Taranaki vs Hawkes Bay Predictions - Hawkes Bay backed to upset the odds in NPC final

Ralph Staniforth

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Last updated: 19 Oct 2023

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Ralph Staniforth 19 Oct 2023

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Taranaki vs Hawkes Bay predictions for Saturday’s NPC final (03:05 SAST)
Hosts have won their last 4 games
Can Canterbury reach another NPC final?

Expired

Hawkes Bay backed to win NPC final (Getty Images)

Taranaki vs Hawkes Bay Preview

This NPC final is very evenly balanced and probably nowhere near what people expected. Wellington dominated the entire tournament while Canterbury are serial winners.

Taranaki vs Hawkes Bay Preview
Head to Head
Taranaki Form
Taranaki Injuries & Team News
Hawkes Bay Form
Hawkes Bay Injuries & Team News

However, both of them are gone, so who will take the NPC title this weekend? Taranaki and Hawkes Bay have each won their last five matches, while Hawkes Bay have seen four of those five wins take place away from home.

I am going to go against the odds with momentum seemingly with Hawkes Bay. My best bet is an away win in the NPC final.

Taranaki won their last match against Hawkes Bay.
Taranaki have won their last 5 matches.
Hawkes Bay have won their last 4 away matches.
Hawkes Bay have won their last 5 matches.

Head to Head

These two sides did not meet this year. They last played in 2021 when Taranaki won 33-19 at home. Over their last five matches, Hawkes Bay lead 3-2.

Taranaki Form

Taranaki has enjoyed a magnificent season and find themselves in an NPC final. During the league stage, Taranaki finished second, winning seven of their 10 matches.

In the quarter-final, Taranaki were again at their very best, seeing off Tasman 34-18 on home soil. It was a pretty dominant display in the end.

Last week Taranaki hosted serial winners, Canterbury in the semi-final. It was a tightly fought contest with both sides going at it from the first whistle. In the end, Taranaki walked away with a 23-16 victory.

Taranaki Injuries & Team News

There have been no confirmed injuries so at this point I foresee a full-strength side.

Hawkes Bay Form

Hawkes Bay are arguably the form team of the NPC at the moment and have really come from nowhere to reach the final. Quite impressively they have won both of their knockout games away from home after finishing fifth on the table.

Going into the final game of the round-robin stage, Hawkes Bay were just hoping to secure a top-eight spot. But they beat the then unbeaten Wellington 20-18.

In the quarter-final, Hawkes Bay upset the odds again, winning at Bay of Plenty 38-28. Last week they again shocked Wellington away, winning the semi-final 25-24.

It was a superb game of rugby, edge-of-the-seat kind of stuff, but everything seems to be going the way of The Bay at the moment.

Hawkes Bay Injuries & Team News

Minimal changes if any are expected.

Verdict

Taranaki v Hawkes Bay

I am backing Hawkes Bay to win the NPC final against the odds at Taranaki.

Hawkes Bay Win

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