North Harbour — Canterbury: 24:25, Bunnings NPC

North Harbour and Canterbury met in the Bunnings NPC on Saturday, with the visitors securing a 24-25 victory. The match concluded with Canterbury holding on for a narrow win after a full contest. Both sides entered the fixture with identical records of five wins and two losses from seven games.

The result leaves North Harbour fourth on 29 points and Canterbury fifth on 25. A win would have moved North Harbour closer to the top positions. The hosts had been unbeaten in their last two outings before this defeat.

North Harbour had won their previous two outings, beating Hoks-Bay 31-24 and Northland 57-42. Canterbury came into the match on the back of a 66-19 victory over Wellington. Both teams had shown attacking intent in recent fixtures. The hosts had also recovered from a loss to Manawatu on 29 August.

A prediction had given North Harbour a 54 per cent chance of victory. The forecast proved incorrect as Canterbury edged ahead in the closing stages. The home side had nothing to lose going into the encounter.

The narrow margin suggests the match was decided by fine margins. Canterbury now sit just four points behind their hosts in the standings. The result keeps the top four within reach for both sides.