Celebrating New Zealand Rugby’s 125 Years

Games involving kicking and passing have been played for centuries in different forms and when colonisation kicked in, settlers brought those traditions with them. How then, did New Zealand end up with rugby?

It took a while for the rules to be agreed between the different schools and organisations in England many of whom had their own games but by the 1860s the rules set out by Rugby School had gained prominence and started spreading beyond England. However, different teams, Unions and countries would continue to play slightly different versions of the Rugby rules for decades. Charles Monro studied in London in the late 1860s and on returning to New Zealand (where his father was a member of the House of Representatives and later knighted), Charles suggested to the Nelson Football Club that they try playing under the Rugby rules. They did and in May 1870, the first rugby match was held in New Zealand.

While there have been various claims put forward identifying that rugby may have been played elsewhere earlier – with some justification – the most-reliable and comprehensive evidence supports the presumption that it was Nelson and 1870 that saw the first game.

Later that year Monro arranged a match at Petone for the Nelson Club team against a Wellington selection – the first inter-district match in New Zealand. On the Saturday prior to the match, Monro covered 10 miles by foot looking for an appropriate venue. Two days later, having recruited and coached the Wellington players as well, Monro took the field of play as a Nelson player – and refereed the game.

Today, the Charles Monro Volunteer of the Year Award is presented annually at the national rugby awards, so named to honour the man credited with starting a national obsession.

Rugby spread quickly in New Zealand and in September 1875 the first interprovincial match took place in Dunedin, between Auckland Clubs and Dunedin Clubs.

In 1879, the first Provincial Unions were formed in Canterbury and then Wellington.

Use of the referee’s whistle became widespread in 1884, with Christchurch referees generally credited with introducing the innovation, for which they used a dog whistle.

In 1884, the first team to represent New Zealand assembled and went on tour to Australia. The team of 19 players departed from Wellington in late May, having played its first game together against a Wellington team on 22 May.

The tour consisted of eight matches, including three against the New South Wales representative teams. The New Zealanders won all eight matches, scored 167 points and conceded just 17. Players were nominated for selection from Auckland, Canterbury, Wellington and Otago, and the side was captained by William Millton, who was also the Secretary of the Canterbury Rugby Union.

The team colours were dark blue with a gold fernleaf on the breast. The fern had at that time become synonymous with New Zealand following an increased interest in botany and native plants in England during the Victorian period.

Despite not wearing black, this team has been retrospectively recognised as the first All Blacks, with forward James Allan credited as All Black No 1 by virtue of alphabetical order.

In 1888, the New Zealand Natives assembled. 

Joe Warbrick, of Ngāti Rangitihi, who had played his first first-class game when he was 15 and was also one of the 19 players selected for the first New Zealand team in 1884, assembled and led the 1888 Natives.

Significantly, it was the Natives who first introduced a pre-match Haka to a foreign audience and adopted specialised positions for forwards rather than the first to arrive, first down practice (an innovation previously and erroneously credited to the 1905- 06 All Blacks) and it was the Natives who first wore black jerseys.

The first Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1888 was first and foremost a Victorian business venture designed to turn a handsome profit for its organisers and to provide a decent income for the tour party.

Admittedly, it didn’t work out that way – financially, it was an abject failure, leaving those at the helm with large debts – but it did spark a glorious, often romantic, touring tradition that has now flourished across three centuries. Three former England cricketers put this first Lions tour together, and a fourth, England cricket captain Andrew Stoddart, would also go on to become a key figure on the pitch.

The three founding fathers were Arthur Shrewsbury, one of England’s finest opening batsmen during the 1880s and 90s; Alfred Shaw, a well-respected bowler for Nottinghamshire and England; and James Lillywhite, who also held the distinction of being the first-ever England cricket captain.

The side that toured featured 22 players from England and Scotland and played 19 matches, winning 13 of them.

Born in 1864, Ernest ‘Denny’ Hoben was the driving force behind the foundation of the New Zealand Rugby Football Union in 1892.

In the 1890s Hoben was the Secretary of the Hawke’s Bay Union and had previously been actively involved with rugby in the Bay of Plenty. Hoben travelled extensively around New Zealand throughout 1891 and early 1892, consulting with the Provincial Unions, canvassing opinion and gathering support for a national body. He convened many of the early meetings and was the first Honorary Secretary of the Union.

Hoben was born in Auckland, but spent part of his childhood in New South Wales before relocating to the Bay of Plenty. Alongside his heavy rugby involvement, he was an active print journalist working for high-profile newspapers including The Evening Post, The Sydney Mail and the New Zealand Times. He later returned to Australia, where he died in Melbourne on his 54^th birthday.

New Zealand Rugby has retained the minutes from the original November 1891 conference, at which the national union was discussed in more detail by representatives from Wellington, Otago, Auckland, Wairarapa, Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay and Manawatu.

Following the November 1891 Conference, delegates from Wellington, Hawke’s Bay, Otago, Canterbury, Manawatu, Wairarapa and Taranaki assembled at the Club Hotel in Wellington (the Hotel no longer stands) to vote on the motion “That in the opinion of this meeting it is desirable that a New Zealand Rugby Union should be formed”.

The motion passed successfully. Marlborough, Nelson, Wanganui and South Canterbury all endorsed the motion but did not send delegates. However, Canterbury, Otago and Southland Unions declined to join the Union and repudiated any involvement, citing variously, their distance from Wellington and difficulties with travel, their satisfaction with the status quo and concerns about the proposed constitution.

Ernest Hoben had supplied minutes of the November Conference and the proposed Constitution to the Unions ahead of their own Annual General Meetings to allow them to consider the proposal in more detail.

It was agreed that a national union was required to:

• Settle disputes
• Develop a better system of inter-union visits

At the 1893 Annual General Meeting, Tom Ellison submitted the motion “that the New Zealand Representative colours should be black jersey with silver fernleaf, black cap with silver monogram, white knickerbockers and black stockings”.

It was throughout the 1890s that the team became known as ‘the blacks’ or ‘all blacks’ – a term that grew in popularity throughout the early 20^th Century.

Ellison had played for the New Zealand Natives side that toured extensively in 1888-89 and which had worn black. He was Secretary of the Wellington Union at the time and the first Māori to practise as a solicitor in New Zealand. He was the author “The Art of Rugby Football” – a coaching manual for rugby – and is credited with developing the Wing Forward position, which New Zealand retained through to the 1930s.

Black jerseys had been worn by both the Natives and early Wellington sides.

In 1893, players were nominated for the first national side selected under the aegis of the New Zealand Rugby Union.

The team ventured to Australia, where they faced sides from New South Wales and Queensland. Their record was impressive: 10 matches played with nine wins and 168 points scored, while just 44 were conceded – 25 of these coming in a heavy loss to the New South Wales side.

Players from Canterbury, Otago and Southland were not eligible for selection in that team, having not affiliated with the national body.

When New Zealand Rugby was formed, Canterbury, Otago and Southland declined. Following on from that first meeting, efforts were made to encourage them to join and later, motions were proposed that affiliated unions not play against the unaffiliated teams.

In 1893, the three southern Unions met in Dunedin and agreed that affiliation would not be in the best interests of their Unions, also agreeing not to form a South Island Rugby Union.

