| Home team | Taranaki Bulls |
| Away team | Waikato |
| Venue | Stadium Taranaki |
| Competition | NPC- Round two |
| Kick-off time | 8:10 am (UK) 7:10 pm (NZ) |
| Watch Live in the UK | Sky Sports |
Taranaki Bulls vs Waikato NPC round two preview as the teams meet in round two of the NPC.
Both teams won their opening game, but the Taranaki Bulls were the only team to win their opening game without picking up a bonus point.
Read more match previews for all your rugby action here
Taranaki Bulls vs Waikato confirmed lineups
| Taranaki Bulls | Waikato | ||||
| Forwards | |||||
| Proffit | 1 | Tupaea | |||
| Pokai | 2 | Ralph | |||
| Parker | 3 | Kautai | |||
| Sa | 4 | Tucker | |||
| Parete | 5 | Eti | |||
| Poliko | 6 | Lauaki | |||
| Lawson | 7 | Jacobson | |||
| Boshier | 8 | Wrampling-Alec | |||
| Backs | |||||
| Lennox | 9 | Roe | |||
| Clarke | 10 | Kemara | |||
| Latu | 11 | Stephens | |||
| Tamanivalu | 12 | Anderson | |||
| Grindlay | 13 | Naitokani | |||
| Tikoisolomone | 14 | Salabiau | |||
| Ratumaitavuki-Kneepings | 15 | Sinkinson | |||
| Replacements | |||||
| Hansen | 16 | Boyle-Tiatia | |||
| Watson | 17 | Quinn | |||
| Johnston | 18 | Dyer | |||
| Jury | 19 | Smith | |||
| Walters-Hansen | 20 | Mathis | |||
| Crowley | 21 | Nakajima | |||
| Wiseman | 22 | Tuivailala | |||
| Olsen | 23 | Lewis | |||
Recent Form:
Taranaki Bulls (Home team):
| Result | Date | Competition | Opponent | Score |
| Won | 1st August 2026 | NPC | Counties Maukau | 5-20 |
| Loss | 11th October 2025 | NPC Playoffs | Hawkes Bay | 26-12 |
| Loss | 5th October 2025 | NPC | Canterbury | 34-14 |
| Won | 27th September 2025 | NPC | Wellington | 39-20 |
| Won | 19th September 2025 | NPC | Hawke’s Bay | 38-24 |
Taranaki started the season with a 20-5 win away to Counties Manukau. Two first-half tries put the Bulls 10-0 ahead going into halftime. Taranaki conceded early in the second half, but 10 points from Sam Clarke allowed Taranaki to come away with a 15-point victory.
Waikato (Away team):
| Result | Date | Competition | Opponent | Score |
| Won | 30th July 2026 | NPC | Bay of Plenty | 38-26 |
| Loss | 10th October 2025 | NPC Playoffs | Otago | 44-41 |
| Won | 4th October 2025 | NPC | Northland | 25-19 |
| Loss | 28th September 2025 | NPC | Bay of Plenty | 41-5 |
| Won | 20th September 2025 | NPC | Tasman | 24-29 |
Waikato started the season with an impressive win against the Bay of Plenty. They flew out to a 35-0 lead at half-time. In the second half, they conceded four tries, while only scoring three points themselves to win the game by 12 points.
Taranaki Bulls vs Waikato head-to-head record (last five matches):
| Date | Competition | Winner | Score |
| 23rd August 2025 | NPC | Waikato | 22-23 |
| 12th October 2024 | NPC Playoffs | Waikato | 14-15 |
| 8th September 2024 | NPC | Taranaki Bulls | 25-19 |
| 20th August 2023 | NPC | Taranaki Bulls | 17-29 |
| 3rd September 2022 | NPC | Waikato | 6-21 |
Waikato have won the last two meetings between the teams, including the 2024 playoffs. In both of these games, Waikato won by a point. In 2025, Taranaki were 19-6 ahead and 22-13 ahead with 15 minutes to go. Waikato scored 10 points in the last 10 minutes.
