It’s finals time in New Zealand’s National Provincial Championship, with the Bunnings NPC seeing quarter-finals, semi-finals and the competition’s final pan out over the next three weeks. Now is the best time to get your bets in on who will win this year’s tournament as we break down the most likely contenders ahead of this weekend.
Last weekend saw Wellington stumble at the final hurdle, failing to retain the Ranfurly Shield for the summer and seeing their undefeated record in this year’s NPC get tarnished at the hands of Hawkes Bay. What impact will this have on their hopes of defending their title over the coming weeks? Does the door open up for Canterbury to swoop in and win their first trophy since 2017?
We look at the latest odds from bookmaker William Hill to answer all these questions.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: October 4th, 10:00 P.M. (GMT)
Despite their loss last weekend, Wellington is still bookmaker William Hill’s number one contender this year, with the boys in black and gold paying 2.62 to win their second title in a row. However, third placed Canterbury have closed the gap on them in the odds after their loss, sitting just behind at the oddsmakers on 3.75. Taranaki is third in the odds but way off the pace despite finishing second on the NPC ladder and pay 7.50 to win the grand final this season. Auckland and Tasman round out the top five favourites, joint on 8.00 to win.
The big question is will Wellington’s loss to Hawkes Bay mark the beginning of the end for the Lions, or will it be exactly the wake up call they need in order to power through the next three weeks and win the title in late October? We say it will be the latter and betting on Wellington to win the 2023 Bunning NPC is a great wager. They’ve won nine out of 10 regular season games and can be excused for taking their foot off the gas after a successful season in the final round.
However, if anyone is worth a dark horse bet then it’s Hawkes Bay. The Magpies have never won the top division in New Zealand’s provincial championship, but if they play like they did last weekend, they’re in with a good chance. They have a handy quarter-final against the Bay of Plenty this weekend that they should win, following which they’d only need to pull out two strong performances to lift the trophy. It’s been a patchy season this year but with a return of 15.00, The Bay is our bet for a high odds wager in the 2023 Bunnings NPC finals.
