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 during the 2006 season, 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.
Tag rugby, or flag rugby, is a non-contact team game in which each player wears a belt that has two velcro tags attached to it, or shorts with velcro patches. The mode of play is based on rugby league with many similarities to touch football, although tag rugby is often deemed a closer simulation of full contact rugby league than touch. Attacking players attempt to dodge, evade and pass a rugby ball while defenders attempt to prevent them scoring by "tagging" – pulling a velcro attached tag from the ball carrier, rather than a full contact tackle. Tag rugby is used in development and training by both rugby league and rugby union communities.
The North Harbour Rugby Union (NHRU), commonly known as North Harbour or simply Harbour, is the governing body of rugby union that encompasses a wide geographical area north of Auckland that includes North Shore City, Rodney District, the Hibiscus Coast and part of Waitakere City. There are 12 rugby clubs from Mahurangi RFC, based in Warkworth, Rodney District, in the north through to Massey the southernmost area of the union.
Sport in New Zealand largely reflects the nation's colonial heritage, with some of the most popular sports being rugby union, rugby league, cricket, association football, basketball, horse racing and netball, which are primarily played in Commonwealth countries. New Zealand has enjoyed success in many sports, notably rugby union, rugby league, cricket, America's Cup sailing, world championship and Olympics events, and motorsport.
The National Basketball League (NBL) is a men's semi-professional basketball league in New Zealand.
The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand including both club, school, and representative league.
The Northcote Tigers are a rugby league club based in Northcote, New Zealand. The club was founded in 1910 as the Northcote Warriors though they became known as the Northcote Ramblers shortly afterwards.
The Hibiscus Coast Raiders are a rugby league club based on the Hibiscus Coast, New Zealand. They compete in Auckland Rugby League's Fox Memorial competition and between 2000 and 2005 were also involved in the Bartercard Cup competition.
Association football, also known as football or soccer, is a popular recreation sport in New Zealand. The sport is administered in New Zealand by the governing body New Zealand Football (NZF). It is the third-most popular men's team sport after rugby union and cricket.
Auckland is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about 1,440,300. It is located in the greater Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, and which has a total population of 1,695,200. While Europeans continue to make up the plurality of Auckland's population, the city became multicultural and cosmopolitan in the late-20th century, with Asians accounting for 31% of the city's population in 2018. Auckland has the eighth largest proportion of foreign born residents in the world, with 41% of its residents born overseas. With its large population of Pasifika New Zealanders, the city is also home to the biggest ethnic Polynesian population in the world. The Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki Makaurau, meaning "Tāmaki desired by many", in reference to the desirability of its natural resources and geography.
The National League is the top-level women's football league in New Zealand. Unlike its male counterpart, the New Zealand National League, previously the teams were run by the regional federations rather than as collaborative entities between local clubs. This has changed for the 2021 season as New Zealand Football look to move it to club based football. The current season will see four teams qualify from the Northern League to join federation teams from Central Football, Capital Football, Canterbury United Pride and Southern United.
The New Zealand rugby league season 1997 was the 90th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the Super League Challenge Cup that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. Waikato won the Challenge Cup by defeating Canterbury 34-18 and also ended the season holding the Rugby League Cup.
The 1994 New Zealand rugby league season was the 87th season of rugby league in New Zealand. The main feature of the season was the inaugural Lion Red Cup competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The North Harbour Sea Eagles won the Cup by defeating the Counties Manukau Heroes 24–16 in the Grand Final. At the end of the season the New Zealand national team was also assembled for a tour of Papua New Guinea.
The 1995 New Zealand rugby league season was the 88th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the second season of the Lion Red Cup competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The North Harbour Sea Eagles won the Cup by defeating the Auckland Warriors Colts 28–21 in the Grand Final.
The 1996 New Zealand rugby league season was the 89th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the final season of the Lion Red Cup competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The Counties Manukau Heroes won the Cup by defeating the Waitakere City Raiders 34–22 in the Grand Final. With the outbreak of the Super League war the New Zealand Rugby League sided with the Super League organisation.
New Zealand Hockey Federation Incorporated, also known as Hockey New Zealand, is the governing body overseeing, promoting and managing the sport of field hockey in New Zealand. It is a full member of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and the Oceania Hockey Federation (OHF).
The New Zealand National Hockey League, known also by the sponsored name Ford National Hockey League, was the New Zealand's national field hockey championship.
Kimberly Smith is a former female rugby union player. She played internationally for New Zealand and provincially for Canterbury. She was part of the Black Ferns squad that won the 2006 Rugby World Cup in Canada.
The New Zealand Women's Volleyball League is the major national volleyball competition for women in New Zealand, established in 1968. It is organized by New Zealand Volleyball Federation (VNZ).
The 2018 Women's Ford National Hockey League was the 20th edition of the women's field hockey tournament. The competition was held in Wellington, New Zealand between 9–23 September.
2019–20 New Zealand Volleyball League