Counties Manukau vs North Harbour Predictions - Tight NPC encounter predicted between bottom two sides

Simon Lewis

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Last updated: 02 Sep 2025

Simon Lewis 02 Sep 2025

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Both Counties Manukau & North Harbour are winless after 5 games in NPC 2025.
Counties Manukau sits just above Harbour due to more bonus points.
Prediction: North Harbour likely to stay within 6.5 points; expect both teams’ strongest lineups.

Counties Manukau won their last match against North Harbour.(Getty Images)

Counties Manukau vs North Harbour Predictions

These two sides currently occupy the bottom two spots on the NPC table and have yet to win a game between them in 2025. That is bound to change on Thursday. It’s a tough one to predict given how poor they’ve been, but with the handicap at 6.5 points, I feel the visitors will get within that margin.

Counties Manukau vs North Harbour Predictions
Head to Head
Counties Manukau Form
Counties Manukau Team News
North Harbour Form
North Harbour Team News

Counties Manukau have lost their last 5 matches.
Counties Manukau won their last match against North Harbour.
North Harbour have lost their last 5 matches.

Head to Head

North Harbour have won three of their last four matches against Counties Manukau. Their last meeting in the 2024 NPC saw Manukau win 36-33 away from home.

Counties Manukau Form

Counties Manukau have lost all five of their games this season, picking up three losing bonus points along the way. Those three points puts them one place above their opponents for this game.

After a sublime season in 2024 where Manukau made the quarter-final stage, they have failed to kick on in 2025. They were thrashed 54-14 at home by Hawkes Bay in round one before going down 39-22 to Bay of Plenty at home.

Round three saw Counties Manukau come within a whisker of an upset against Waikato, losing 27-26 away. Defeats to Otago by 14 points and Taranaki by 21 points over the last two weekend have hardly inspired confidence.

Counties Manukau Team News

Counties Manukau will certainly fancy this game to get their opening win of the season. There is no doubt that they will pick their strongest available side.

North Harbour Form

North Harbour, like their opponents, have lost all five games this season and find themselves at the bottom of the table. They have only picked up one bonus point in those five defeats.

With a negative 85 points difference, North Harbour have failed to be competitive on a weekly basis. They lost their opener to Manawatu by 13 points before going down by 22 points to Taranaki at home. A 36-22 away loss to Hawkes Bay followed.

A fortnight ago, North Harbour lost 43-19 to Tasman at home and last week they went down at home again, this time 19-7 to Bay of Plenty.

North Harbour Team News

Like their hosts, North Harbour will want to win this game in the hope of gaining some momentum. I don’t see them resting too many key players here.

Verdict

Counties Manukau v North Harbour

I am backing North Harbour to get within 6.5 points of Counties Manukau.

North Harbour +6.5

Handicap

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