Canterbury’s position changed and in 1894 were admitted to the Union. Southland briefly joined before withdrawing again in order to be able to continue to play matches against Otago, who had not joined.  Then in 1895, Otago and Southland joined the national body, ‘thus completing the solidarity of the New Zealand Union’.

Referees are a vital part of rugby and like the rest of the game, their role and importance has changed over time. In May 1896, referees assembled in Wellington for their first conference, determined to ensure a uniform reading of doubtful points in the Laws of the Game.

Resolutions were submitted to both NZR and the RFU, who were the guardians of the Laws of the Game at that time.

The outcomes of the Conference included:

• Referees having sole charge of the match and no longer having to wait for an appeal in order to blow his whistle.
• An early version of the advantage rule in which referees would whistle only when ‘the team infringed against had suffered’.
• Clarification of when the ball may be considered in touch.

Throughout the decade, the role of the referee was given greater consideration by the national body – with poor-quality refereeing seen as one of the biggest risks to rugby.

Referees Associations continued to be established throughout the 1890s and were seen as essential to ensuring the quality of refereeing.

After several unsuccessful attempts, the first Inter-Island match was held in 1897. The proposal had been mooted throughout the 1890s but

The first match was held in Wellington as a trial for the national side. The North Island was victorious on that occasion 16-3.

After a long absence from the rugby calendar, the most recent North v South match was held in Dunedin in 2012 and featured current Super Rugby players.

In 1900, Auckland were acclaimed as the first Champions of the Colony on the basis of their results in 1899.

Auckland toured the country, taking on – and beating – Otago, Wellington and Taranaki, while their visit to Christchurch to play Canterbury saw them come away with a 3-3 draw.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1890s the national union was focused on:

• The new rules adopted by the Rugby Football Union with regards to professionalism.
• Updating the by-laws under which the Union operated.
• Operation of the Appeal Council.
• Agreeing on interpretation of the Laws of the Game.
• Investigating issues of alleged player misbehaviour, including a ‘flagrant breach of good conduct’ on the part of national team members returning from Australia in 1897.

The Ranfurly Shield is one of the oldest rugby trophies in the world, and was first presented by the Earl of Ranfurly, New Zealand’s Governor-General and Patron of New Zealand Rugby to the national organisation, in 1902. With a long and colourful history behind it, the Ranfurly Shield is arguably the most treasured trophy in New Zealand sport. It is often fondly known as “the log o’ wood”.

Contested between New Zealand’s provincial representative teams, it is a challenge trophy, meaning that a challenger must defeat the holder, usually on the holder’s home ground, to claim the Ranfurly Shield.

The first Ranfurly Shield match took place in 1904. Auckland had been presented with the Shield on account of their superior 1903 record but lost the new trophy to challenger Wellington in that first match. Decades later, Auckland compiled one of the most impressive streaks in New Zealand sports history, successfully defending the Shield in 61 consecutive matches between 1985 and 1993.

The All Blacks played their first Test match in 1903, against Australia in Sydney. New Zealand scored three tries to one in a 22–3 win.  In 1904, New Zealand played in its first Test match on New Zealand soil, beating a Great Britain side 9–3 in Wellington.

Test matches have special status and usually involve two senior national teams (or a composite side like the British & Irish Lions). Each national union determines which matches shall constitute a Test match for its team.

New Zealand Rugby marked the Centenary of the first Test in 2003, with a series of events, including a reunion of former All Blacks and Wallabies players.

Combined British sides visited twice during this decade: in 1904 and 1908 further strengthening the ties between New Zealand and the Home Unions.

In 1904, the British team then on tour in Australia detoured briefly to New Zealand for five matches, losing three and drawing one. The tour included a one-off Test match in Wellington at Athletic Park, marking the start of a 38-Test rivalry between the All Blacks and the team that would become known as the British & Irish Lions.

Four years later another team, styled at the time as the Anglo-Welsh and comprised of 28 players, became the third British side to tour New Zealand.  That tour consisted of 18 games, including three Test matches and the Lions side lost to Auckland, Canterbury, Otago, Taranaki and Wellington. In the Tests, a draw prevented an All Blacks whitewash but the 29-0 loss remains one of the Lions’ worst results and the nine tries scored by the New Zealanders remains, as of April 2017, the most scored in an All Blacks v Lions game.

New Zealand’s 1905–06 tour to the United Kingdom, France and North America is believed by many to be the most important in New Zealand rugby history and gave rise to the Originals. 

The team played two matches a week – 35 matches in total – and lost just once.  There were 25 players selected for the tour and replacement or reinforcement players were not called upon. In planning the tour, the Union initially estimated ₤6000 would be require to cover costs, coming in shares from the Provincial Union subscriptions and gate money.

Many commentators at the time attributed the team’s success to the wing forward position, which was usually filled by the captain, Dave Gallaher. This was a unique position developed in New Zealand and was widely regarded as cheating, giving the New Zealanders a perceived unfair offside advantage. It was conveniently overlooked that many opposition teams adopted the New Zealand seven-man forward formation.

What is now known as Rugby League was introduced into New Zealand in 1907, following the breaking away from the Rugby Football Union of the Northern Union.

This led to a difficult period for rugby organisations, where League organisers sought to recruit players from amongst their ranks. The favoured responses were harsh, punitive measures taken against players going over, including expulsion.

All Blacks, like Charles “Bronco” Seeling were tempted by the prospect of being paid to play and embarked on careers with clubs in the United Kingdom.

Wiremu Teihoka Parata, known in some circles as Ned, was the driving force behind the formation of the Māori All Blacks. In 1910, he contacted the then-NZRFU seeking the Union’s consent to him assembling an all-Māori side that would play rugby and educate the players involved. The Union acquiesced.

When Joe Warbrick assembled the New Zealand Natives, the idea was that the side would be comprised wholly of Māori players, but four non-native players had to be included in the final squad. Parata’s Māori All Blacks were the realisation of Warbrick’s vision and that their first match was played in Rotorua in Warbrick’s home union of Bay of Plenty was a fitting tribute to him.

Parata arranged for the Māori All Blacks to play 19 matches in their first season, including 11 in Australia. The tour was a success in terms of results, with the Māori winning seven of those 11 matches – including 14-11 and 23-3 victories against American Universities, but regrettably a failure in terms of finance, with Parata bearing the burden of the cost.

The team assembled again in 1912, 1913 and 1914 but following the outbreak of the First World War did not come together again until 1921, each time organised and funded by Ned Parata. The team first came under the auspices of NZR in 1922, which was also the same year in which the Māori Advisory Board was formed.

Since its debut in 1910, the Māori All Blacks side has played almost every provincial side in New Zealand as well as numerous national sides and has toured extensively overseas. The team has a proud record, including wins in the professional era over England, Argentina, Scotland, and an historic win over the 2005 British and Irish Lions. To mark the team’s Centenary, the 2010 Māori All Blacks faced the New Zealand Barbarians in Whangarei, Ireland in Rotorua and England in Hawke’s Bay, vanquishing all three opponents.

Such was the success of the tour and the popularity of the Originals team that the New Zealand government paid for the team’s return home via North America in January 1906, laying the groundwork for a long-standing relationship with the USA.

