National Provincial Championship
From Open Encyclopedia
Image:Npc.jpg The National Provincial Championship (also referred to as the NPC or for sponsorship reasons as the Air New Zealand NPC) is New Zealand's principal domestic rugby union competition. It is held annually, with 26 provincial unions competing in two divisions (from 2006). New Zealand also has five teams in Super 14, an elite competition which also involves sides from Australia and South Africa.
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The competition
The National Provincial Championship is held annually, and typically starts in August. Rugby teams from 26 provincial unions compete in two divisions, with 14 in the Premier Division and 12 in Division One. This setup was the result of a major reorganisation of the competition after the 2005 season. There will be no promotion or relegation between the two divisions through the 2008 season.
Points are earned during the competition based on the following schedule:
- 4 points for a win
- 2 points for a draw
- 0 points for a loss
- 1 bonus point for scoring 4 or more tries, regardless of the final result
- 1 bonus point for a loss by 7 points (a converted try) or less
Premier Division
The Premier Division is conducted in three rounds. Its teams will contest the Air New Zealand Cup.
Round One
At the start of Round One, the 14 teams are split into seeded pools of seven teams each, Pool A and Pool B. Seedings are based on results in the previous year's NPC. During Round One, each team will play the other teams in its pool once. All teams will have three home fixtures, three away fixtures, and one bye.
The top three teams in each pool advance to the "Top Six" for Round Two. The remaining four teams in each pool enter "Repechage A" or "Repechage B" pools in Round Two.
Round Two
Top Six
Each team in the Top Six will play the three teams that it did not play during Round One. The three teams with the most competition points in Round One will play two home fixtures and one away, while the other three teams will play one home fixture and two away.
All competition points from Round One carry over to Round Two, and the competition points earned in both rounds will determine seeding for the quarterfinals in Round Three. All teams that qualify for the Top Six automatically advance to the quarterfinals as the top six seeds.
Repechage A and Repechage B
The fourth- and seventh-place teams from Pool A in Round One and the fifth- and sixth-place teams from Pool B in Round One go to Repechage A. This setup is mirrored in Repechage B.
In both Repechage pools, each team will play a single round-robin within its pool. Teams will play one or two home fixtures, with the two teams in each pool that had the most points in Round One receiving two home fixtures. No competition points from Round One carry over to Round Two. The winners of each Repechage advance to the quarterfinals as the seventh and eighth seeds, with the Repechage winner that earned the most points in Round Two receiving the seventh seed.
Round Three
Round Three is a single-elimination tournament involving the Top Six and the winners of each Repechage. The quarterfinal matchups are seeded 1-8, 2-7, 3-6, and 4-5, with the higher seed receiving home field advantage. For the semifinals, the highest surviving seed hosts the lowest surviving seed, with the second-highest surviving seed hosting the remaining semifinal. The highest surviving seed hosts the Air New Zealand Cup final.
Division One
Like the Premier Division, Division One is conducted in three rounds.
Round One
At the start of Round One, the 12 teams are split into seeded pools of six teams each, Pool A and Pool B. Seedings are also based on positions in the previous year's competition. During Round One, each team will play the other teams in its pool once. All teams will have either two or three home fixtures, with the three highest seeds in each pool at the start of the season receiving the extra home fixture.
All teams will advance to Round Two. The top three teams in each pool advance to the more prestigious Meads Cup, while the bottom three teams enter the Lochore Cup.
Round Two
Each team in both the Meads and Lochore Cups will play the three teams that it did not play during Round One. The three teams with the most competition points in Round One will play two home fixtures and one away, while the other three teams will play one home fixture and two away.
All competition points from Round One carry over to Round Two, and the competition points earned in both rounds will determine the teams that advance to the semifinals of each Cup in Round Three. The top four teams in the Meads and Lochore Cup competitions at the end of Round Two advance to the semifinals.
Round Three
The Meads and Lochore Cup winners are both determined in four-team single-elimination tournaments. The semifinal matchups are seeded 1-4 and 2-3, with the higher seed receiving home field advantage. The highest surviving seed hosts each Cup final.
History
The NPC was first contested in 1976, and although the basic format of Division One was much the same from then until the 2006 reorganisation, there were a number of changes to the lower divisions.
Initially, Division One was made up of 11 teams, 7 from the North Island and 4 from the South. The remaining unions contested a split Division Two, with teams from each island playing amongst themselves. The bottom placed Division One team from the South Island played the winner of the Southern Division Two to determine whether they switched divisions, whilst the bottom placed Division One team from the North Island was automatically relegated, switching places with the winner of the Northern Division Two.
The format continued until 1985, when the split Division Two was replaced by a united Division Two and a Division Three. The top and bottom placed teams in each division were automatically promoted and relegated each year.
In 1992, three teams from Division One were relegated so there were 9 teams in each division. Also, 1992 saw the introduction of semi-finals and a final to determine the champion in each division—previously, a league system had been used.
The only change before 2006 was in 1998, when the number of teams in each division was changed to 10 in Division One, 9 in Division Two, and 8 in Division Three. Having an even number of teams in Division One removed the necessity for byes. Starting that year, automatic promotion/relegation between the top two divisions was ended. In its place, the winner of Division Two played a test match against the bottom club in Division One to determine whether the clubs would switch places. Through 2002, this match was hosted by the bottom team in Division One, but the site was changed in 2003 to the home field of the Division Two champion.
