Rugby: Auckland dish out heartache for Bay

Luke Braid of the Bay of Plenty secures the ball. Photo / Getty Images

No one from Auckland dared mention it - until after Josh Noonan blew his whistle for fulltime.

But their national championship match on Saturday at Mt Maunganui had all the whiff of another late heartache to match the disappointment of their last round against Waikato.

Instead it was the Bay who walked from the field downcast with another year in the history books since they last beat Auckland in 2004.

Both sides deserved plenty of plaudits for the way they slogged their way through sodden turf, driving rain and sweeping wind at Bay Park.

There were plenty of mistakes, lots of courage and enough tension to warm the souls of the 3500 intrepid spectators who turned up to the match.

The only pretty part for the Auckland players and supporters was a scoreboard which read 11-6 after a grinding, scoreless second half.

"We are back on the right track, we know we can win a close one," Auckland captain Daniel Braid said.

They had to dig deep for the last 15 minutes as Bay lock Culum Retallick was held up over the line in a flock of bodies.

Then workhorse Auckland flanker Onosai Auva'a was sinbinned with two minutes left as he handled once too often in a ruck. Was Bay Park about to become Eden Park from a week ago?

Not this time as Auckland banged into their defence once more, forced an error and they had retained the John Drake Boot trophy.

The visitors could thank their fast start with Atieli Pakalani scoring from a Bay mistake in the third minute, a bludgeoning scrum and unrelenting defence for the victory. The pack was massive, led by bookends Charlie Faumuina and Tevita Mailau in the front row and then hooker Tom McCartney who swapped to loosehead prop late in the match.

They had the nudge on the Bay, drawing penalties from referee Noonan or giving halfback Toby Morland time to kick or pass to safety.

Auva'a and Braid scavenged hard in a weighty and even duel with the Bay terriers Tanerau Latimer and Luke Braid while Auckland should place many thankyou notes in fullback Brent Ward's locker. He might have blown out 31 candles but his courage and savvy positional play were huge components for Auckland.

If Ward was not bellowing advice to his defenders he was collecting kicks, tackling forwards or kicking to unguarded parts of the stadium.

Without his expertise, Auckland would have slipped badly on the sodden surface. Neither backline got much chance. Possession was often stilted and too treacherous to transfer much beyond first five-eighths.

When they tried, they were usually target practice for defenders and then a Chinese puzzle for Noonan to adjudicate on the rights and wrongs in a tangle of bodies.

Auckland had the team for the wet, a strong set of forwards who ground their rivals down while the Bay appealed as a side who will create problems before the series is over.

One thing was certain though - Drakey would have loved the tight tussle and the close quarter work.