The Originals played an exhibition match in New York and two official matches against British Columbia at the University of California in Berkeley. Then in 1913, a New Zealand team returned to the USA and Canada, playing sixteen matches in California and British Columbia.

In 2016, Chicago hosted the Rugby Weekend, an international rugby header in which the Maori All Blacks played the USA and the All Blacks faced Ireland, with the Irish gaining their first win over the All Blacks in their 111-year history.

As well as dealing with domestic tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1900s, the national union was focused on:

• The future of the Wing Forward position.
• Securing a visit from the South African rugby team.
• The formation of the New Zealand Referees Association in 1905.

At all levels, rugby players, administrators and communities responded to the outbreak of the war.

NZR called off fixtures it controlled, such as international tours, the interisland game and Ranfurly Shield challenges and said rugby had to do everything it could to encourage players to enlist. There was pragmatism as well as patriotism in the decision: it was also felt early on that there was no longer the public appetite for rugby, with NZR noting in its Annual Report that ‘owing to the outbreak of the war the interest in the third Test match [in Australia in 1914] was not sustained and the financial results were consequently very much affected’.

It was up to Provincial Unions whether they continued to hold matches. Some restricted play to age grade and schoolboy teams and to ‘ineligibles’. Some organised games “for the purpose of keeping fit those who have not yet been able to have their services availed of by the Empire,” as NZRFU President George Mason put it. 

One administrator of the time, Edgar Wylie, summed up the prevailing attitude at the national union’s annual meeting in 1915: “The plums of rugby should not be open to those who remain behind. While the men were fit to play rugby, they were fit to go to the front.” The Management Committee also agreed to favourably consider applications from local affiliated Unions for the removal of suspensions imposed upon any player who has signed up for active service, so that players under suspension who had enlisted could join in camp games (this did not, however, include suspensions given to players who had switched to rugby league). 

Efforts were made to determine total donations to various patriotic funds as well as the total number of players who had volunteered for service, but this information was not readily procurable.  Later, at the annual meeting in May 1918, it was reported that ‘in its wider operations the game has undoubtedly been severely hampered. Lack of senior players and lack of funds has imposed a considerable handicap upon every Union in the Dominion and it to their very great credit that, in the face of unexampled difficulties, they have still carried on’. President George Spriggens went on to comment: “Rugby players were deserving of very high praise for the noble manner in which they had responded to their country’s call.” 

It was also noted that rugby had ‘unmistakeably asserted its pre-eminence over all rival codes. Throughout the war period, it has been universally favoured by the military authorities and has become the generally recognised test in international athletics… it would be most unwise to take any steps calculated to upset or interfere with the existing inter-national uniformity’.

For more information about the impact of war on rugby, see Clive Akers’ book ‘Balls, Bullets and Boots’ published in association with the New Zealand Rugby Museum exhibition of the same name.

The All Blacks in Australia in 1914 played a match at the Sydney Cricket Ground to raise funds for the Australian Olympic fund. Only a thousand spectators were there, but their eyes and those of the players frequently rested on the scoreboard. It was not the score that created the interest, but the war. The scoreboard carried updates throughout the afternoon of the grim news coming from the governor-general, Sir Ronald Munro-Ferguson: the Empire, and therefore New Zealand and Australia, was at war.

The All Blacks had two more games and on the ship home, they made a pact that all would volunteer for military service (conscription was not introduced until 1916). All did.

Three were killed – “Doolan” Downing at Gallipoli, Bobby Black at the Somme and Jim McNeece at Messines – and three were wounded so badly they could not play again. But six served throughout the war and were in the New Zealand team that won the King’s Cup in 1919. Two of the players in the 1914 All Blacks and Army teams – Jack O’Brien and Teddy Roberts – were All Blacks again when international rugby resumed in 1920.

Tom French made a massive, decades-long contribution to Maori rugby, despite having lost his left arm fighting at Passchendaele. French, who represented Buller at a provincial level, played for the Maori All Blacks in 1910 and 1913. After the War, he became an administrator (including service on the Maori Advisory Board 1922, 1955-58) and performed various management and selection roles with the Maori All Blacks throughout the 1940s and 1950s. He was made a New Zealand Rugby Life Member in 1957 for services to the game and to Maori rugby generally

The Tom French Cup has been presented to the Maori Player of the Year each year since 1949 and is the oldest trophy presented at New Zealand Rugby’s annual Rugby Awards. The Cup was presented in 1949 by Mr J. Morris of Sydney, following the Maori All Blacks tour that year of Australia.

Discussion of the impact of the War was the dominant topic throughout this period, however NZR also focused on a number of areas to keep rugby running

• Rugby in schools (in 1916, for instance, ₤129 was granted to schools for the encouragement of rugby in primary schools).
• Managing finances at a time when all Unions were under huge financial pressure – not helped by an outstanding debt from 1913 from the New South Wales and Queensland Rugby Unions of ₤362 3s 11d.
• Securing a new lease on Athletic Park for the Wellington Rugby Union.

In 1919, the New Zealand Services team, made up of servicemen remaining in France and the United Kingdom following the First World War, played a number of matches against national military sides, including English, Canadian, Australian and South African forces teams. The Kings Cup for competition between those Imperial serving forces, had been presented by King George V and was won by the New Zealand team, who were victorious in five out of six matches.

The Services side then toured France and South Africa. Eleven members of the Services team were later named as All Blacks.

In 1920 the Moascar Cup, symbol of schoolboy rugby supremacy was played for, for the first time. The Cup, which was made from the propeller of a shot-down German aircraft, had originally been played for by military teams in Egypt waiting to return home after the War, was brought home and presented to the New Zealand Rugby Football Union on condition that it be a challenge trophy for secondary schools.

It continues to be played for, nearly 100 years after the end of the war and is one of the most coveted prizes in First XV rugby.

The two schools that played for it for the first time – Christchurch Boys’ High School and Palmerston North Boys’ High School – were selected, based on their record in the preceding years, with CBHS the inaugural winners.

In 1922 the Māori Advisory Board was formed and the Māori All Blacks assembled for the first time under New Zealand Rugby jurisdiction. In 1926-27 the Māori All Blacks set off on an epic tour of New Zealand, Australia, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), France, Great Britain and Canada.

The team played 40 matches and won 30 of them, including a 12-3 win over France in Paris. Māori players were later excluded from the 1928 All Blacks tour of South Africa.

In 1924–25, the All Blacks embarked on a 32-match tour to the United Kingdom, France and Canada. Going one better than the 1905–06 Originals, this team won all 32 matches, including Test wins over Ireland, Wales, England and France, and earned the nickname “the Invincibles”.

The team included a number of our greatest All Blacks, including legendary fullback George Nepia.

In 1921 the All Blacks and Springboks faced off for the first time. The South African side played 19 matches in total against the All Blacks, Maori All Blacks and provincial sides. The three-match Test series was drawn 1-1, with the third Test a 0-0 draw in Wellington. Canterbury was the only team apart from the All Blacks to beat the visitors.

