The 2016 Mitre 10 Cup season was the eleventh season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on August 18, when North Harbour hosted Counties Manukau. It involved the top fourteen rugby unions of New Zealand. For sponsorship reasons, the competition was known as the Mitre 10 Cup and it was the first season under the lead sponsor. The winner of the Championship, North Harbour was promoted to the Premiership, the seventh placed Premiership team, Hawke's Bay was relegated to the Championship.
Format The Mitre 10 Cup standings were sorted by a competition points system. Four points were awarded to the winning team, a draw equaled two points, whilst a loss amounted to zero points. Unions could also win their side a respectable bonus point. To receive a bonus point, they must have scored four tries or more or lose by seven or fewer points or less. Each team was placed on their total points received. If necessary of a tiebreaker, when two or more teams finish on equal points, the union who defeated the other in a head-to-head got placed higher. In case of a draw between them, the side with the biggest points differential margin got rights to be ranked above. If they were tied on points difference, it was then decided by a highest scored try count or a coin toss. This seeding format was implemented since the beginning of the 2006 competition.
The competition included a promotion-relegation process with the winner of the Championship receiving automatic promotion to the Premiership, replacing the seventh-placed team in the Premiership which was relegated to the Championship for the following year. The regular season consisted of two types of matches. The internal division matches were when each team played the other six unions in their division once, home or away. The cross-division matches were when each team played four teams from the other division, thus missing out on three teams, each from the opposite division. Each union played home or away games against teams from the other division, making a total of ten competition games for each union. The finals format allowed the top four teams from each division move on to the semi-finals. The top two division winners, based on table points, received a home semi-final. In the first round of the finals, the semi-finals, the second division winner hosted the third division winner, and the first division winner hosted the fourth division winner. The final was hosted by the top remaining seed.
Standings Source: Mitre 10 Cup standings 2016
Premiership Division # Team 1 RS – Canterbury 10 8 0 2 397 219 +178 7 1 40 2 Taranaki 10 7 1 2 338 259 +79 5 2 37 3 Tasman 10 7 1 2 306 234 +72 3 1 34 4 Counties Manukau 10 6 0 4 284 234 +50 6 4 34 5 Waikato 10 5 1 4 269 259 +10 6 2 30 6 Auckland 10 5 0 5 335 302 +33 7 3 30 7 Hawke's Bay 10 2 0 8 253 385 –132 4 3 15
Championship Division # Team 1 Otago 10 7 0 3 290 267 +23 5 1 34 2 Wellington 10 6 0 4 302 298 +4 6 2 32 3 North Harbour 10 5 1 4 262 263 –1 3 1 26 4 Bay of Plenty 10 3 0 7 302 316 –14 7 4 23 5 Manawatu 10 4 0 6 259 266 –7 4 3 23 6 Northland 10 1 0 9 280 380 –100 5 2 11 7 Southland 10 2 0 8 201 396 –195 2 1 11
Standings progression Premiership Team W1 W2 W3 W4 W5 W6 W7 W8 W9 Auckland 0(7th) 5(5th) 10(4th) 16(2nd) 17(5th) 22(4th) 27(3rd) 28(4th) 30(6th) Canterbury 5(1st) 10(1st) 15(1st) 20(1st) 21(1st) 26(1st) 35(1st) 40(1st) 40(1st) Counties Manukau 1(4th) 6(4th) 11(2nd) 12(5th) 19(3rd) 24(3rd) 25(4th) 29(3rd) 34(4th) Hawke's Bay 1(6th) 2(7th) 2(7th) 3(7th) 8(7th) 10(7th) 14(7th) 14(7th) 15(7th) Taranaki 4(2nd) 9(2nd) 10(3rd) 14(4th) 20(2nd) 25(2nd) 27(2nd) 32(2nd) 37(2nd) Tasman 4(3rd) 4(6th) 8(6th) 9(6th) 13(6th) 18(6th) 22(5th) 27(5th) 34(3rd) Waikato 1(5th) 6(3rd) 10(5th) 15(3rd) 17(4th) 18(5th) 20(6th) 25(6th) 30(5th) Championship Team W1 W2 W3 W4 W5 W6 W7 W8 W9 Bay of Plenty 0(6th) 2(5th) 4(5th) 9(4th) 9(4th) 12(5th) 13(5th) 18(5th) 23(4th) Manawatu 5(3rd) 10(2nd) 10(2nd) 11(3rd) 15(3rd) 15(3rd) 15(4th) 22(3rd) 23(5th) North Harbour 4(4th) 4(4th) 5(4th) 9(5th) 9(5th) 14(4th) 19(3rd) 19(4th) 26(3rd) Northland 2(5th) 2(7th) 4(6th) 4(6th) 4(6th) 4(7th) 9(6th) 10(7th) 11(6th) Otago 5(1st) 10(1st) 20(1st) 24(1st) 28(1st) 29(1st) 29(1st) 30(1st) 34(1st) Southland 0(7th) 2(6th) 2(7th) 2(7th) 2(7th) 6(6th) 6(7th) 11(6th) 11(7th) Wellington 5(2nd) 5(3rd) 9(3rd) 13(2nd) 18(2nd) 23(2nd) 28(2nd) 30(2nd) 32(2nd)The table above shows a team's progression throughout the season.For each week, their cumulative points total is shown with the overall division log position in brackets. Key: Win Draw Loss Bye
Regular season The 2016 Mitre 10 Cup played across nine weeks with every team playing one Wednesday night fixture in a double-up round where they played twice that week. The competition started on Thursday, August 18, with North Harbour taking on Counties Manukau at QBE Stadium. Hawke's Bay hosted Wellington and Auckland versus Canterbury, in two repeat matchups of last year's finalists.
