Taranaki ran riot against Wellington in the NPC on Saturday, closing out a 68-26 victory that told you everything you needed to know about where both sides stand in the standings.
The hosts came out with purpose and didn't let up. They scored early and often, building a lead that Wellington could never meaningfully threaten. And here's the thing, it wasn't just about finishing well — it was about control from the first whistle.
We'd tipped Taranaki for this one at 70 per cent confidence, and fair play to the analysis. This wasn't a fluke. Look at their recent run: 50-14 over Hawke's Bay, 55-19 against Southland. They were building momentum, and Wellington simply couldn't match the intensity.
Wellington's woes are familiar territory. Nine defeats in nine games now, and the pattern is clear — they concede heavily and struggle to find any foothold. Their last five results read like a catalogue of defeats: 10-34, 28-52, 19-66, 28-42, 35-46. This 68-26 result fits right into that sequence.
The table tells the story without embellishment. Taranaki sit eighth with 29 points from five wins, while Wellington languish fourteenth with just six points and zero victories. The gap between them is starting to look permanent rather than temporary.
What matters now is whether Taranaki can maintain this form. They've shown they can put teams away when they need to, and with four losses already recorded, every home win carries weight. Wellington have nowhere to hide — not even a single point to their name after nine rounds.
