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Hawke's Bay vs Taranaki Predictions - Hawke's Bay to bounce back with a home win over Taranaki in NPC clash

Nigel Williams

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Last updated: 27 minutes ago

Nigel Williams 27 minutes ago

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Hawke's Bay are slight favourites at home due to historic dominance.
Recent form: Hawke's Bay won 6 of last 8; Taranaki inconsistent but strong last game.
Best bet: Hawke's Bay to cover -4.5 handicap at McLean Park.

Hawke's Bay to bounce back with a home win over Taranaki in NPC clash (Getty Images)

Hawke's Bay vs Taranaki Predictions

Hawke's Bay enter as slight favourites due to their strong historical home advantage at McLean Park and dominance in their recent win over Taranaki. My best bet is Hawke's Bay to cover the -4.5 handicap at home.

Hawke's Bay vs Taranaki Predictions
Head-to-Head
Hawke's Bay Form
Hawke's Bay Injuries & Team News
Taranaki Form
Taranaki Injuries & Team News

Hawke's Bay have won 6 of their last 8 matches.
Hawke's Bay lost 32-17 to Bay of Plenty in their previous match.
Taranaki has won 4 of the last 5 matches against Hawke's Bay.
Taranaki has won 4 of their last 8 matches.
Taranaki beat Southland 55-19 in their previous match.

Head-to-Head

Taranaki has won four of the last five meetings against Hawke's Bay.

Hawke's Bay secured a decisive 26–12 victory over Taranaki in their most recent meeting in October 2025.

Hawke's Bay Form

Hawke's Bay lost 32-17 to Bay of Plenty in their Round 8 NPC match at Tauranga Domain, after trailing 15-5 at the break.

The defeat handed Hawke's Bay their second consecutive loss, following a strong six-game winning streak to start the season, damaging their hopes of securing home play-offs.

Folau Fakatava, Tom Allen, and Darby Lancaster each scored a try, with Harry Godfrey adding one conversion.

Hawke's Bay have been in good form this season, winning six of their last eight matches. They beat Wellington (52-33), Tasman (50-19), Auckland (44-31), Manawatu (59-17), Southland (36-21), and Otago (35-24), before losing to North Harbour (31-24) and Bay of Plenty (32-17).

Hawke's Bay are third in the NPC table with 32 points after eight matches of the 2026 campaign.

Hawke's Bay Injuries & Team News

Starting XV: 1 Clement Castets, 2 Jacob Devery, 3 Josh Smith, 4 Tom Allen, 5 Hunter Morrison, 6 Frank Lochore, 7 Sam Smith, 8 Cooper Flanders, 9 Folau Fakatava, 10 Harry Godfrey, 11 Darby Lancaster, 12 Lukas Ripley, 13 Bailyn Sullivan, 14 Nic Benn, 15 Will Cole.

Replacements: 16 Kianu Kereru-Symes, 17 Hadlee Hay-Horton, 18 Manahi Goulton, 19 Geoff Cridge, 20 Patrick Mauga, 21 Connor McLeod, 22 Neria Fomai, 23 Zarn Sullivan.

Taranaki Form

Taranaki defeated Southland 55-19 in Round 8 of the 2026 NPC at the TET Stadium & Events Centre (Stadium Taranaki), after leading 24-14 at halftime.

Taranaki put together an authoritative performance, dominating the set pieces, particularly the scrum and lineout which provided a strong platform for their backline. All Black hooker Bradley Slater returned to bolster the forward pack. While Southland stayed within touching distance during a competitive first half, the game quickly slipped away from the visitors after the break as Taranaki ran in a total of nine tries.

Taranaki have had a mixed run of form in their 2026 campaign, winning four of their last eight matches. Taranaki beat Counties Manukau (20-5), before losing to Waikato (38-32), Northland (42-0), and Bay of Plenty (28-24), beating Canterbury (40-26) and Auckland (28-12), a narrow loss to Manawatu (27-25), and a win against Southland (55-19).

Taranaki are ninth in the NPC table with 24 points after eight matches of the 2026 campaign.

Taranaki Injuries & Team News

Starting XV: 1 Jared Proffit, 2 Bradley Slater, 3 Reuben O'Neill, 4 Josh Lord, 5 Scott Barrett, 6 Josefa Namosimalua, 7 Michael Loft, 8 Arese Poliko, 9 Adam Lennox, 10 Josh Jacomb, 11 Kini Naholo, 12 Daniel Rona, 13 Meihana Grindlay, 14 Vereniki Tikoisolomone, 15 Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens.

Replacements: 16 JJ Pokai, 17 Perry Lawrence, 18 Keightley Watson, 19 Jayden Sa, 20 Sage Walters-Hansen, 21 Logan Crowley, 22 Sam Clarke, 23 Seta Tamanivalu.

Verdict

Hawke's Bay v Taranaki

Hawke's Bay enter as slight favourites due to their strong historical home advantage at McLean Park and dominance in their recent win over Taranaki.

Hawke's Bay -4.5

Handicap

@1,91 - 1 Unit

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