Franklin District was a New Zealand territorial authority that lay between the Auckland metropolitan area and the Waikato Plains. As a formal territory, it was abolished on 31 October 2010 and divided between Auckland Council in the Auckland Region to the north and Waikato and Hauraki districts in the Waikato region to the south and east. The Auckland portion is now part of the Franklin Ward, which also includes rural parts of the former Manukau City.
Pukekohe is a town in the Auckland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the southern edge of the Auckland Region, it is in South Auckland, between the southern shore of the Manukau Harbour and the mouth of the Waikato River. The hills of Pukekohe and nearby Bombay Hills form the natural southern limit of the Auckland region. Pukekohe is located within the political boundaries of the Auckland Council, following the abolition of the Franklin District Council on 1 November 2010.
The Chiefs are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Hamilton, Waikato. The team competes in the Super Rugby competition, previously known as the Super 12 and Super 14, and are one of the competition's five New Zealand teams. Their primary home ground is FMG Stadium Waikato.
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.
South Auckland is one of the major geographical regions of Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. The area is south of the Auckland isthmus, and on the eastern shores of the Manukau Harbour. The area has been populated by Tāmaki Māori since at least the 14th century, and has important archaeological sites, such as the Ōtuataua stonefield gardens at Ihumātao, and Māngere Mountain, a former pā site important to Waiohua tribes.
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.
The Canterbury Rugby Football Union is the governing body for rugby union in a portion of the Canterbury region of New Zealand. Its colours are red and black in a hooped design. The CRFU govern the running of the Canterbury representative team which have won New Zealand's first-tier domestic competition National Provincial Championship 14 times including a "six-peat" from 2008 to 2013 – with five in the National Provincial Championship, two in the Air New Zealand Cup, five in the ITM Cup and one in the Mitre 10 Cup. Their most recent victory was the 2017 Mitre 10 Cup. Canterbury also acts as a primary feeder to the Crusaders, who play in the Super Rugby competition.
The Waikato Rugby Union (WRU) is the official governing body of rugby union in the Waikato area in the North Island of New Zealand. Headquartered in Hamilton, WRU was founded in 1921.
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.
Auckland Libraries is the public library system for the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It was created when the seven separate councils in the Auckland region merged in 2010. It is currently the largest public-library network in the Southern Hemisphere with 55 branches from Wellsford to Waiuku. Currently from March 2021, the region has a total of 56 branches.
Auckland is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about 1,478,800. 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 1,739,300 as of June 2023. It is the most populous city of New Zealand and the fifth largest city in Oceania. 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 fourth largest foreign-born population in the world, with 39% 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 2009 Air New Zealand Cup was a provincial rugby union competition in New Zealand, which was run as a round-robin tournament from 30 July to 25 October. There were 13 rounds where every team played each other once. The top four teams on the Air New Zealand Cup table advanced to the semi-finals, where they played for a chance in the Grand Final.
The Counties Manukau Rugby Football Union (CMRFU) is the governing body of rugby union in Southern Auckland and the Franklin district of New Zealand. Nicknamed the Steelers, their colours are red, white, and black horizontal bands. The Steelers moniker is a reference to the Glenbrook steel factory, which is in the area. The union is based in Pukekohe, and plays at Navigation Homes Stadium.
Jimmy Tupou is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays as a lock or loose forward for the Counties Manukau Steelers in New Zealand's domestic Mitre 10 Cup and the Blues in the international Super Rugby competition.
The 2013 ITM Cup season was the eighth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on 15 August, when Counties Manukau hosted Wellington. It involved the top fourteen rugby unions of New Zealand. For sponsorship reasons, the competition was known as the ITM Cup and it was the fourth season under the lead sponsor. The winner of the Championship, Tasman was promoted to the Premiership, the seventh placed Premiership team, Bay of Plenty was relegated to the Championship.
The 2014 Heartland Championship was the ninth edition of the Heartland Championship, a rugby union competition involving the twelve amateur rugby unions in New Zealand. The tournament involved a round-robin stage in which the twelve teams played eight games each and then the top four advanced to the Meads Cup semifinals, while fifth to eighth advanced to the Lochore Cup semifinals. In both of these knockout stages the top seeds played at home against the lowest seeds, the second highest seeds played at home against the third highest seeds and the final had the higher seed play at home against the lower seed.
Toni Pulu is a rugby union player who currently plays as a wing for the Seattle Seawolves in the MLR competition. He previously played for the Brumbies and Chiefs.
Counties Manukau are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Pukekohe, New Zealand. The union was originally established in 1955, with the National Provincial Championship established in 1976. They now play in the reformed National Provincial Championship competition. They play their home games at Navigation Homes Stadium in Pukekohe in the Auckland region. The team is affiliated with the Chiefs Super Rugby franchise. Their home playing colours are black, white and red.
The Counties Manukau cricket team represents the southern part of the Auckland Region, including the Auckland outer suburbs of Manurewa, Manukau and Papakura and the surrounding rural areas, and including Tuakau in the Waikato region. It competes in the Hawke Cup. Its base is in Manurewa, where its home ground is Weymouth Oval.
