Season after season, Northland have been among the minnows of the National Provincial Championship. In 2022, they have shed that tag.

The Taniwha further stamped their mark on the competition in Whangārei on Saturday afternoon, claiming a 23-22 win over Auckland.

It's the first time Northland have beaten Auckland at home – and just their third win over them since the NPC began in 1976.

In a clash that was largely contested through set pieces, with much of the second half being eaten away by scrums, Northland found a way to edge the match and improve to 4-1 for the season.

"That was a huge win for us. The boys had to stick in for some tough periods there," Northland captain Matt Moulds told Sky.

"Auckland really wanted to stamp their mark; they didn't want to take the points, they wanted to take seven off us and our boys had to dig deep."

The result could have been different for Auckland had it not been for their execution.

Auckland had at least two tries go begging in the second half; a strong scrum from five metres out steamrolled over the Northland line only for an Auckland player to knock the ball on in attempting to score, and wing Salesi Rayasi was unable to plant the ball before losing it backwards on another occasion. Rayasi's attempt to sell the try might ultimately have cost Auckland too, as the loose ball fell at the feet of a teammate but the referee had called time to check Rayasi's grounding.

Northland started well, with left wing Heremaia Murray finding plenty of space and putting his pace to good use, and the hosts found good territory. They opened the scoring through hooker Moulds from close range before adding a Rivez Reihana penalty to go ahead by eight.