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Play-offs
Championship
Premiership
Semi-finals Championship
Premiership
Finals Championship
Premiership
FB 15Johnny McNichollRW 14Nathan Earle OC 13Jordie BarrettIC 12Rob Thompson LW 11George BridgeFH 10Richie Mo'ungaSH 9 Ere Enari N8 8 Luke Whitelock (c)OF 7 Tom Sanders BF 6 Reed Prinsep RL 5 Dominic BirdLL 4 David McDulingTP 3 Siate Tokolahi HK 2 Ben Funnell LP 1 Daniel Lienert-Brown Replacements:HK 16Nathan Vella PR 17Alex Hodgman PR 18Oliver Jager FL 19Jed Brown FL 20Billy Harmon SH 21Jack Stratton CE 22Inga Finau FB 23Ben Volavola FB 15Mitchell HuntRW 14Viliami LoloheaOC 13Kieron Fonotia IC 12Alex NankivellLW 11James LoweFH 10Marty Banks SH 9 Billy Guyton N8 8 Pete Samu OF 7 Shane Christie (c)BF 6 Shannon FrizellRL 5 Quinten Strange LL 4 Alex Ainley TP 3 Ross Geldenhuys HK 2 Andrew Makalio LP 1 Tim Perry Replacements:HK 16Jesse MacDonald PR 17Kane Hames PR 18Siosiua Halanukonuka LK 19Pari Pari Parkinson FL 20Ethan Blackadder SH 21Finlay Christie CE 22David Havili FB 23Caleb Makene
Statistics Leading point scorers No. Player Team Points Average Details 1 Marty Banks Tasman 161 16.10 2 , 26 , 33 , 0 2 Marty McKenzie Taranaki 145 13.18 2 , 30 , 25 , 0 3 Simon Hickey Auckland 143 14.30 2 , 29 , 25 , 0 4 Bryn Gatland North Harbour 123 10.25 0 , 21 , 26 , 1 5 Jordie Barrett Canterbury 123 10.25 5 , 22 , 18 , 0 6 Jackson Garden-Bachop Wellington 122 12.20 2 , 32 , 16 , 0 7 Ihaia West Hawke's Bay 109 10.90 3 , 23 , 16 , 0 8 Fletcher Smith Otago 106 8.83 0 , 20 , 22 , 0 9 Otere Black Manawatu 89 8.90 0 , 22 , 15 , 0 10 Richie Mo'unga Canterbury 88 8.00 5 , 18 , 9 , 0 Source: The weekly reviews of the matches published on provincial.rugby (see "Report" in the individual match scoring stats).
Leading try scorers No. Player Team Tries Average 1 Rieko Ioane Auckland 10 1.00 2 Joe Tupe Bay of Plenty 7 0.64 3 Tevita Li North Harbour 7 0.58 4 Ngani Laumape Manawatu 7 0.70 5 Iliesa Ratuva Tavuyara Waikato 7 0.70 6 Asafo Aumua Wellington 6 0.55 7 Naulia Dawai Otago 6 0.50 8 Jordan Taufua Countis Manukau 6 0.55 9 Lalakai Foketi Bay of Plenty 6 0.55 10 Jonah Lowe Hawke's Bay 5 0.50 Source: The weekly reviews of the matches published on provincial.rugby (see "Report" in the individual match scoring stats).