In 1928 the All Blacks returned the visit, with a 23-match tour, of which the All Blacks claimed 17 wins. Four Tests were played and as in 1921 the Series was drawn, this time 2-2. The New Zealand touring party did not include any Maori players.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1920s, the national union was focused on:

• Standardising the Laws of the Game
• Advocating for the abolition of Amusement Tax
• Gaining representation on the International Rugby Board

After an 18-year absence, Australia returned to New Zealand with the combined side drawn from players in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. In recognition of the relationship between the two countries, a new cup was introduced that would become one of the most precious in world rugby: the Bledisloe Cup.

The trophy was presented by His Excellency, the Right Honourable Baron Bledisloe, who was Governor-General of New Zealand at the time.

Rugby in the Pacific thrived throughout this decade. NZR extended its oversight to Rarotonga and to the Chatham Islands, which included supplying balls for school use. Fiji toured New Zealand for the first time in 1939 and were the first team to go through a tour unbeaten, with seven wins and a draw in their eight matches, including a victory over the Maori All Blacks.

At its Annual General Meeting in April, NZR agreed upon a revised scrum formation. Gone was the unique 2-3-2 formation – New Zealand was the only country to play like this – and in its place, came a three-man front row, bringing us in line with other rugby-playing countries. The change was driven largely by changes to the international Laws of the Game, which disadvantaged New Zealand hookers.

The wing forward position was also abolished, with a view to increasing the amount of open play.

The British & Irish Lions had toured in 1930, proving popular visitors. The Lions lost three of the four Tests and were also beaten by Wellington, Canterbury and Auckland.

Five years later, the All Blacks returned to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Hopes were high that they could repeat the exploits of the 1924 Invincibles and while they didn’t return unbeaten just three losses – including a maiden Test loss to England – and a draw in their 28 matches reminded their hosts of the strength of New Zealand rugby.

South Africa returned to New Zealand on an eagerly-awaited tour. They played 17 matches in all, winning all but one and claiming the Series against the All Blacks 2-1. The 1938 Almanack provided little narrative about the tour, noting that the record speaks for itself.

The visitors scored 411 points, conceding just 104. The NZR noted that interest in rugby was at a record high following the tour and ‘with the determination and the spirit to profit from the lessons to be learned

Following the 1935 All Blacks tour of Great Britain, Hugh McLean and Ron Bush became interested in forming a New Zealand Barbarian Rugby Club that adopted the philosophies of the foundation Barbarians club in England.

In the early years, the club was primarily involved in organising teams of selected players to take part in benefit matches and exhibitions which spread the gospel of adventurous rugby in Auckland and in many parts of the North Island. The club fielded its first team in 1937 in a benefit match for the Thames Valley sub-unions, who were suffering financially.

Plans for a tour to South Africa in 1940 were cancelled following the outbreak of War. At the 1940 Annual General Meeting, NZR announced that it was of the opinion that no overseas tours should be considered during the war, but that rugby should continue to be played.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1930s the national union was focused on:

• The effects of the Depression
• Formation of an ‘Imperial Rugby Conference’ to give southern Unions a voice at international level
• Furthering rugby in schools
• Reviewing our Laws of the Games to be better-aligned with the international game
• Balancing the demands of provincial and club rugby

Where rugby was in many parts of the country suspended during the First World War, during the Second, rugby flourished during the Second, playing a role in keeping soldiers fit and healthy, entertaining those at home and raising funds for the War effort.

As in the First World War, NZR called off fixtures it controlled, such as international tours, and Ranfurly Shield challenges with a view to not discouraging recruitment but unlike 1914-18, NZR was strongly committed to keeping the game going, wherever possible, seeing significant opportunities arising out of the involvement of services teams in domestic competition.

In its 1941-42 Annual Report, NZR reported that ‘we are proud to know that our players, both Pakeha and Maori, are so strongly represented in our fighting forces’ and at the end of the war noted ‘the standard of play generally, although it has not been of the highest during the war years has produced good games and with the experience gained by our players on the playing grounds throughout the world, must enhance the standard materially.’

Matches were held throughout New Zealand to raise funds to supply sporting equipment to soldiers fighting overseas, including events like the North Island v South Island Services matches which raised significant funds for the National Patriotic Fund.

Both overseas and in New Zealand, the War saw a significant increase in organised teams and competitions involving the military, with most Unions featuring Army and Air Force teams in their club contests. A Royal New Zealand Navy side also appeared for the first time.

The Defence Force remains an Associate Member of NZR. In August 2015, the Chief of Defence Force, Lieutenant General Tim Keating, and NZR announced that the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) rugby team would become known as the “Defence Blacks”.

NZR’s 50^th birthday could not be marked in 1942 due to the War and plans to do so – which included plans for a celebratory picnic – were repeatedly deferred in the years following the end of the conflict.

The 50^th Jubilee did see a complete History of Rugby Football in New Zealand produced to mark the milestone. This work, by A.C. Swan remains one of the definitive and most comprehensive collections of historical information about rugby in this country. The book’s publication was delayed until 1948 ‘in view of the high cost of printing and publishing such a book and on account of the uncertainty of world affairs’.

Discussion of the impact of the War was the dominant topic throughout this period, however NZR was also considering the following during this time:

• The scrum. A sub-committee was formed to consider the best methods to be placed before players for operating the ‘three front scrum’ and any possible re-organisation of back play that may be necessary. Also considered was the Otago Rugby Union’s petition that the referee become responsible for putting the ball into the scrum.

A remarkable tour of the UK and Europe took place between October 1945 and August 1946.
The Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force (2NZEF) rugby team of 29 was formed after orders from General Bernard Freyberg, who had encouraged the men to continue playing rugby when possible during the war. Captained by former All Black Charlie Saxton, and containing 16 who would go on to wear the black jersey, including the great Bob Scott, they won 32 of 38 matches, and wowed the crowds with their open style of rugby.

Prior to 1948, New Zealand’s rugby voice was tied strongly to that of the home nations (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales).

This also applied in many spheres of life. It was not until 1947 that many Kiwis thought of themselves as New Zealand, rather than British, citizens.

But in 1948 New Zealand was finally granted a seat at the top table of the International Rugby Board (IRB). It was not quite yet an equal arrangement, as the home nations each had two votes, though two votes were granted by 1958, and the first IRB meeting outside the UK was held in Taupo in 1959.

By way of comparison, France did not gain a seat at the IRB board table until 1978. New Zealand now gives voice to Oceania Rugby (formerly the Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions), which does not have full voting rights.

Recent picks for an All Blacks annus horribilis might look to 1998 (five consecutive defeats) or 2009 (four losses, including three to the Springboks).

But those with longer memories will surely count September 3, 1949 as New Zealand rugby’s darkest day, when two All Blacks sides were beaten.

At Athletic Park, the Johnny Smith-captained All Blacks lost 11-6 to Australia. Hours later, a full-strength All Blacks were defeated 9-3 by the Springboks in Durban.

Funnily enough, that was not the last time two All Blacks games were played on the same day. In 1970, two separate All Blacks sides, on their way to South Africa, played a President’s XV and Western Australia respectively in Perth. Both games were won by 50 points.

After the War, excitement about the resumption of our sporting rivalry with South Africa flourished, sparked by a planned tour of the Republic in 1949. However, in response to South Africa’s apartheid policies, Maori players were not selected for the All Blacks side that toured.

