The NPC has started and we achieved the best result of the entire year.
Southland 22 — Otago 13.
It is no surprise that Rugby Park attracted twice the crowd for the opening match than for any other fixture, as the Stags went out en masse after the final whistle.
What stuck with me the most was a time when the Stags props dove into the audience.
There were a couple of surprises, with Wellington beating Auckland and Bay of Plenty edging Waikato. The rest of the games were in keeping with last year’s form and I am writing this column ahead of Wednesday night’s game between Counties and Bay of Plenty.
Most of our tipsters from the south had a good start.
Sean from Bayley's and Simon from GJ Gardner are the early leaders with 14 points.
There are three out of 12, then it gets a bit chaotic!
My old mate Grant from Carpets & Drapes has had a bad start to the season.
He only scored nine points in the opening weekend and therefore has some ground to make up.
So what's happening this weekend? Well, let's face it, there's only one game that matters and that's the Shield Challenge in Hawke's Bay, when the Stags take on the Magpies.
The Bay were not so impressive against North Harbour so Southland are a real royal show to achieve the impossible. I'll take the Stags (12-). Auckland (13+) will fly over Otago like a cheap suit on Friday night, I'm not sure Otago will win a game in August.
Northland (13+) showed promise and courage against Canterbury and will be too strong for Manawatu in the far north.
Tasman (12-) will topple Canterbury in Nelson to grab Crusader bragging rights. I found the red-blacks particularly unimpressive in their encounter with the Taniwha. Bay of Plenty (13+) will be too strong for North Harbour on the Mount.
Wellington host Taranaki and it's still too exciting to predict this match, but I'll still go for the home team — Wellington (12-), but either is possible.
The provinces are home to their nearest neighbours Waikato and Mooloo undoubtedly performed better. Waikato (13+).
Good luck tipsters, you're going to need it.
– By Paul Dwyer