Local derbies for NPC
Traditional provincial rivalries will be prominent in next year’s National Provincial Championship as provincial rugby bosses chose local derbies in the first ever match selection web conference this week.
The 14 provincial rugby teams had the unique opportunity to select their opponents in crossover matches where NPC Premiership teams play against NPC Championship teams. The selections were made via a special web conference facilitated by the New Zealand Rugby Union.
Teams ranked 1st to 7th at the end of the 2010 season will play in the NPC Premiership in 2011, and teams ranked 8th to 14th will play in the NPC Championship. All provinces will play every other team within their Premiership / Championship as well as four crossover matches which carry full competition points. The 2011 NPC has been compacted into eight weeks to accommodate the Rugby World Cup 2011.
The meeting confirmed four of the 10 matches all 14 teams will have to play, but scheduling of those matches will only be confirmed when the full NPC draw is finalised at the end of the year.
1st round of crossover picks:
Otago v Southland
Manawatu v Taranaki
Tasman v Canterbury
North Harbour v Auckland
Northland v Bay of Plenty
Counties Manukau v Waikato
Hawke’s Bay v Wellington
2nd round of crossover picks:
Canterbury v Northland
Waikato v Otago
Auckland v Counties Manukau
Wellington v Manawatu
Taranaki v Tasman
Bay of Plenty v Hawke’s Bay
Southland v North Harbour
3rd round of crossover picks:
Taranaki vs Hawke’s Bay
Southland vs Counties Manukau
Wellington vs Northland
Bay of Plenty vs North Harbour
Waikato vs Tasman
Canterbury vs Manawatu
Auckland vs Otago
The automatic crossover matches pre-determined by seeding are:
Otago v Canterbury
Manawatu v Waikato
Tasman v Auckland
North Harbour v Wellington
Northland v Taranaki
Counties Manukau v Bay of Plenty
Hawke’s Bay v Southland
