Not only did North Harbour get their first win of the Mitre 10 Cup season today, but they managed to do it over the reigning champions and in emphatic fashion, crushing first-placed Tasman 40-24 at QBE Stadium.
North Harbour piled on the points early, with Brynn Gatland slotting three penalties and a conversion in the first half helping his side earn a comfortable 16-10 lead at the half.
Tasman held a brief lead in the first half when Mark Telea dotted down in the 23rd minute, however Harbour quickly responded with a try of their own from Jared Page just five minutes later.
The Harbour win looked to be in jeopardy early in the second half however, when Tasman narrowed the gap, all while playing with two men short.
Tasman’s Isaac Salmon and Sam Matenga were sent to the bin within five minutes of each other, setting up a prime opportunity for North Harbour to run riot.
However, a refusal to aggressively attack saw a largely ineffective 15 minutes for Harbour.
Despite the disadvantage Tasman halfback Finlay Christie snatched a lofted Harbour pass out of mid-air and darted his way up the field to score, bringing their deficit down to just two points at 17-19.
Tasman’s narrow deficit was blown wide open however, with North Harbour going on to score another three tries in the final 15 minutes.
Tasman skipper David Havili scored a consolation try as play dragged on after the full-time siren but Harbour's victory was already assured, ending the Mako's 15-game winning streak.
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