In May 2010, New Zealand Rugby formally apologised for their decision, saying:

“On behalf of the New Zealand Rugby Union, we wish to say sorry first and foremost to those Maori players who were not considered for selection for teams to tour South Africa or to play South Africa.

“We apologise to the families of those players and to the wider Maori community who were affected directly or indirectly by the decisions taken to not include Maori players for those teams and tours. It was a period in which the respect of New Zealand Maori rugby was not upheld and that is deeply regretted.

“We also wish to take the opportunity to apologise to New Zealand as a whole for the division that rugby’s contact with South Africa caused across the country over many years.”

The Maori All Blacks team was active throughout this period, undertaking domestic tours every year and visiting Fiji in 1948 and 1954, Australia in 1949 and 1958. 

The 1950 Lions had given some entertaining moments in their 3-0 Test series defeat to the All Blacks.

But after the intense, some might say over-hyped, nature of the 1956 Springboks tour, New Zealand rugby was in dire need of some rugby that brought joy to the hearts rather than a grim fear of defeat.

Enter the 1959 Lions, who brought with them some of the finest attacking backs this country has seen. The sheer joie de vivre of men like Bev Risman, Dickie Jeeps, Tony O’Reilly, Peter Jackson and Ken Scotland captured the minds and, in some cases, the hearts of staunch New Zealand fans. They lost the final Test 3-1 but their 9-6 victory in the final Test was loudly cheered.

Ron Jarden’s form during the 1950s, be it for Wellington, North Island, New Zealand Universities or the All Blacks, was often top-notch.

But in age when the flowing rugby of today was less apparent, the wing’s record of 145 tries in just 134 matches is astonishing. Thirty-nine men have reached the mark of 100 tries in New Zealand first-class rugby, but none, including many of the greats of threequarter play, can match Jarden’s strike rate of more than one try per game.

He was also a fine goalkicker, but his career ended at the age of just 27. Had he pushed on, his tally of tries and points may have been difficult to beat.

In 125 years of New Zealand Rugby history, there has surely never been a more keenly anticipated tour than that of the 1956 Springboks to these shores.

Undefeated for 60 years in any Test series, and having beaten the All Blacks 2-1 in 1937, the Springboks held the mantle of the world’s best team. But, in a fiercely contested series, the All Blacks triumphed 3-1 thanks to an 11-5 victory in the fourth Test at Eden Park. Peter Jones’ winning try has gone down in rugby lore. That Eden Park crowd of 61,240 remains the largest to ever witness a game of rugby in New Zealand.

The All Blacks themselves did not win a Test series in South Africa until 1996.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1940s and 1950s the national union was focused on:

• The rapid expansion of rugby, including finding enough grounds to play on
• Laws of the Game, in particular improving scrums
• Petrol restrictions and the rise of air travel
• Filming and broadcasting of rugby games

The All Blacks were on the verge of making their third tour of South Africa.

Again, there were to be no Maori players invited, at the behest of the South African Rugby Board. But, unlike in 1928 and 1949, when the New Zealand rugby public and the public at large generally acquiesced to the edicts, this time there were protests. New Zealanders were growing a public conscience.

The All Blacks still toured under the captaincy of Wilson Whineray, though they again fell 2-1 with one match drawn in the Test series against the Springboks.

By 1970, on their next visit, the All Blacks did include Maori and players of colour, though in the Republic they were classified as ‘honorary whites.’

In the 1950s, with air or boat travel expensive and time-consuming, it was an increasingly difficult mission for touring sides to visit down under. However, improvements – and a gradual shortening of the length of tours – meant that in the 1960s, New Zealanders welcomed a wider range of opponents to our shores.

New Zealand had welcomed the Lions twice (1950 and ’59), the Springboks (1956) and Australia thrice (1952, ’55 and ’58) in 1950s, but through the 1960s there were several ground-breaking visits. France toured in 1961 for the first time, 55 years after first facing the All Blacks. The series was notable for the Wellington Test, which was played in a near hurricane and for Don Clarke’s freakish sideline conversion.

In 1963, England was the first from an individual British nation to tour, while Wales followed in 1969. Japan (1968) and Tonga (1969) also toured for the first time.

Aucklander Fred Allen was a former All Blacks first five and no-nonsense coach who revolutionised rugby in the 1960s.

The previous decade saw forward-oriented, stilted rugby in vogue, but Allen guided his Auckland side to a record-breaking Ranfurly Shield era from 1960-63 espousing his 15-man rugby ideals.

By 1966 he was at the helm of the All Blacks, and taking them to new heights against the Lions (1966), Australia (1967-68), the northern tour (1967) and France (1968). He stepped down with an unblemished international record. Fred was known as ‘The Needle’ and remained a keen and astute observer of the game until his death in 2012.

It might be difficult to imagine now, but two of New Zealand’s smallest unions once lowered the might of Australia.

In 1962, both North Otago and Thames Valley defeated the Wallabies in the space of two weeks. North Otago edged the tourists 14-13 in Oamaru for their finest victory, while Thames Valley won 16-14 in Te Aroha. The Swamp Foxes had beaten Auckland no less than nine times in its history, but this was the crowning moment. A late dropped goal by fullback Terry Shaw, father-in-law of Warren Gatland, sealed the upset. All Black Kevin Barry was Captain.

Funnily enough, the Wallabies only narrowly lost the 1962 Test series to New Zealand.

The All Blacks were scheduled to tour South Africa in 1967, but it never happened.

It had been agreed in 1962 at a World Rugby meeting on the Laws of the Game that only ‘fully representative’ New Zealand teams would tour, meaning Maori players would be included – to which South African rugby delegates at the time agreed.

However further changes in the political landscape in South Africa meant that in 1967, when a fresh tour was being considered, Maori players would not be welcomed. NZR decided to cancel the tour, a decision supported by World Rugby. The All Blacks went to Britain instead.

It is a curious fact that World Rugby (then the International Rugby Football Board) only gave its assent for replacements in Test matches in 1968.

Previously the reserves could only sit powerlessly in the stands, even when an injury occurred. That all changed when All Blacks captain Brian Lochore injured his thumb and hamstring against the Wallabies in Sydney on June 15, 1968.

On came international novice Ian Kirkpatrick in an historic moment. He was the ultimate super-sub, scoring a hat-trick. Kirkpatrick never sat on the bench again, reeling off 38 consecutive Tests, captaining his country, and scoring 16 tries.

Nowadays, all teams carry seven or eight replacements, most of which are used during games, with tactical replacements allowed from 1996 onwards.

Since it was established in 1969, the New Zealand Rugby Museum has fulfilled an important function in the rugby landscape.

Not only a repository for wide-ranging pieces of memorabilia and information, it also tells the story of rugby and, specifically, rugby in New Zealand, while safeguarding the history and the heritage of the game.

By 1977, it was open for public visits in Palmerston North and has remained in the city, despite two relocations. The Museum is now housed in the Te Manawa complex and has in excess of 40,000 items, making it possibly the leading sports museum in New Zealand. It has a strong online and global presence and is a haven for rugby lovers and tourists.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1960s the national union was focused on:

• Filming and broadcasting of matches
• The sustainability of amateurism; financial pressure and calls to pay players
• Better organisation of provincial rugby

Media and rugby have always been close – if not always friendly – companions for a long time, with newspapers devoting space to reports since the 1870s. In the early 1970s, print and radio were kings when it came to rugby coverage, with photography playing an increasingly important role.