The 2006 reorganisation replaces the three-division setup with a two-division setup. This differs from the two-division 1976-1984 setup, in which Division Two was split on a North Island/South Island basis, in that both divisions are nationwide. Also, the number of teams was reduced to 26, as the Marlborough and Nelson Bays unions merged to form the new Tasman union.
The 2006 expansion of the Super 12 and Tri Nations Series will have a major effect on the NPC, at least in the Premier Division. This expansion will create the Super 14, adding two extra fixtures to that competition, and will also add one more Tri-Nations test match for each national side. Because of these changes, it is intended that players in the All Blacks selection pool will only make limited appearances in the NPC from 2006 on. This may well make the competition in the Premier Division more even than in the past.
NPC teams, 2006
The NPC divisions for 2006 consist of:
Premier Division
- Auckland [1]
- Bay of Plenty [2]
- Canterbury [3]
- Counties Manukau [4]
- Hawke's Bay [5]
- Manawatu [6]
- North Harbour [7]
- Northland [8]
- Otago [9]
- Southland [10]
- Taranaki [11]
- Tasman [12] (formed by the merger of the Marlborough and Nelson Bays unions)
- Waikato [13]
- Wellington [14]
Division One
- Buller
- East Coast
- Horowhenua-Kapiti
- King Country
- Mid Canterbury
- North Otago
- Poverty Bay
- South Canterbury
- Thames Valley
- Wairarapa-Bush
- West Coast
- Wanganui
NPC teams, 2005
The NPC divisions for the 2005 season consisted of:
Division One
- Auckland
- Bay of Plenty
- Canterbury
- North Harbour
- Northland
- Otago
- Southland
- Taranaki
- Waikato
- Wellington
The champion was Auckland, who defeated Otago in the final.
All 10 teams in Division One were elevated to the new Premier Division in 2006.
Division Two
- Counties Manukau
- East Coast
- Hawke's Bay
- Manawatu
- Marlborough
- Nelson Bays
- North Otago
- Poverty Bay
- Wanganui
The champion was Hawke's Bay, who defeated Nelson Bays for the Division Two title.
Hawke's Bay, Counties Manukau and Manawatu were elevated to the Premier Division as intact teams. Nelson Bays and Marlborough merged to form the new Tasman side in the Premier Division. East Coast, North Otago, Poverty Bay and Wanganui entered the new Division One.
Division Three
- Buller
- Horowhenua-Kapiti
- King Country
- Mid Canterbury
- South Canterbury
- Thames Valley
- Wairarapa-Bush
- West Coast
The champion was Wairarapa-Bush, which defeated Horowhenua-Kapiti in the final.
All Division Three teams joined the new Division One in 2006.
Past NPC winners
| Year | First Division Winner | Second Division Winner | Third Division Winner | |
| North Island | South Island | |||
| 1976 | Bay of Plenty | Taranaki | South Canterbury | |
| 1977 | Canterbury | North Auckland | South Canterbury | |
| 1978 | Wellington | Bay of Plenty | Marlborough | |
| 1979 | Counties | Hawke's Bay | Marlborough | |
| 1980 | Manawatu | Waikato | Mid Canterbury | |
| 1981 | Wellington | Wairarapa-Bush | South Canterbury | |
| 1982 | Auckland | Taranaki | Southland | |
| 1983 | Canterbury | Taranaki | Mid Canterbury | |
| 1984 | Auckland | Taranaki | Southland | |
| 1985 | Auckland | Taranaki | North Harbour | |
| 1986 | Wellington | Waikato | South Canterbury | |
| 1987 | Auckland | North Harbour | Poverty Bay | |
| 1988 | Auckland | Hawke's Bay | Thames Valley | |
| 1989 | Auckland | Southland | Wanganui | |
| 1990 | Auckland | Hawke's Bay | Thames Valley | |
| 1991 | Otago | King Country | South Canterbury | |
| 1992 | Waikato | Taranaki | Nelson Bays | |
| 1993 | Auckland | Counties | Horowhenua | |
| 1994 | Auckland | Southland | Mid Canterbury | |
| 1995 | Auckland | Taranaki | Thames Valley | |
| 1996 | Auckland | Southland | Wanganui | |
| 1997 | Canterbury | Northland | Marlborough | |
| 1998 | Otago | Central Vikings | Mid Canterbury | |
| 1999 | Auckland | Nelson Bays | East Coast | |
| 2000 | Wellington | Bay of Plenty | East Coast | |
| 2001 | Canterbury | Hawke's Bay | South Canterbury | |
| 2002 | Auckland | Hawke's Bay | North Otago | |
| 2003 | Auckland | Hawke's Bay | Wanganui | |
| 2004 | Canterbury | Nelson Bays | Poverty Bay | |
| 2005 | Auckland | Hawke's Bay | Wairarapa-Bush | |
| Year | Premier Division Winner | Division One | ||
| Meads Cup Winner | Lochore Cup Winner | |||
| 2006 | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
Note: From 1976 to 1984 there was no third division, and also the second division was divided into North and South Island competitions. From 1985 through 2005, there were three divisions, all organised on a nationwide basis. From 2006 on, there will be only two divisions, both organised on a nationwide basis, but teams in the lower division will compete for two distinct trophies.
