Canterbury reclaimed the Bunnings NPC title with a 36–28 victory over Otago in Christchurch, sealing their 15th national crown and first since 2017. After trailing 14–10 at halftime, Canterbury exploded after the break with three tries in ten minutes, including one to Manasa Mataele, whose pace on the wing sparked the home side’s surge. Their dominant forward play and sharp backline execution proved too much for Otago to contain.

Otago showed heart through standout moments from Dylan Pledger, Christian Lio-Willie, and Thomas Umaga-Jensen, while late tries to Benjamin Lopas and Jona Nareki kept the southerners in touch. But Canterbury’s power and precision, capped off by replacement prop Gus Brown’s try, ensured the red-and-blacks finished deserved champions in front of their home crowd.

Jone Rova was the hero for Canterbury, striking in the 69th minute to seal a thrilling 19–15 victory over Auckland.

The nuggety centre chased down a clever kick, diving on it ahead of the cover defence before bouncing to his feet and charging the rest of the way to score. He also forced a couple of crucial turnovers late.

The win keeps Canterbury unbeaten after two rounds, sitting second on the ladder.