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Just one team stands between Hawke's Bay and a summer with the Ranfurly Shield

By Online Editors
Tom Parsons. (Photo by Kerry Marshall/Getty Images)

Hawke’s Bay are one game closer to keeping the Ranfurly Shield locked away in Napier over the summer.

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In their penultimate home fixture of the season, the Magpies turned away the challenge of the Manawatu Turbos, running out convincing 47-12 winners.

Despite the eventual result, inside the opening quarter of the game it looked on track to be anything but a high-scoring affair, as neither side could establish any sort of ascendency.

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Ross Karl asks panelists James Parsons and Bryn Hall who they felt were their top performers in the 27-7 victory for the All Blacks over the Wallabies at Eden Park on the 18th of October 2020.

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Ross Karl asks panelists James Parsons and Bryn Hall who they felt were their top performers in the 27-7 victory for the All Blacks over the Wallabies at Eden Park on the 18th of October 2020.

While both sides showed attacking intent early, their execution was lacking – each giving the other plenty of chances.

It was the visitors who cracked the line first, with second five-eighth James Tofa crossing out wide after 18 minutes of play. The try might have presented a little hope to the struggling Turbos, who haven’t held the Shield since 1978, however that was soon stamped out by the hosts.

A try to Hawke’s Bay second five-eighth Danny Toala five minutes later triggered a forgettable period for the Turbos, who conceded a further three tries in the half. They were able to score another themselves, but faced a 28-12 deficit at the break.

In similar fashion to the first 40 minutes, neither team’s play was overly flattering, with handling errors and poor discipline meant there was little flow to the play, though Hawke’s Bay were getting the better of the exchanges when they could keep the ball in their hands.

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The Magpies finally cracked the line again with 13 minutes to play when hooker Ash Dixon predictably crossed from the back of a lineout drive, and squeezed in two more tries in the final seven minutes to push the score line to a flattering 35-point buffer.

Hawke’s Bay will face their final challenge of the season in two weeks when Wellington come to town, with the Lions getting just their second challenge since losing the Shield in 2009. The other one was also against Hawke’s Bay, a 36-14 loss in 2014.

Earlier in the day, Canterbury were trounced by Bay of Plenty in an uncharacteristically poor performance, going down 44-8. It was Bay of Plenty’s first win over Canterbury since 2011 and lifted them from the foot of the Premiership ladder and into an outside chance at a spot in the playoffs.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGeSPZClMfM/

For Canterbury, they’re now at risk of missing the playoffs as they slip to fifth and face Premiership frontrunners Tasman and Auckland in two of their final three games.

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A second half comeback from North Harbour stunned Auckland in the Battle of the Bridge, edging their cross-town rivals 23-22.

In a match between the top and bottom teams of the Premiership, league leaders Auckland charged ahead to a 15-9 halftime lead, with the boot of Bryn Gatland keeping Harbour within reach. They took the lead soon after through a converted try, and extended it to eight points with 16 minutes to play.

Auckland hit back inside the final five minutes but Harbour were able to hold on in the dying stages.

Hawke’s Bay 47 (Danny Toala, Devan Flanders, Ben Makene, Brendon O’Connor, Ash Dixon, Neria Formai, Isaia Walker-Leawere tries; Lincoln McClutchie 4 cons, Connor McLeod 2 cons) Manawat? 12 (James Tofa, Ben Wyness tries; Wyness con) HT: 28-12.

Bay of Plenty 44 (Chase Tiatia 2, penalty try, Joe Webber, Kaleb Trask, Scott Curry tries; Trask 3 con, 2 pen) Canterbury 8 (Cullen Grace try; Fergus Burke pen) HT: 22-3.

North Harbour 23 (James Little, Luteru Tolai tries; Bryn Gatland 2 cons, 3 pens) Auckland 22 (AJ Lam, Tumua Manu, Akira Ioane tries; Harry Plummer 2 cons, pen) HT: 9-15

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Trevor 46 minutes ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 4 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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