Points by week Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total Average Auckland 3 43 37 15 51 16 57 59 26 30 44 38 54 17 31 49 32 35 335 302 33.50 30.20 Bay of Plenty22 3034 3932 3352 2510 2454 6434 4438 3326 24302 31630.20 31.60 Canterbury43 345 1452 3463 713 1945 3468 5747 1821 33397 21939.70 21.90 Counties Manukau17 2039 3448 2027 2859 5635 2610 1516 1433 21284 23428.40 23.40 Hawke's Bay26 3628 5520 4831 8843 2929 3630 2122 4624 26253 38525.30 38.50 Manawatu34 2734 3110 1925 2919 1319 3021 3083 6614 21259 26625.90 26.60 North Harbour20 1715 2617 2129 2513 2435 1444 3418 4771 55262 26326.20 26.30 Northland27 3415 3762 8525 5223 3321 2948 2731 3928 44280 38028.00 38.00 Otago40 1744 2166 6030 2724 1334 4517 5414 1621 14290 26729.00 26.70 Southland17 4031 3416 5114 3029 4334 5121 6039 310 56201 39620.10 39.60 Taranaki30 2255 2820 2530 1450 4930 1934 3954 3135 32338 25933.80 25.90 Tasman24 1914 4525 2027 3033 2336 2915 1049 3183 27306 23430.60 23.40 Waikato19 2426 1519 1035 3220 2026 3550 7746 2228 24269 25926.90 25.90 Wellington36 2621 4421 1728 2724 1029 2160 2159 10424 28302 29830.20 29.80 Source: Mitre 10 Cup Fixtures and Results 2016
Tries by week Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total Average Auckland 0 6 5 2 6 1 6 7 2 4 6 6 7 2 4 4 4 5 40 37 4.00 3.70 Bay of Plenty3 35 54 48 31 48 85 65 54 343 414.30 4.10 Canterbury6 05 18 48 11 17 47 76 22 550 255.00 2.50 Counties Manukau2 25 55 23 38 55 41 01 25 235 253.50 2.50 Hawe's Bay4 54 72 53 106 24 52 33 63 431 473.10 4.70 Manwatu4 44 41 13 31 11 43 213 92 332 313.20 3.10 North Harbour2 22 42 03 31 24 16 52 69 731 303.10 3.00 Northland4 42 57 123 82 33 45 45 54 635 513.50 5.10 Otago5 15 38 73 32 14 72 72 13 234 323.40 3.20 Southland1 54 41 61 32 63 63 95 50 820 522.00 5.20 Taranaki3 37 42 13 16 74 14 57 45 441 304.10 3.00 Tasman2 11 51 23 33 25 40 14 411 330 253.00 2.50 Waikato1 24 21 15 43 34 57 76 34 435 313.50 3.10 Wellington5 43 50 23 34 14 39 38 154 440 404.00 4.00 For Against
Source: The weekly reviews of the matches published on provincial.rugby (see "Report" in the individual match scoring stats).
Sanctions Player Team Red Yellow Sent off match(es) Sam Vaka Counties Manukau 0 1 vs North Harbour Hamish Northcott Manawatu 0 1 vs Northland Melani Nanai Auckland 0 1 vs Canterbury Monty Ioane Bay of Plenty 0 1 vs Counties Manukau Kieran Moffat Southland 0 1 vs Auckland Lima Sopoaga Southland 0 1 vs Auckland Lee Roy Atalifo Canterbury 0 1 vs Northland Shane Neville Northland 0 1 vs Bay of Plenty Tom Robinson Northland 0 1 vs Bay of Plenty Isaia Walker-Leawere Wellington 0 1 vs Counties Manukau Jonathan Ruru Otago 0 1 vs Tasman Jonah Lowe Hawke's Bay 0 1 vs Canterbury Loni Uhila Waikato 0 1 vs Auckland Mikaele Mafi Southland 0 1 vs Hawke's Bay Ihaia West Hawke's Bay 0 1 vs Southland Howard Sililoto Northland 0 1 vs Tasman Luke Whitelock Canterbury 0 1 vs Manawatu Tawera Kerr-Barlow Waikato 0 1 vs Taranaki Solomona Sakalia Bay of Plenty 0 1 vs Southland Kara Pryor Northland 0 1 vs Wellington Ash Dixon Hawke's Bay 0 1 vs Tasman Jimmy Cowan Southland 0 1 vs North Harbour Augustine Pulu Counties Manukau 0 1 vs Tasman Mitchell Brown Taranaki 0 1 vs Canterbury Sam Lousi Wellington 0 1 vs Manawatu Tevita Taufuʻi Waikato 0 1 vs Hawke's Bay Jared Proffit Taranaki 0 1 vs Wellington Culum Retallick Bay of Plenty 0 1 vs Manawatu Ethan Blackadder Tasman 0 1 vs North Harbour Kieron Fonotia Tasman 0 1 vs North Harbour Kylem O'Donnell Taranaki 0 1 vs Auckland Scott Scrafton Auckland 0 1 vs Taranaki Joshua Dickson Otago 0 1 vs Manawatu Sione Fifita Counties Manukau 0 1 vs Canterbury Ben Funnell Canterbury 0 1 vs Counties Manukau Henry Stowers Bay of Plenty 0 1 vs Hawke's Bay Tomasi Palu Wellington 0 1 vs Waikato Daniel Hawkins Northland 0 1 vs North Harbour Afa Fa'atau North Harbour 0 1 vs Northland Tom Franklin Otago 0 1 vs Bay of Plenty Glenn Preston North Harbour 0 1 vs Otago Nathan Earle Canterbury 0 1 vs Tasman Alex Ainley Tasman 0 1 vs Canterbury
Ranfurly Shield
Pre-season challenges After winning the Ranfurly Shield off Hawke's Bay in their final game of 2015, Waikato confirmed their pre-season defences against Thames Valley, King Country and Wanganui. The Thames Valley and King Country unions would take on Waikato for the fifth time, while Wanganui gained a mandatory shield challenge as the current holders of the Meads Cup. The first challenge for 2016 was against Thames Valley at the Paeroa Domain. King Country's challenge was played at Bedford Park in Matamata with Wanganui being the last pre-season challenge.