The most prized possession in NZ rugby is heading to the capital for the first time since 2008, after Wellington fought past Hawke's Bay 19-12 to lift the Ranfurly Shield in a torrid encounter at Napier.
The Lions scored the only try of the match at McLean's Park,ending the hosts' lengthy reign with the treasured Log o' Wood at an impressive 14 defences, the second most in its history.
Superbly led by captain Du'Plessis Kirifi and veteran halfback TJ Perenara, Wellington leaned on their competition-leading defence and their superior set-piece to clinch a famous victory, erasing some painful memories of past challenges that came up agonisingly short.
The win is also Wellington's fifth straight, putting them well on course to lock up a home quarter-final.
Rookie No.8 Peter Lakai was another standout for the victors, terrorising the Bay defence from pillar to post, while powerhouse wing Julian Savea was at his blockbusting best.
The hosts toiled to the final second and beyond, but genuine tryscoring chances were few and far between against the stoic Lions line, which held strong all night.
In fact, Hawke's Bay's most promising opportunity may have been at a five-metre lineout with time almost expired, but symbolic of an evening of set-piece struggles, their feared rolling maul resulted only in a Shield-clinching penalty to their opponents to trigger wild scenes of celebration.
The opening half was an arm wrestle between two supreme packs of forwards, who quickly settled into a highly physical tête-à-tête, featuring some bone-jarring collisions, as both sets of backlines remained relatively starved of possession.
In the final minute of the half, the hosts were reduced to 14 men, after prop Joe Apikotoa was ruled not to have wrapped his arms in a tackle on Lions hooker Asafo Aumua.
That saw Aidan Morgan match counterpart Lincoln McClutchie's haul of three penalties to send the teams into the sheds locked up at nine points apiece.
Wellington exploded off the blocks in the second half, with a barnstorming run by Julian Savea laying a platform for Lakai to burst clear from a ruck and find Perenara with a slick backhanded offload to finally open the try scoring in the 42nd minute.
Eight minutes later, Morgan accepted a gift three points from a penalty to extend the visitors' advantage to 19-9 and cause both sets of fans to inch closer to the edge of their seats.
Unforced errors continued to stifle the Magpies, with the few opportunities afforded by the vaunted Lions defence breaking down through spilled passes and poor handling.
In the 67th minute, Wellington came inches away from scoring a match-clinching try, when a well-timed boot from McClutchie in his own-in-goal denied Savea a chance to pounce on a grubber.
With just five minutes on the clock, the Magpies were punished for not rolling away in the tackle in their own 22m, but Morgan squandered a golden opportunity to drive a nail into the Hawke's Bay coffin, spraying his shot on goal wide.
Late penalties and a yellow card to Perenara afforded Hawke's Bay one final roll of the dice and when they moved to their specialty five-metres lineout, the decibel levels peaked at McLean Park, but Wellington shut down the lineout and force a penalty, sparking bedlam among their players and staff.
The Lions won't have long to soak up their celebrations, with their first defence looming against Waikato in just seven days, where a win would lock the Shield away for the summer.
Hawke's Bay will travel to Tauranga to take on Bay of Plenty.
Wellington 19 (Perenara try; Morgan 4 penalties, conversion) Hawke's Bay 12 (McClutchie 4 penalties)
