Hawke's Bay is set to receive the first Challenger of its latest Hawke Cup tenure – from none other than long-time Central Districts archrival, Manawatū.
Manawatū was inked in as the Zone 2 Challenger after Hawke's Bay was confirmed today as Central Districts' Furlong Cup champion for 2023/24.
As Hawke's Bay already holds the Hawke Cup, Manawatū gets to make the Challenge by dint of having finished as the next best team amongst the six Districts that compete in the Furlong Cup for the annual honour.
The three-day Challenge will get underway this Friday at Napier's Nelson Park, and will be the second Zone 2 Challenge Match played this season – after last February's Zone 2 Challenge from Hawke's Bay against Canterbury Country was postponed in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle.
When the rescheduled Challenge was played in November 2023, Hawke's Bay uplifted the historic trophy to end Zone 3 powerhouse Canterbury Country's longest tenure.
The Challenge match will be live-scored at www.nzc.nz and on the NZC app, and will coincide with the Zone 3 Final between Canterbury Country and Nelson in Rangiora - with the winner of that match earning the right to the Zone 3 Challenge.