Out of that landscape came Rugby News, a weekly national rugby publication originally in extended newspaper format. Edited by journalist Bob Howitt, who remained at the helm until 1996, Rugby News was for the rugby purist and hung its hat on coverage of all levels of the game, including club and schools. It was a strong voice of rugby through changing times for the game and technology, moving to a glossy magazine style in the 1980s and then an online presence up until it ceased printing weekly in 2012.

Specialist rugby publications and rugby writers and commentators have thrived in New Zealand, with New Zealand Rugby second only to the Government in terms of media interest.

Just five international teams have ever won a Test series in New Zealand, and the 1971 British and Irish Lions were one of the best.

Coached by Carwyn James and captained by John Dawes, the Lions played fine winning rugby, beating the All Blacks 2-1 with one Test drawn, and winning an astonishing 22 of 24 tour games in all. The crowds flocked to see them, the fourth Lions tour to these shores since the Second World War, and again when the team returned in 1977. This time the New Zealanders had the upper hand.

Since then, the Lions have toured three more times and always carry mystique and engender huge interest. Nothing will change in 2017 when there will be a massive influx of supporters to follow the team throughout New Zealand.

New Zealanders were introduced to the television in the early 1960s, but it was not until 1972 that they enjoyed their first live telecast, via TVNZ, of an All Blacks home Test.

It had often been felt by the NZRFU that live TV coverage would adversely affect the crowd numbers. But those fears were allayed when 43,000 turned up at Eden Park on September 16 to see the All Blacks decisively defeat the Wallabies 38-3. Since then, the All Blacks have almost always been televised live in this country, and live in most games from overseas. Later in 1972, live coverage, starting with the All Blacks-Wales from satellite, beamed in from the middle of the night of the tour in the UK, spawning a whole new practice of 3am cocoa and crumpets for viewers.

In 2014 and 2016, NZR – with the support of SKY Television – experimented with live streaming games online to countries that aren’t receiving the game live through a broadcaster, thereby allowing a whole new audience to connect with the game.

For nearly 100 years, there had been little structure to provincial rugby around New Zealand. The Ranfurly Shield was always a focal point, as were traditional clashes, yet there was no definitive way to measure who was the best union in the land and determining who would play who each year could be something of a fraught process, carried out around NZR’s Annual General Meeting.

But in 1976, driven by some passionate administrators, including the likes of Auckland’s Barry Smith, the first NPC was inaugurated. Bay of Plenty, captained by Tuck Waaka, lifted the first division trophy, the Rugby Cup, which was brought back for the 2016 Mitre 10 Cup.

The original format saw 11 first division unions and a second division split between the North and South islands. Playoff matches were later introduced in 1992. The format proved popular, better preparing players for Test rugby. It is noteworthy that England did not bring in their leagues’ system until 1988.

While the issue of rugby ties with South Africa remained problematic – in 1973 the then-NZRFU postponed the inbound Springboks tour at the request of the Government – New Zealand was taking a more global view of rugby in this decade.

To that end, several nations made their first tours of New Zealand. Scotland, incredibly, had never toured here, but did so in 1975, along with Romania. The following year Western Samoa, 14 years after independence, made an historic visit, as did Ireland and the Cook Islands.

After hosting the All Blacks in 1976, Argentina made a reciprocal tour in 1979, though the two internationals were not classed as official Tests.

The All Blacks have made many tours of the UK and Ireland, but few as dramatic as the 1978 sojourn, which became known as the Grand Slam tour.

For 73 years, the All Blacks, for various reasons, had failed to topple all four home nations (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales) in one tour. In 1905, for instance, they were undone by Wales and in 1924 the Scots declined to face the All Blacks side that became known as the Invincibles and one is left to wonder what might have been.

But under the astute coaching of Jack Gleeson and the captaincy of Graham Mourie, the 1978 All Blacks won all four Tests and indeed 17 of 18 matches, falling only 12-0 to Munster in a match which has gone down in rugby folklore. From the drama of Brian McKechnie’s late penalty goal to beat Wales, to the late Andy Dalton try to defeat Ireland and the fog which enveloped the Scotland Test, the All Blacks had conquered one of their last frontiers.

The 2005 All Blacks were the first to repeat the Grand Slam, with the 2008 side also achieving the feat, on the 30^th anniversary of the original Slam, and the 2010 All Blacks also went four from four on that year’s Northern Tour.

The short form of the game took its first steps as men’s national sevens team made its first appearance in the record books and a national sevens competition got under way.

In 1973, NZR sent an invitational team to Scotland for a tournament marking the Centenary of the Scottish Rugby Union. Scotland had claimed to be the birthplace of sevens, so this was seen as a fitting way to mark the milestone. New Zealand beat Australia but lost to the hosts and Ireland, failing to make the Final. The All Blacks Sevens would not reassemble until 1983 when they contested the Hong Kong Sevens and would win their first tournament in 1986.

Prior to 1983, New Zealand had been represented at the Hong Kong Sevens by the winner of the interprovincial competition that had been held since 1975. First held in Auckland, Marlborough were the inaugural provincial winners.

As well as dealing with tours, schedules and resources, throughout the 1970s the national union was focused on:

• Sporting connections with South Africa
• The impact of television on Saturday afternoon rugby
• Marketing of rugby

New Zealand has never known a winter quite like 1981.

There was protesting and fighting in the streets as the fifth Springboks’ tour to these shores divided the nation as never before. It was not simply rugby versus non-rugby, but those who felt sport should be separated from politics against those who felt apartheid could not be cast to one side in the name of a game.

On the field, the series was fiercely contested, culminating in the most dramatic Test ever played, the third international at Eden Park, won 25-22 by the All Blacks deep into injury time thanks to the unerring boot of Wellingtonian Allan Hewson. Matches against Waikato and South Canterbury were cancelled due to security concerns, but in all their other encounters with our provincial sides, the Springboks proved victorious. The match against the Maori All Blacks in Napier was drawn 12-12.

Since the team’s inception in 1910, the Maori All Blacks had frequently travelled overseas – mostly to Australia and the Pacific – but in 1982, the Maori All Blacks undertook their biggest expedition since the epic 1926-27 tour that saw them play in Australia, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), France, Great Britain and Canada.

The team, which featured nine All Blacks in its ranks, played nine matches in Wales and Spain and opened the tour with a win over Cardiff. Losses to Swansea, Llanelli and a Wales XV were disappointments but the Maori All Blacks added another international scalp to their collection, when they beat Spain 66-3 in Madrid.

In 1988 the Maori All Blacks returned to Europe, playing matches in Italy, France and Spain but this time no national sides were willing to face them.

The allure of the Ranfurly Shield was never more palpable than on 14 September 1985 when more than 52,000 eager rugby fans packed into Christchurch’s Lancaster Park.

