Auckland coach Pat Lam was a relieved man after his side managed to beat Southland 30-22 in Invercargill yesterday.
His side had to rely on a late piece of Carlos Spencer magic to keep their slim first division semifinal hopes alive.
With two minutes left on the clock, Southland fullback Richard Apanui
missed a conversion from wide out which would have given the home team a one-point lead with time almost up.
Still needing a try to seal the game and a four-try bonus point, Auckland were almost undone when replacement halfback Orene Ai'i tried an ill-advised drop goal.
Auckland won the ball back and a searing run from loose forward Mose Tuiali'i provided Spencer the opportunity to put Daniel Braid away with a typically audacious pass, which broke Southland hearts.
A difficult conversion from Brent Ward saw the home team end the game with not even a bonus point to show from their brave effort.
"We were extremely fortunate to come away a win. Southland played very well," Lam said.
"They starved us of ball, they were relentless and it was a tremendous performance."
It gave Auckland their third win of the season and left them sixth on the points table, four points behind fourth-placed Canterbury.
Things looked ominous early on when Auckland halfback David Gibson scored a soft try after three minutes.
Southland struggled in the opening quarter despite having a strong breeze at their back, but enjoyed better fortunes leading up to halftime and trailed only 7-15 at the break.
Southland dominated possession and territory in the second half despite playing into the wind.
Led by No 8 Paul Miller and with winger Ryan Glover in top form, Auckland were forced to bring their star players including All Blacks winger Joe Rokocoko and Tuiali'i off the bench to try and turn the tide.
A slick backline move saw Ward score close to the posts with 12 minutes left, and that should have been the winning of the game for Auckland, but Miller's second try set up what could have been the winning conversion for Southland.
- NZPA
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