Canterbury win 2026 Farah Palmer Cup title
Canterbury have completed an unbeaten Farah Palmer Cup campaign with a 50-24 victory over archrivals Auckland in the women’s provincial rugby final.
Playing at One NZ Stadium in Christchurch, the home side piled on 24 unanswered points in the second half to dismiss the northern challenge, breaking a three-year drought of titles.
Auckland struck first, when prop Eldora Itunu powered across for a try in the fifth minute, expertly converted by halfback Emaycin Ieremia from wide out.
Canterbury capitalised on a sustained period inside the Auckland 22, allowing lock Sophie Kerr to score from a lineout metres out.
Fullback Presayus Singh put the visitors back on top, when they forced a five-metres scrum and kept the ball alive to stretch the Canterbury defence on both sides of the field.
The red-and-blacks immediately contested the kickoff, reclaimed possession and gave wing Lialani Muamua enough space to beat her marker for a try. The missed conversion allowed the Storm to maintain their advantage and Ieremia extended it with a penalty, as halftime loomed.
Auckland had strung together 15 phases, playing through several penalty advantages, but failed to take full toll of their period of dominance. The contest swung on that inability.
From the kickoff, they conceded the lead, when Canterbury won a penalty inside the 22 and halfback Kelsey McCook took a quick tap, sprinting through the bemused Auckland defence to score and then convert for a 19-17 halftime edge.
The Storm lost another opportunity early in the second half, when they earned a penalty in Canterbury territory and kicked for touch, but could not secure their lineout throw inside the 22.
With No.8 Tafito Lafaele at the fore, their forwards had the better of their rivals and their backs showed a willingness to keep the ball in hand, but they made little headway against a resolute Canterbury defence that soaked up the pressure and fed off their mistakes.
Flanker Maisey Allen stretched the home lead with try and Muamua clinched the win with an intercept and 50-metres sprint for her second, as the Aucklanders threatened to break out of their own half.
Muamua was forced off the field, after her jubilant teammates piled on top of her in celebration, but replacement Poppy Baxter deputised admirably, beating Singh down the left sideline to score.
Rosie Moffitt sparked the next try, when she fielded Singh’s awkward grubber kick near her own line and sliced through the tiring Auckland defence, eventually pulled down a metre out. A quick recycle saw fullback Winnie Palamo dive across.
Canterbury were forced to play the final 10 minutes, when replacement Hannah Tamalelagi was yellow-carded for a high tackle, but Singh’s touchfinder went into touch in goal, as the wheels completely fell off the Storm performance.
They did score a consolation try to flanker Taufa Bason, but also lost Holly-Rae Metu-Renata and Mel Reid to yellow cards to compound their misery, as replacement halfback Rosie Buchanan-Brown put the cherry on the Canterbury triumph.
They had featured in the previous nine finals, but had won only once (2022) in the last five. This was their sixth crown, since the start of the competition in 2006.
Canterbury 50 (Muamua 2, Kerr, McCook, Allen, Baxter, Palamo, Buchanan-Brown tries; McCook 3 & Moffitt 2 conversions) Auckland 24 (Itunu, Singh & Bason tries, Ieremia 2 conversions & penalty, Reid conversion)
