That could well change this weekend, however with all three of the aforementioned sides facing stern tests as Hawke's Bay tackle Auckland at Eden Park, Taranaki take on an unpredictable Bay of Plenty side at Yarrow Stadium while Canterbury square off with Wellington at the Orangetheory Stadium.
Friday 25 August
Manawatu 19/10 | Draw 23/1 | Northland 44/100
We kick things off at the Central Energy Trust Stadium this Friday where cellar-dwellers Manawatu will take on ninth-placed Northland.
The hosts are yet to win a game this term going down 6-22 to Wellington, 17-26 to Taranaki and 68-28 to Canterbury. They tend to start games brightly and are generally in with a shout of winning the fixture when they head to half-time but they then fall off in the second stanza of fixtures.
Northland have enjoyed a far more positive start winning one and drawing one of their opening four games. Their best performance of the season thus far came last weekend where they pulled off a massive shock by beating much-fancied Tasman 32-5.
My money’s on the visitors here. They looked really good last weekend and if they can play even half as well as they did then they should have this one in the bag.
Verdict: Northland.
Saturday 26 August
Auckland 36/100 | Draw 20/1 | Hawke’s Bay 23/10
We head to Eden Park for our next fixture which is Saturday’s opener between a stacked Auckland side and a dogged Hawke’s Bay outfit.
The hosts, for all their quality, have endured a rather slow start to the campaign winning two of their opening three fixtures. While their win ratio is decent enough, they haven’t really impressed in games beating Bay of Plenty 30-32 with a late try and playing in fits and starts to beat Northland 21-43 in a game that had more gloss on the scoreboard than Auckland deserved.
While Auckland are yet to really move through the gears, the same cannot be said of Hawke’s Bay who sit second on the log with four wins from four outings. This weekend’s visitors have claimed some biggish scalps along the way, beating Waikato 35-32 and Otago 33-32.
This will be a real acid test for Hawke’s Bay as Auckland are a step up in class from the opposition they have played this far. Unfortunately, I think it’s one they will fail. Money on the hosts here.
Verdict: Auckland
Taranaki 9/20 | Draw 20/1 | Bay of Plenty 19/10
The log-leaders are next in action with unbeaten and impressive Taranaki taking on tenth-placed Bay of Plenty at the Yarrow Stadium.
The hosts have defied expectations thus far racking up wins over Counties (37-29), Northland (13-28), Manawatu (17-26) and Waikato (17-29). While they are yet to take on any of the real heavy-hitters in the tournament, they have still impressed, especially considering they are one of the few sides to have already played a midweek fixture.
Bay of Plenty have had a far more subdued start winning only one of their three games. They have endured a tougher fixtures list than Taranaki, however, going down 30-32 to Auckland in the opener and then grinding a win over Waikato (19-15) before running out of steam in Round 3 as they went down 32-19 to Counties.
They’re on a roll here and I cannot see Bay of Plenty stopping them. I reckon Taranaki will win this one at a canter.
Verdict: Taranaki (-)
Otago 2/9 | Draw 25/1 | Southland 34/10
We head for Forsyth Barr for our next fixture which will see two winless sides in the form of Otago and Southland try to break their ducks for the season.
Both these sides are yet to claim a win this term with Southland setting in 12th having claimed two points from a draw and Otago a place further back but with an identical points haul, with their two log points coming courtesy of losing bonus points.
The hosts have lost to Wellington (5-28), Hawke’s Bay (33-32) and to Tasman (27-15). In fairness to them, they have had a tough old start to the campaign with all the sides they have lost to currently residing in the top 5.
Southland have had a slightly less intimidating start to the season, suffering defeats at the hands of Waikato (21-29) and Wellington (39-17) while drawing 15-15 with Northland.
I reckon this one will be an unbelievably tight fixture and I can see the hosts edging it by no more than three points.
Verdict: Otago
Sunday 27 August
Canterbury | Draw | Wellington
Odds TBA
The pick of this weekend’s action is next up with third-placed Wellington taking on fourth-placed Canterbury. These two sides tend to put on a show when they square off but with wet conditions forecast for Sunday, this game could well become a slugfest.
Should the rain come down, the visitors will be well-prepared having played a midweek fixture against Tasman which was a total slugfest and only saw seven points scored over the entire 80-minutes. Thankfully for the men from the capital, they were the side to score the seven points.
Canterbury have had more days to recover than their opponents for Saturday with their most recent outing coming last Saturday where they hammered Manawatu 68-26.
Wellington just haven’t clicked on attack yet while Canterbury well and truly did last weekend. I reckon the visitors’ inability to score points will cost them dearly here.
Verdict: Canterbury
Tasman | Draw | North Harbour
Odds TBA
Our penultimate game of the weekend pits fifth-placed Tasman up against 11th-placed North Harbor.
The hosts, after a solid opening two weeks, have really dropped off the boil over the last couple of days, suffering a 32-5 defeat to Northland last Saturday and then going down 7-0 to Wellington on Wednesday. They really need to find their earlier form from the season and a clash against North Harbour on home soil offers a great opportunity to do this as the visitors are yet to win a game this term.
North Harbour’s poor run of form continued this past weekend as they were beaten 21-43 by Auckland. They have had a tough fixtures list to contend with, though, with their other two defeats coming at the hands of second-placed Hawke’s Bay and fourth-placed Canterbury.
While North Harbour are a tough nut to crack, I can see Tasman getting the job done against them, although the hosts will not win this one by much.
Verdict: Tasman
Waikato 32/100 | Draw 25/1 | Counties Manukau 5/2
The Round 4 action comes to a close at the FMG Stadium where a truly hit-and-miss Waikato outfit will take on an equally unpredictable Counties side. Only a solitary log point separates the sides on the standings with Waikato in seventh and Counties in eighth.
The duo have also only won a game a piece this term with Waikato’s sole victory coming against Southland in Round 1, while Counties beat Bay of Plenty 32-19 this past weekend.
The visitors have actually done alright this term losing narrowly to Hawke’s Bay and log-leaders Taranaki. I reckon they will bag their second win of the campaign this Sunday.
Verdict: Counties
