Northland end 48-year Ranfurly Shield drought with win over Canterbury

Northland have won the Ranfurly Shield for the first time in 48 years and claimed their first win in Christchurch since the late 1980s, taking down Canterbury 31-12 on a history-making night for the Taniwha at One NZ Stadium.

Canterbury claimed ‘The Log of Wood’ with a nail-biting four-point win over Otago in round two before successfully defending the Shield with another hard-earned 33-28 triumph over Bay of Plenty last weekend.

That result against the Steamers set up another Shield clash in the NPC, with Northland the next side in with a chance of making history. Northland hadn’t held the prestigious trophy since the 1970s but brought that drought to an end on Thursday evening.

James Mullen was first to strike, with the hooker peeling off a maul and powering through an Andrew Knewstubb tackle attempt in the fifth minute. Northland pivot Rivez Reihana added the extras, but it didn’t take long for the hosts to hit back.

Tahlor Cahill and Jone Rova scored a try each in four minutes, as the Cantabrians took charge with a 12-7 lead. But the rest of the match was practically all Northland from there, with the visitors scoring the next 24 points unanswered.

Marcel Renata levelled the scores with a try in the 29^th minute, before the successful Reihana conversion gave Northland a two-point lead. The next try was a game-defining moment, with Sam Nock breaking a tackle attempt during a now-famous run to the try line.

Nock was swarmed by other Northland players, both those draped in replacement bibs and the others working hard on the field. Reihana went three-from-three with conversion attempts during the first term, as the visitors took a nine-point lead into the break.

Northland were awarded a penalty early in the second half, opting to set up for a set-piece tap move about five metres out from the try line. The clever play ended in more points, with All Blacks Sevens ace Rob Rush crashing over for five.

Reihana converted that try and added another three-pointer off the kicking tee soon after. It was then a match defined by defence, with Canterbury certainly having their opportunities with the ball, but Northland stood tall when it mattered.

But Northland weren’t done there.

With time up on the clock, Rush fought his way to the try line, completing a double in a famous night of NPC rush. Northland players were over the moon post-game, making history in more ways than one in Christchurch.

“I can’t even describe it, it’s bloody surreal. It feels unreal,” Rush said post-game on Sky Sport.

“I’ve been on the backend of some of these games… it’s unreal that I get to get a Shield challenge, win it, and it’s my 50^th [NPC appearance], and the boys played so well.

“Dreams come true.”