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‘In playoff mode’: Bay of Plenty steaming towards NPC finals
Sport Nation • September 22nd, 2026 12:37 pm
Bay of Plenty head coach Richard Watt | Photo: Blake Armstrong/Photosport
Bay of Plenty Steamers coach Richard Watt believes his side has entered “playoff mode” as it prepares for a top-8 defining NPC clash with Tasman Mako.
The ninth-placed Steamers take on eighth-placed Tasman after finding their form last weekend with a win over third-placed Hawke’s Bay.
Both teams sit on 22 points, making Thursday’s encounter a pivotal contest in the race for the finals.
“The team that loses will now have to rely on one more week of winning and other results to go their way,” he told Sport Nation Mornings. “So a win will keep things in our own hands.
“I made the boys well aware of that so we're sort of in playoff mode now to be honest,” Watt shared.
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Bay of Plenty will welcome back three All Blacks in Pasilio Tosi, Emoni Narawa and Fehi Fineanganofo, while Tasman will also be boosted by the return of Noah Hotham and Timoci Tavatavanawai.
Watt said the return of the experienced internationals has also provided a valuable opportunity for Bay of Plenty’s younger players.
“We've got quite a lot of new guys in the team this year and when you bring a couple of All Blacks back into the environment, they’re not starstruck, but they realise they're in top company and you just face the standards around them, it's just awesome.”
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The Steamers have already shown they can compete with the leading sides, recording wins over top-placed Northland and Hawke’s Bay despite suffering defeats to lower ranked teams in recent weeks.
“We've beat Northland as well, they're the top team, we've beat Hawke's Bay, they are the third team so while we had a little hiccup through Southland and Manawatu a couple of weeks here, we knocked over a few of those top sides.
“A game like that, it just gives you that confidence and belief that we can match up with anyone.”
Listen to the full interview below:
