Richard Hugh McCaw is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captained the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 test matches, and won two Rugby World Cups. He has won the World Rugby Player of the Year award a joint record three times and was the most capped test rugby player of all time from August 2015 to October 2020. McCaw was awarded World Rugby player of the decade (2011–2020) in 2021. McCaw is also a winner of the New Zealand sportsman of the decade award.
Sir John James Patrick Kirwan is a New Zealand mental health advocate, former rugby union and rugby league player, and former rugby union coach.
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.
Va'aiga Lealuga Tuigamala Pulelua Fesola'i, sometimes known as Inga Tuigamala, was a professional rugby union and rugby league footballer. Born in Samoa, he represented New Zealand in rugby union, winning 19 caps, and later Samoa in both rugby league and rugby union. He played in one rugby league and two rugby union World Cups.
Simon Paul Poidevin is a former Australian rugby union player who played as a flanker. Poidevin made his Test debut for Australia against Fiji during the 1980 tour of Fiji. He was a member of the Wallabies side that defeated New Zealand 2–1 in the 1980 Bledisloe Cup series. He toured with the Eighth Wallabies for the 1984 Australia rugby union tour of Britain and Ireland that won rugby union's "grand slam", the first Australian side to defeat all four home nations, England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland, on a tour. He debuted as captain of the Wallabies in a two-Test series against Argentina in 1986, substituting for the absent Andrew Slack. He was a member of the Wallabies on the 1986 Australia rugby union tour of New Zealand that beat the All Blacks, one of six international teams and second Australian team to win a Test series in New Zealand. During the 1987 Rugby World Cup, he overtook Peter Johnson as Australia's most capped Test player against Japan, captaining the Wallabies for the third time in his 43rd cap. He captained the Wallabies on a fourth and final occasion on the 1987 Australia rugby union tour of Argentina before injury ended his tour prematurely. In 1988, he briefly retired from international rugby, reversing his decision 42 days later ahead of the 1988 Bledisloe Cup series. Following this series, Poidevin returned to the Australian side for the single 1989 Bledisloe Cup Test. He returned full-time to the Australian national squad for the 1991 season. Poidevin was a member of the Wallabies that won the 1991 Rugby World Cup, after which he retired from international rugby union.
The All Blacks XV is the second national rugby union team of New Zealand, after the All Blacks. New Zealand's second national team has had numerous names in its history: Junior All Blacks, New Zealand XV, New Zealand A, New Zealand B, All Blacks XV.
Murray Graham Mexted is a former New Zealand rugby union player who played 34 consecutive tests for the All Blacks from 1979 to 1985. He also played 38 non-test games including 7 as captain. During his time with the All Blacks, he wore the Number eight jersey and was considered an excellent ball winner and an effective defender.
Pierre Berbizier is a French former rugby union footballer and a current coach. His usual position was at scrum-half. He played 56 times for France.
Frank Eneri Bunce is a retired New Zealand rugby union player and coach. He played international rugby for both Western Samoa and New Zealand in the 1990s, appearing in the 1991 and 1995 World Cups. He played in four international matches for Samoa and 55 for New Zealand.
Tony Dale Woodcock is a New Zealand former rugby union player. His position was loosehead prop, and he played 111 tests for the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. Woodcock played for the All Blacks from 2002 to 2015, scoring eight test tries. He was described by The Dominion Post as "widely regarded as the world's premier loosehead", and by The New Zealand Herald as having the "best range of skills of any prop on the planet". He is now the most capped All Black prop of all time, and is the second most capped player in Blues history, behind Keven Mealamu. He was a key member of the 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup winning squads, becoming one of only 20 players to have won multiple Rugby World Cups.
The Whanganui Rugby Football Union (WRFU) is the governing body for rugby union in the Whanganui region of New Zealand. The Whanganui Rugby Football Union was formed in 1888.
The Cavaliers was an unofficial New Zealand rugby union team which toured South Africa in 1986. Because of the Apartheid policies of the South African government, the official New Zealand Rugby Union tour scheduled for 1985 was cancelled, and the Cavaliers tour was very controversial in New Zealand.
Matthew James Andrew Cooper is a former New Zealand international rugby union player. He made his All Black test debut against Ireland on 6 June 1992, setting a then-world record of 23 points on test debut, with the last of his eight caps coming on 3 July 1994 against France.
Israel Jamahl Akuhata Dagg is a former New Zealand rugby union player who played for the Crusaders in Super Rugby. He has also played for the New Zealand Sevens team, and represents Hawkes Bay in the ITM Cup.
Ben John Franks is an Australian-born New Zealand rugby union coach and former player. He played as a prop. He is one of only 43 players who have won the Rugby World Cup on multiple occasions.
The 1980 New Zealand tour of Wales was a collection of friendly rugby union games undertaken by the New Zealand All Blacks against Wales that also took in two international games in North America en route to South Wales. This was a single test tour against each of the countries played, with four games against Welsh club opposition.
Munster Rugby has a strong tradition of competitiveness against touring rugby teams. They have played the All Blacks, the national team of New Zealand, 8 times since 1905. In 1978, they became the first Irish team, including the Irish national team, to win a match in the history of competition between the countries, and remained the only Irish team to beat the All Blacks until the Irish national team defeated New Zealand in November 2016.
Samuel Lawrence Whitelock is a former New Zealand rugby union player.
Gerard Conor Murray is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster and the Ireland national team.
Graeme Murray Crossman is a former New Zealand rugby union player. A hooker, Crossman represented Bay of Plenty at a provincial level, and was a member of the New Zealand national side, the All Blacks, from 1974 to 1976. He played 19 matches for the All Blacks, captaining the side in five games, but he did not gain any test caps. He later coached Bay of Plenty between 1979 and 1984.
