Tuitavake not singing the Blues

It's a sign of the times when North Harbour can walk away from a draw with Canterbury and feel disappointed.

It has been 11 long years since the boys north of the bridge have appeared in an NPC final - when they narrowly lost to Auckland - and, while they don't want to get ahead of themselves, Anthony Tuitavake is adamant they will be contenders this season.

"Our goal is to win the NPC and to be a contender for the NPC you have to put away the Canterburys," the in-form Harbour centre explained.

To be a contender for the NPC, you also have to put away the Northlands. That's why today's game against the side currently propping up the bottom of the table takes on greater importance - it's a game Harbour can't afford to slip up on.

Allan Pollock's side have hit their straps in the past fortnight with a win over Wellington and that agonising draw with Canterbury. It still saw them in fifth place going into this weekend's round but they can be buoyed by the fact they have already played two of the top-three sides.

One of the major reasons for their reversal in fortunes, after being outplayed by Auckland in the opening game of the season, is the form of centres Tuitavake and Rua Tipoki.

The 22-year-old Tuitavake ran in two tries in a man-of-the-match performance against Canterbury, a continuation of the form he showed for the Highlanders in this year's Super 12.

He's now regarded as one of the best finishers in the game - a couple of seasons in the New Zealand sevens team is testament to that - and could rightly lay claim to being the form centre in the All Blacks-less NPC.

He missed out on a contract with the Blues but was quickly snapped up through the draft by the Highlanders and became an integral part of a side that threatened to sneak into the top four.

"I was disappointed to miss out on the Blues but it was also a big plus for me because I was picked up by the Highlanders," he explained.

"I learned a lot of things, especially about the environment and culture of a Super 12 team and had a lot more game time than if I had been with the Blues."

With his contract up at the end of the season, the former New Zealand under-19 and under-21 player was either genuinely in the dark or playing things close to his chest about where he would be playing his rugby next season.

The New Zealand Rugby Union had to investigate a claim by Harbour last year that Otago tried to sign Tuitavake even though he still had a year to run on his existing contract. Tuitavake went to the Highlanders in the draft with an offer to move permanently to Otago believed to still be on the table.

"I just want to play some consistent rugby and if I can do that everything else will take care of itself," Tuitavake said in a suitably vague way. "I'm only worried about the here and now."

The here and now is Northland at North Harbour Stadium this afternoon and they will attempt to claim maximum points, with Jon Elrick taking over the reigns at first five-eighths to replace the injured Tusi Pisi (hamstring).

Craig McGrath also gets the nod at halfback, with Junior Poluleuligaga dropping out of the squad altogether.

North Harbour

George Pisi, Viliame Waqaseduadua, Anthony Tuitavake, Rua Tipoki (c), Zar Lawrence, Jon Elrick, Craig McGrath/Ben Meyer, Nick Williams, Regan Tamihere, Anthony Boric, Doug Fletcher, Greg Rawlinson, Adrian Donald, Roger Dustow, Tony Coughlan.

Reserves

Joe Ward, Mike Noble, Marty Veale, Tom Harding Meyer/McGrath, Joel Nasmith, Andrew Mailei.

Northland

Daniel Bowden, Mike Rowe, Manu Burkhardt-Macrae, Josh Levi/Quin Butler, Matt Faleuka, David Holwell (c), John Senio, Jake Paringatai, Luke Ottley, Allen Tubbs, Brad Taylor, Isoa Domolailai/Buster Tahere, Stan Wright, Tim Dow, Bronson Murray.

Reserves

Simon Lemalu, Gary Whippy, Isoa Domolailai/Buster Tahere, Aaron Wright/Mesake Davu, Corey Tamou, Quin Butler/Josh Levi, Isoa Neivua/Ron Fanu'atanu.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY