Auckland and Waikato in a battle for survival
Auckland and Waikato are still locked in a fight to avoid relegation after they both suffered provincial rugby losses yesterday.
Waikato, who had a last-gasp 13-11 loss to North Harbour in Hamilton are at the foot of the Premiership table with 15 points, two behind Auckland who were beaten by Tasman 31-18 in Nelson.
Waikato’s last regular season match is against Bay of Plenty on Saturday and Auckland face toprated Canterbury on Friday night.
Most interest will focus on the fate of Auckland, the most successful union in NPC history with 16 titles, especially as their final match is against powerhouse and competition joint-leader Canterbury.
A loss or draw against Bay of win both games in a gruelling Wednesday-Sunday double.
Winger James Lowe and 19-yearold fullback Will Jordan defied the conditions with their speed and skill, having a hand in most of the tries.
Two early tries came through slick team moves, with halfback Billy Guyton crossing in his 50th appearance.
They led 19-6 at halftime, helped by a crucial tackle from Tasman back Trael Joass on his All Blacks Sevens team-mate Joe Ravouvou to deny the winger what seemed a certain try.
Jordan bagged his fifth try of the season after the break and lock Shannon Frizell responded to Auckland’s opening try through Taleni Seu to virtually secure the result with a quarter to play.
North Harbour’s Ben Volavola landed a penalty after fulltime to hand the third-placed visitors a 13-11 win, leaving them in contention to host a semifinal.
It was Waikato’s sixth successive loss, the worst in the union’s history since the provincial competition began in 1976.
Waikato dominated after Harbour suffered the setback of losing midfield back Shaun Treeby to a serious leg injury in the opening exchanges.
Fijian international Ben Volavola missed two earlier penalties but made no mistake from 42m out after the final whistle sounded.
North Harbour are guaranteed at least third for the semifinals but a toptwo spot is possible.