Many were hoping to see Canterbury break the record of successful Log o’ Wood defences, the mark of 25 set by Auckland more than 20 years beforehand. Others were hoping to see Auckland divest the southerners of the silverware after winning the 1984 NPC in fine style. What followed was drama that could not be scripted, as Auckland roared to a 24-0 halftime lead and then had to withstand a ferocious Canterbury comeback. At 28-23, the contest was in the balance until the final towering kick. But Auckland were the new holders, and they maintained a vice-like grip on New Zealand rugby’s oldest major provincial trophy until 1993, 61 defences later.

The All Blacks had not toured South Africa since 1976 but were scheduled to do so in 1985, despite the tribulations of 1981.

It never transpired as two lawyers, and rugby men, Phil Recordon and Paddy Finnigan, successfully sought a High Court injunction to prevent the tour going ahead on the basis that it would infringe the New Zealand Rugby Union’s own rule of fostering and developing the game. After legal toing and froing, it was determined that time had run out for the tour to proceed. The All Blacks instead embarked on their first full tour of Argentina.

But many of the top players did tour the Republic the following years, this time as the rebel Cavaliers. They lost the ‘Test’ series 3-1 and the team’s first-class stats have been expunged from the official record books.

New Zealand did not start taking the abbreviated version of the game that seriously until the 1970s when the national provincial tournament was inaugurated.

But by the 1980s, they were able to field some strong teams with fit, fast players, exposing brilliant young talent such as Terry Wright, John Kirwan, Frano Botica, Zinzan Brooke, John Schuster, Eric Rush and Pat Lam. Men like Bryce Rope and Peter Thorburn were among the early coaches of the All Blacks Sevens teams.

Success on the field came swiftly. After their first appearance at the iconic Hong Kong Sevens in 1983 – a side that included the future legendary sevens coach Sir Gordon Tietjens – New Zealand went on to win the marquee event in 1986, ’87 and ’89 and remain crowd favourites in the event.

A Rugby World Cup had first been mooted as far back as the early 1980s, but it finally came to fruition thanks to passionate rugby men like Bay of Plenty businessman Dick Littlejohn.

Sixteen teams were invited, excluding South Africa and Western Samoa, and New Zealand and Australia were co-hosts.

From humble beginnings of just 20,000 at Eden Park on a Friday afternoon for the May 22 kickoff between New Zealand and Italy, the tournament proved to be a resounding success, capturing the public’s imagination and reconnecting the All Blacks with fans lost over the previous turbulent few years. It helped that they won the final, 29-9 against France, in fine fashion, this time before a full house of 46,000.

During the 1980s, Auckland dominated the provincial rugby landscape. However, a new rival popped up in their own back yard with the evolution of North Harbour – or as some fans know them, the Mighty Hibiscus…

North Harbour, the country’s newest union at that point, was something of an upstart, breaking away from Auckland in 1985 to go it alone in the provincial landscape.

They had to start from the bottom, the NPC third division, which they duly won at a canter, and then suffered a setback in losing the 1986 NPC second division to Waikato in the dying throes of the decider. But no matter. In 1987, they swept the second division to earn the right to walk with the giants. Coached by the innovative Peter Thorburn, and including players such as the brilliant Frano Botica and tough-as-teak captain Wayne ‘Buck’ Shelford, North Harbour immediately proved competitive, placing fourth and third in the 1988-89 first division. They had well and truly proven themselves.

As well as dealing with the tours and events identified in this timeline, setting schedules and allocating resources, throughout the 1980s the national union discussed:

• The active recruitment of rugby players by league clubs
• Calls to support women’s rugby, eventually leading to the formation of a Women’s Rugby committee, headed by JJ Stewart
• Selection of the Divisional XV for the first time in 1988

The centrepiece of the NZRFU 100th jubilee celebrations was a three-match Test series against a World XV, won 2-1 by the All Blacks under a new Head Coach in Laurie Mains and Captain, Sean Fitzpatrick.

It proved to be a year of milestones, with the final long international tour undertaken by the All Blacks, to Australia and South Africa – for the first time in 16 years.

The provincial game gained prominence through the Super Six and CANZ series, while Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and Canada all visited these shores.  Club rugby also had some time in the spotlight, with regular televised Friday night games from the Auckland premier competition.

For 20 years, the try had been worth four points. But that all changed one chilly May night at Auckland’s Western Springs Stadium, when Waitemata club centre Tui Fa’agase scored rugby’s first five-point try in a televised match against University.

New Zealand was the first country to assign a points value to a try, although what that value was did vary. Despite the occasional experiment, notably in 2016 during the Mitre 10 Heartland Championship, rugby’s points scoring values have generally remained consistent.

The provincial game and the NPC habitually drew large crowds through the 1980s and ‘90s. Auckland, however, was the dominant union, winning 12 titles between 1982 and 1999.

Underpinning their success was their glorious Ranfurly Shield era of 1985-93, which ran to 61 defences. They finally ceded the Log o’ Wood to their great rivals Waikato, 17-6, at Eden Park. The image of Waikato captain John Mitchell raising the Shield aloft is an iconic one. The Mooloos have a proud Shield record and held it until the following year, when Canterbury divested them of it. But Waikato were not finished with the Shield – or with taking it from Auckland – for that decade, enjoying their longest tenure of 21 successful defences from 1997 to 2000 – with current All Blacks Assistant Coach the Captain holding aloft the Shield on that occasion.

The All Blacks’, after a challenging 1994, adopted an attacking blueprint for 1995 which took them all the way to the Rugby World Cup final in South Africa, falling 15-12 to the Springboks in extra time.

At the centre of their dominant run was a 20-year-old wing from Counties Manukau, Jonah Lomu. A virtual international rookie, his feats for the All Blacks in that tournament helped secure rugby’s future as the game went professional in a turbulent time and propelled him towards global superstardom.

In the 1980s, women’s rugby had pockets of growth around the country and passionate advocates in people like Laurie O’Reilly and JJ Stewart, after whom trophies are named today.

By 1989, the first national representative team was named, which came to be known as the Black Ferns. Also in 1989, NZR selectors chose and announced a national women’s team for the first time. In 1991, the Black Ferns played their first Test at the inaugural Women’s Rugby World Cup. Although it wasn’t run by the IRFB, it was subsequently recognised by the Board as the first Tournament, with USA the first champions.

They became a dominant force on the world scene, dropping just one Test in the entire decade before annexing the first official Rugby World Cup in 1998 in brilliant style under the captaincy of Farah Palmer – and defended their title at the 2002, 2006 and 2010 tournaments.

By 1999, the first women’s NPC was inaugurated and the women’s game was firmly entrenched in the rugby landscape. Fourteen provincial sides took part, which grew to 18 the following year. In 2016, the competition – which had been known by various names over its 17-year history – was re-named the Farah Palmer Cup.

Having faced significant pressure to do so, World Rugby repealed the amateurism regulations that dominated the game in 1995, meaning that rugby could become a professional sport.

In New Zealand, this triggered something of a crisis as competition increased for the signatures of All Blacks and senior New Zealand players. Former All Blacks Captain Jock Hobbs led the negotiations that eventually secured the players for New Zealand Rugby.

SANZAR was formed, the first broadcast deal with News Ltd worth $555 million over 10 years was inked and, just like that, rugby could now pay its players. The All Blacks played their first professional Test in Italy on the end of year tour.

