternoon Heartland championship match against South Canterbury in Gisborne.
Poverty Bay have not beaten South Canterbury since a 49-22 win in the Lochore Cup final in 2011. Defeated 59-33 by North Otago in Oamaru last weekend, after leading 26-12 at halftime, Poverty Bay are looking for an upset win to bounce back into contention for the Heartland championship’s top four.
The Hawke’s Bay Tui end three years in the premier division of Farah Palmer Cup women’s rugby with a match against Waikato at the regional sports park in Hastings on Saturday, starting at 2.05pm.
The Tui, with numerous experienced players unavailable for part or all of the six-game campaign, have not won a match in 2025 and relegation was confirmed when beaten 62-17 by the Bay of Plenty Volcanix last weekend.
Hawke’s Bay are yet to win a Farah Palmer Cup match against Waikato, having been beaten 43-3 in 2014, 14-10 in 2023 and 44-12 last year.
The team is: Denise Aiolupotea, Amber McKenzie, Nina Poletti; Caterina Poletti (captain), Zaire Courtney; Kaya Whaitiri-Dee, Olioli Mua; Patrice Mareikura; Raedeen Blake (vice-captain), Cassie Siataga; Horiana Lee-Nepia; Hinemoa Hubbard, Arwen Tipoki, Rakai McCafferty; Kate Donald. Subs: Jaye Nepia, Journey Otene, Tori Iosefo, Kathlynn Magele, Rebecca Dickson, Ama Mua, Aimee Thomsen, Reneigh Edwards.
Doug Laing is a Senior reporter with over 50 years’ experience, with over 40 years in Hawke’s Bay, covering all aspects of news, including sports.