The Tasman Mako made history when winning the Ranfurly Shield last weekend and hope to make more on Sunday with a first defence when they host the top-of-the-table Wellington Lions on Sunday.
The Mako won the Shield off Hawke's Bay with a last-minute penalty from Campbell Parata for a dramatic 25-24 victory.
Tasman and Wellington are the only two unbeaten teams after five rounds of the competition.
Tasman are expecting a sold-out crowd this weekend as they attempt to defend the Ranfurly Shield against Wellington. (Source: 1News)
Mako hooker Quentin MacDonald said he anticipated a sold-out crowd at Blenheim's Lansdowne Park.
"Everyone's talking about it and especially going into this weekend’s game on Sunday, we know the crowd is going to be chocker," MacDonald told 1News. "I don't think Tasman has had a game like this for a while."
MacDonald said the community's response to winning the Shield had surpassed his expectations.
“It's pretty special, but we know we've got a long way to go to try and keep it - we don't want to just have it for a week.”
Tasman coach Gray Cornelius said the Shield defence added an extra layer to the match but it wasn't the main thing they’ve focused on.
“Regardless of whether the Shield was on the line or not, we’re still up against a strong Wellington side,” Cronelius said.
“Any time we've challenged for the Shield there's an extra level of intensity, so that's what we're preparing for.”
Tasman are currently third on the NPC table, winning five from five, with Wellington sitting in first with six wins. Hawke's Bay have also played six matches.
Wellington beat Otago 32-28 in Dunedin last night.
The Lions have had to play three games in eight days, while Tasman will have had an eight-day rest following their win over Hawkes Bay.
Tasman relished the chance to show off the Shield this week, with the Log o’ Wood doing the rounds in Nelson on Sunday, before travelling to Blenheim on Monday.
“It’s been fantastic - the support we’ve had from the community and the feel around the towns, in both Blenheim and Nelson, has been great,” said Cornelius.
Tasman lost a Shield challenge against Wellington last year at the Cake Tin, going down 7-0 with Lions hooker James O’Reilly scoring the only try of the match after peeling off the back of a rolling maul.
Adding to this weekend’s contest will be the inclusion of some All Blacks who have returned home from the tour of South Africa.
NZR announced this morning that 12 All Blacks would return to their NPC teams this weekend for round six of the competition.
This means that the Mako will have the added experience of David Havili, who didn't feature for the All Blacks in South Africa.
"We're really looking forward to having Dave back, he probably hasn't played a lot of rugby in the last few weeks and he really enjoys playing for his province," said Cornelius.
Wellington will be reinforced by Billy Proctor and Ruben Love.
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