Related Research Articles
Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the Super 12 in the 1996 season with 12 teams from Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, building on competitions dating back to the South Pacific Championship in 1986. The Super 12 was established by SANZAR after the sport became professional in 1995. After the COVID-19 pandemic forced the competition to split into three, the reformed competition in 2021 only included teams from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific islands.
The Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch, who compete in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in the competition's history and have won a total of 14 titles.
The Highlanders is a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Dunedin that compete in Super Rugby. The team was formed in 1996 to represent the lower South Island in the newly formed Super 12 competition, and includes the Otago, North Otago and Southland unions. The Highlanders take their name from the Scottish immigrants that founded the Otago, North Otago, and Southland regions in the 1840s and 1850s.
The Blues are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Auckland, who play in the Super Rugby competition. Like New Zealand's four other Super Rugby teams, the Blues were established by the NZRU in 1996. One of the most successful teams in Super Rugby history, the Blues won the competition in its first two seasons, 1996 and 1997, and again in 2003 and 2024. Additionally, the team were finalists in 1998 and 2022, and semi-finalists in 2007, 2011 and 2023. They won a Trans Tasman competition in 2021.
The Hurricanes is a New Zealand professional men's rugby union team based in Wellington that competes in Super Rugby. The Hurricanes were formed to represent the lower North Island, including the East Coast, Hawke's Bay, Horowhenua Kapiti, Manawatū, Poverty Bay, Taranaki, Wairarapa-Bush, Wanganui and Wellington unions. They currently play at Sky Stadium, having previously played at the now-defunct Athletic Park.
The National Provincial Championship, often simply called the NPC, is an annual round-robin rugby union competition in men's domestic New Zealand rugby. First played in 1976, it is the second highest level of competition in New Zealand alongside the Ranfurly Shield. It is organised by New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and since 2021, it has been known as the Bunnings NPC after its headline sponsor. A concurrent women's tournament is also held, the Farah Palmer Cup.
Rugby Southland is the provincial rugby union who govern the Southland region of New Zealand. Their headquarters are at Rugby Park Stadium in Invercargill, which is also the home ground of the union's professional team, the Southland Stags who compete in the Mitre 10 Cup Championship Division and challenge for the Ranfurly Shield.
The Otago Rugby Football Union is the official governing body of rugby union for the Otago region of New Zealand. The union is based in the city of Dunedin, and its home ground is Forsyth Barr Stadium. The top representative team competes in the ITM Cup, New Zealand's top provincial competition. The union was to have been liquidated in March 2012. However a deal involving the Dunedin City Council allowed it to keep operating. Otago have won the Ranfurly Shield on seven occasions. They were the National provincial championship winners in 1991 and 1998. They have a proud record playing international teams, having defeated South Africa and the British and Irish Lions.
Andrew Keith Hore is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He played for the All Blacks between 2002 and 2013. His position was hooker. He notably played for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, but also represented the Highlanders and the Crusaders. When available, he played for Taranaki in the ITM Cup, now known as the Mitre 10 Cup. Hore retired from international rugby after playing Ireland during the 2013 All Black Northern Hemisphere tour, with a total of 83 test caps to his name. In 2008 Hore received the Kelvin Tremain Trophy for Rugby player of the year. In 2011, Andrew Hore captained the All Blacks against Canada.
The history of the Highlanders focuses on the rugby union team in the Super Rugby competitions. The team was originally formed as one of five New Zealand franchises for the Super 12 in 1996. The team encompassed the provinces of North Otago, Otago and Southland. The Highlanders placed eighth in their first year with five wins, but slumped to last in the competition in 1997 with only three wins. They improved to qualify for their first semi-final in 1998, and became the first New Zealand team to defeat all four South African franchises in the process. They were defeated by eventual 1998 Champions the Auckland Blues in their semi-final however. Their best ever finish came in 1999 when they won eight matches, and their semi-final to host the 1999 Super 12 Final at Carisbrook, but lost to South Island rivals Crusaders in the match. They qualified for their third consecutive semi-finals in 2000, and this time played the Crusaders in Christchurch, but lost again.
Adam Thomson is a New Zealand rugby union player. He represented the New Zealand All Blacks between 2008 and 2012, playing a total of 29 tests including two during the victorious 2011 Rugby World Cup campaign. He played for the Melbourne Rebels in 2016, having also played Super Rugby with the Queensland Reds (2015) and Highlanders (2006-2012). He has also represented the Canon Eagles in Japan's Top League and New Zealand province Otago.
Zachary Robert Guildford is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player who played as a wing most notably for National Provincial Championship club Hawke's Bay and the New Zealand national team.
Sio Julian Savea is a New Zealand professional rugby union player. He currently plays Wing or Centre for Wellington in the National Provincial Championship and Moana Pasifika in Super Rugby. Savea formerly played for Toulon in the Top 14 and the Hurricanes in Super Rugby. Between 2012 and 2017, he won 54 caps for New Zealand.
James Ryan Marshall is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He played in the First five-eighth, Fullback and occasionally Second five-eighth positions for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby and Tasman in the Bunnings NPC. He also captained the Taranaki Bulls in the ITM Cup. He is the older brother of Crusader Tom Marshall. He announced his retirement on his What a Lad Podcast in January 2021 due to an ongoing injury to his hip. He is currently the assistant coach for the Crusaders.
Beauden John Barrett is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a fly half for Japan Rugby League One club Toyota Verblitz and for the New Zealand national team.He is regarded as one of the best players in the world.
Martin Banks is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays for Southland in the Bunnings NPC. His position is First five-eighth and occasionally Fullback.
Jonah Lowe is a New Zealand rugby union player, who currently plays as a wing or centre for Hawke's Bay in New Zealand's domestic National Provincial Championship competition and for the Highlanders in Super Rugby.
Asafo Junior Aumua is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a hooker for New Zealand franchise Hurricanes and the New Zealand national team. In his youth, he was selected to play in the 2016 and 2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championships for New Zealand.
The 2020 Super Rugby Aotearoa season was a domestic club rugby union tournament organised by New Zealand Rugby. It was a 10-week, round robin tournament played by the five New Zealand-based teams of Super Rugby. The competition supplanted the 2020 Super Rugby season, which was suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Freedom Vahaakolo is a New Zealand rugby union player, who currently plays as a wing for Hawke's Bay in New Zealand's domestic National Provincial Championship (NPC) competition.
References
- ↑ Ward Gunning for Bloemfontein Hat-trick Archived 16 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine crusaders.co.nz 23 February 2007
- ↑ "Brent Ward returning to Auckland rugby". Stuff.co.nz. 30 April 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ↑ "Rugby: Brent Ward returns to Auckland colours | Otago Daily Times Online News : Otago, South Island, New Zealand & International News". www.odt.co.nz. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ↑ Knowler, Richard (21 May 2011). "Old-time Brent Ward joins the Crusade". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 20 April 2016.