Taranaki's lifted rugby's Ranfurly Shield beating Southland 15-12 in Invercargill.
In a tryless match, Beauden Barrett kicked five penalties for the visitors while all of Southland's points came from the boot of Justin Wilson.
The result leaves Southland struggling to avoid relegation from the national provincial premiership, needing to win their final match against Bay of Plenty and hoping Wellington, who are also in relegation trouble, lose to North Harbour on Friday night, to stay in the top flight.
Taranaki's one and only Shield defence for the year will be against Hawkes Bay on Sunday.
Taranaki last held the Shield in 1996, defending successfully just once before losing it to Waikato.
In Wednesday night's other match Northland beat Hawkes Bay 43-34 in Whangarei, scoring six tries to three.
