Marty Banks, broken hand and all, helped the Tasman Makos exorcise one demon with their 41-29 Mitre 10 Cup semi-final win, now they will look to do what many have believed impossible all season.
By avenging their 2014 final loss to Taranaki on Sunday afternoon, Tasman set up a date with Canterbury who have won the title seven of the last eight years and are the current Ranfurly Shield holders.
The two teams have played in Christchurch already this season, with Canterbury winning 45-14.
However, the Makos will gain confidence from their semi-final win, which was set-up by two late tries in first half to give them a 24-12 halftime lead.
Makos captain Shane Christie says it was the turning point of the game, along with 21 points from Marty Banks, including a game-winning try in the last minute.
“We finished that first half really well but we came out flat after halftime and they threw everything at us, and we did bloody well to hang on and show a lot of character when we needed it.”
The final will be played at Christchurch’s AMI Stadium on Saturday night with kick-off at 7.35pm.
