The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for their international success, the All Blacks have often been regarded as one of the most successful sports teams in history.
The Australia national rugby union team, nicknamed the Wallabies, is the representative national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of Australia. The team first played at Sydney in 1899, winning their first test match against the touring British Isles team.
The Fiji national rugby union team represents Fiji in men's international rugby union. Fiji competed in the Pacific Tri-Nations and now competes in its successor tournament Pacific Nations Cup. Fiji also regularly plays test matches during the June and November test windows. They have beaten the major rugby playing sides of Wales, Scotland, Australia, France, Italy, Argentina and England. The only major sides Fiji are yet to beat are New Zealand, South Africa and Ireland.
The Auckland rugby league team is the team which traditionally represents all of the clubs which play in the Auckland Rugby League competition. As well as a senior men's team there are also Auckland representative teams throughout the various age groups such as under 15s, under 17s, under 19s and under 21s.
Colin "Col" Windon, was a rugby union player and soldier who captained Australia – the Wallabies – in two Test matches in 1951. By age 18 Windon was playing at flanker for his club Randwick in Sydney's Shute Shield. After serving with the Second Australian Imperial Force in the Pacific Theatre during the Second World War, Windon resumed his rugby career in 1946. He was first selected for Australia for their tour of New Zealand that year. Despite the Wallabies losing both their Tests on tour, Windon impressed with his play.
John Hoani Macdonald was a New Zealand sportsman. He competed in rowing at the 1930 Empire Games, winning gold in the coxed fours, and at the 1932 Summer Olympics, becoming one of the first two Māori Olympians. He played rugby union for New Zealand Māori from 1926 to 1935 and professional rugby league in England from 1935 to 1939. During World War II he served in the Royal New Zealand Air Force and played rugby union for New Zealand Services and England Services sides. He also played tennis for the Royal New Zealand Air Force team in armed forces matches at Wimbledon. He was inducted into the Māori Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.
The 1899 British Isles tour to Australia was the fourth rugby union tour by a British Isles team and the second to Australia; though the first tour in 1888 was a private venture, making the 1899 tour the first official undertaking of Australia. It is retrospectively classed as one of the British Lions tours, as the Lions naming convention was not adopted until 1950.
Edward Joseph Fahey was an Australian rugby union player and World War I artilleryman. He was a state and national representative lock forward who made two international rugby tours and who captained the Wallabies on the 1913 Australia rugby union tour of New Zealand.
James P. Flynn was an Australian rugby union player, a state and national representative centre and half-back. His representative career lasted from 1912 to 1914 and he captained the national side on one occasion in 1913, the youngest player to ever do so. He was later a Queensland state selector.
The 1910 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the first international tour of the Great Britain national rugby league team, "The Lions". They played the second ever Ashes series against Australia, and their first as the visiting team, before travelling to Auckland to take on New Zealand. The tour was a huge promotional and financial success for what was then known as the "Northern Union" game and helped set the pattern for regular, alternating test match series between Britain and Australia. It is regarded as one of the most important events in the history of rugby league.
Arapeta Paurini Wharepapa, or Albert Asher as he was more commonly known, was a New Zealand dual-code international rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1890s, 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. At representative level Asher played rugby union for New Zealand, North Island and Auckland playing on the Wing and played rugby league at representative level for Australasia, New Zealand, Auckland and the New Zealand Māori rugby league team. One of his brothers, Ernie, was also a rugby league international while another, John, became a Ngati Pukenga and Ngati Pikiao leader, and another brother, Thomas also played representative rugby for Tauranga. Katherine Te Rongokahira Parata was a sister.
Pumipi James Rukutai was a New Zealand rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played representative rugby league (RL) and coached New Zealand. The Auckland Rugby League's minor premiership, the Rukutai Shield, is named after him.
The 1925 Waratahs tour of New Zealand was a series of rugby union games undertaken by the New South Wales Teams against invitational and national teams of New Zealand.
The 1905 Australia tour of New Zealand was a collection of rugby union games undertaken by the Australia side against invitational and national teams of New Zealand. It was the first Wallaby overseas tour.
Albert "Doolan" Joseph Downing was a New Zealand international rugby union player, capped 26 times at lock between 1913 and 1914. He was born in Napier, and began his playing career for Napier Marist in 1909, from which he was selected for Hawke's Bay and for the North Island. He moved at the end of 1912 to Auckland and there joined Auckland Marist, where he was the club's first All Black, playing his debut match against a touring Australian team in 1913. He was selected for the highly successful tour of North America in 1913, playing in 14 of the 16 matches and scoring 6 tries.
William Cunningham was a New Zealand rugby union player who represented New Zealand—known as the All Blacks—between 1901 and 1908. Most notably he toured with the Original All Blacks on their 1905–06 tour of the British Isles, France and North America. They were the first New Zealand representative team to visit the British Isles, and of their 32 matches there Cunningham played in 23. He played mainly at lock, and was added to the touring party due to his strong scrummaging ability. He played in three Test matches during the trip: against Scotland, Ireland and France, but did not play in the loss to Wales due to injury, the All Blacks' only defeat on tour.
The 1909 Auckland Rugby League season was the league's first ever official season. It celebrated its centenary in 2009. Four representative matches had been played in 1908 as players in Auckland attempted to showcase the new code to both Auckland residents and those elsewhere.
Bill (Wiremu/William) Te Whata was a New Zealand Māori rugby union and rugby league representative. He also played one test for the New Zealand rugby league team in 1924 becoming Kiwi number 159.
George Paki was a New Zealand international rugby league player. He debuted for New Zealand in 1921 and became Kiwi number 151 in the process. He also played for New Zealand Māori rugby league team and an unofficial New Zealand Māori rugby side which toured Australia and New Zealand in 1913.
George Gardiner was a New Zealand rugby league representative player. He played for New Zealand in 1926 becoming the 185th New Zealand representative. He was also a Bay of Plenty rugby representative as well as playing for the first ever Bay of Plenty rugby league team. After he finished his rugby league career he became a professional wrestler fighting mainly in Australia. He fought in World War 1 for New Zealand and fought and died serving in the Australian forces in World War 2.
New Zealand 
