Southland fail to rally after penalty try call

By CHRIS RATTUE

NORTH HARBOUR 24 SOUTHLAND 15

Southland captain Steve Jackson was bewildered by referee Paul Honiss' penalty try ruling in their loss to North Harbour, but says his side should have reacted better to the decision.

The penalty try, awarded against Southland fullback Richard Newman for a deliberate knock-on, was the pivotal point in the match. Southland left Albany without even a bonus point, which may prove costly as they attempt to avoid going into the promotion-relegation game.

Southland play Northland in Invercargill on Sunday, with the loser bound for the promotion-relegation fixture, where second-division top seeds Hawkes Bay will be the most likely opponents.

A late Ashley Barron conversion, which hit the post, would also have given Southland a much-needed bonus point, but it was the Honiss penalty try decision that grabbed the attention.

Newman appeared to make a legitimate grab for the ball after a break by Harbour wing Scott Adams in the 50th minute. He may well have re-collected the ball had a retreating Jackson not grabbed it instead.

The try and conversion put North Harbour into a 17-0 lead, which always seemed too much for Southland to overcome.

"I asked Paul and he said it didn't matter if the ball went up or down," Jackson said.

"I thought a penalty might have been given for me being offside and I probably was, but that wasn't the ruling.

"He said it was for a deliberate knock-on ... I don't understand the ruling he made. Richard was going for an intercept and would probably have got the ball if I hadn't got in the way.

"We were right in the game at that point. But you've got to play to the referee and we should have put it behind us.

"It did affect us mentally, but you've got to be bigger than that. Unfortunately we didn't do that."

The decision added another chapter to the infamous bonus point history involving Honiss and North Harbour. Three years ago, North Harbour were pipped in a game at Carisbrook where Honiss awarded two penalty tries to Otago, and a third to Harbour - a match that led to the "Honiss the Bonus" nickname.

Former Aucklander Jackson said his side had ignored promotion-relegation talk in recent weeks, but now had to be realistic about their situation.

"We're looking forward to the Northland game," he said.

"The support we've had from fans and sponsors in Invercargill has been absolutely fantastic. I can't say enough about it.

"Travelling teams certainly feel the effects. It's worth a few points to us. We've got to to put our bodies on the line and give it our all against Northland."

North Harbour have at least clawed their way to a more respectable place on the points table, but were not overly convincing, in line with the rest of their season.

They scrummed superbly, but, in contrast, their lineout was often in trouble against Southland, who are one of the best sides in the competition at stealing opposing throw-ins.

The lineout situation got even worse when hooker Slade McFarland was sinbinned in the second spell after Honiss had given a warning to both sides.

He told captains Jackson and Mark Robinson that there had been too much illegal work by players not on their feet at the tackled ball area, and McFarland was deemed to be the next offender.

That led to one of North Harbour's main jumpers, Troy Flavell, throwing in to the next lineout before Matua Parkinson took over.

Harbour coach Russell Jones said: "Troy shouldn't have been throwing in and we got a message down pretty quick. But he's just one of those players who wants to take charge of situations.

"Losing your lineout thrower like that is pretty hard to plan for. The rules mean you can't get a replacement hooker on until the next scrum."

North Harbour head to New Plymouth to play Taranaki on Saturday, with the winner becoming the most successful non-Super 12 base team of the year.