Super Rugby came into being the following year, with the Blues and Hurricanes kicking off the competition and playing the first professional match in New Zealand, in Palmerston North.

Gordon “Titch” Tietjens assumed the mantle of coach of the All Black Sevens in 1994 and helped build New Zealand into a dominant force in the abbreviated game.

It wasn’t until 2000 that the World Series circuit got under way and in the 1990s, the international programme was more ad hoc, other than the iconic Hong Kong tournament. But the team that Titch assembled for the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur – the first time sevens had appeared in the Games – was one of the finest sevens sides of all time. Eight of the squad of 10 were or went on to be All Blacks and at least half a dozen are fit to rank as greats of sevens. Men like Captain Eric Rush, Dallas Seymour, Christian Cullen, Jonah Lomu, Karl Tenana and Joeli Vidiri saw them through to a 21-12 gold medal victory over Fiji in the final.

The implications of professionalism, the rise of the women’s game and changes to competitions could have been enough to keep New Zealand Rugby busy, but in addition they were considering:

• Player safety and wellbeing, in particular addressing what appeared to be a significant rise in catastrophic spinal injuries.
• The Constitutional arrangements of the Union.
• The advent of night rugby.

New Zealand Rugby developed the RugbySmart programme in 2001 and rolled it out across all levels of the game. The programme, which was initially focused on injury prevention, ensures all players are physically and technically at their peak before they lace up their boots.

RugbySmart is a world-leading programme and since 2001 we’ve seen significant drops in rugby-related injury claims to the Accident Compensation Corporation and a huge reduction in serious spinal injuries.

The Provincial Unions facilitate compulsory RugbySmart Injury Prevention courses for all rugby referees and coaches of grades over Under 13 level at the beginning of every rugby season. Coaches of players aged 12 and under attend a compulsory Small Blacks Coaching Course, which includes RugbySmart. It’s a comprehensive approach that is about keeping players where coaches and supporters want them: on the field, contributing to a winning team. 

In September 2016, NZR announced that the world leading RugbySmart programme would receive an additional $7m investment over the next four years from ACC to enhance and expand injury prevention education in our national game. We recognised that more can and should be done to keep players safe on and off the field and have extended the RugbySmart concept out to a much broader focus with the potential for significant benefits for the wider rugby community. 

To learn more about RugbySmart and its 2016 expansion, visit rugbysmart.co.nz

While the All Blacks have always maintained a healthy winning percentage, the Black Ferns throughout the 2000s continued their dominance of the global women’s game in even more palpable fashion.

In 2002 in Spain, they clinched a second straight Women’s Rugby World Cup, defeating England 19-9 in the final and not once conceding a try in the four games.

Despite a sparse international programme between Rugby World Cups, the Black Ferns triumphed again in 2006 in Canada, again defeating close rivals England, 25-17, in the Final.

The Black Ferns’ hegemony was matched by the Auckland Storm, who won every NPC, bar in 2006, from 1999 to 2009, with many Black Ferns coming through their ranks.

Sport is full of highs and lows, a lesson the All Blacks had learned well by the end of the decade.

On June 16, 2001, Carl Hayman ran onto North Harbour Stadium to face Samoa alongside fellow replacement Mark Ranby, but due to the alphabetic luck of his surname, Hayman takes the honour as the 1000th All Black. The milestone came 117 years after the first All Black, another Otago forward by the name of James Allan, took the field in the New Zealand national team’s first outing against a Wellington XV. They were not widely known as the All Blacks until the Originals’ tour of 1905-06, but all New Zealand reps were retrospectively accorded All Blacks’ status. As at April 2017, the tally currently stands at 1157 All Blacks, the latest of whom was a third Otago forward, Liam Coltman.

In 2005, the British & Irish Lions made their first tour in 12 years. The All Blacks swept the Test series 3-0, the tour was a commercial success and the victory for the Maori All Blacks over the Lions in Hamilton was a rousing occasion. The All Blacks then set their sights on, and achieved, a second Grand Slam, 27 years after the first – they achieved this in 2005 and again in 2008.

For the first time, the All Blacks missed the semifinals of Rugby World Cup 2007, falling to France in Cardiff at the quarter-finals stage. This had come after the disappointments of RWC 2003 in Australia, when the team failed to make the Final and the refrain ‘four more years’ took on a sinister quality.

But the lessons of that campaign, detailed in the Eichelbaum Report, were absorbed, and New Zealand Rugby reappointed the coaching team of Sir Graham Henry, Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith. It proved to be an inspired decision as the All Blacks, barring a tough 2009 season, rose to new heights. After RWC 2003, World Rugby introduced World Rankings. England as World Champions were initially ranked at No 1 which they still hold, but the All Blacks have dominated the list since its inception.

The All Blacks have, against the odds, extended their Test winning percentage almost every season in the professional era, and the continuity of the coaching team post-2007 played a part in that rise.

While the All Blacks were on the 2005 end of year tour, New Zealanders heard the news that our country had secured the rights to hold Rugby World Cup 2011.

This was even more gratifying after the late loss in 2002 of the rights to co-host the 2003 Rugby World Cup, in which Australia went it alone. Lessons learned and with a new board, Chief Executive in Chris Moller and Chairman, Jock Hobbs, the New Zealand Rugby Union made all the right moves to pull off what was seen as an against the odds feat of again hosting rugby’s biggest global event.

After 14 seasons of three divisions and playoffs rugby, the NPC was rebranded and expanded. There were now 14 teams in the top division, known as the Air New Zealand Cup.

The old NPC second and third divisions came under the Heartland Championship umbrella and offered all unions a shot at silverware for the Meads and Lochore Cups, both named after great All Blacks from the Heartland Unions. Waikato was the inaugural Air New Zealand Cup winner, while Wairarapa-Bush clinched the Meads Cup and Poverty Bay the Lochore Cup.

A salary cap was installed in the Air New Zealand Cup and new participation criteria introduced for all the Provincial Unions. In 2008, an extensive Competition Review took place, with the competition subject to intense scrutiny for several years. It was tough times for rugby as some Unions faced the possibility of no longer playing in the premier competition but following extensive consultation and negotiation a new format was settled on from 2010, with all 14 teams retained.

World Rugby (the IRB at the time) decided to streamline its age-group world championship, and so the Junior World Championship was born, replacing the Under 19 and Under 21 World Championships that had previously been contested annually.

In 2008, New Zealand Under 20 travelled to Wales for the inaugural tournament and was not only the first champion, but claimed four straight titles, playing brilliant rugby under the coaching of Dave Rennie (2008-10) and Rob Penney (2011). That 2008 side was captained by Chris Smith and featured five who would go on to be All Blacks as well as one Wallaby and one Scottish international.

This team and programme are now mainstays of New Zealand Rugby’s developmental pathway, and many more All Blacks have graduated from the ranks.

The financial loss for 2009 was the largest in NZR’s history followed by the second-largest a year later. This reflected the troubled financial landscape that had engulfed the world in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis and affected the game at all levels.

The GFC, unhelpful interest and exchange rates, rising costs, RWC 2011 obligations and pressure on NZR income streams all created challenges for the leaders of the game. NZR had to make difficult decisions in order to reduce our operating expenses.

As this timeline shows, there was plenty for the organisation to consider, but in addition NZR was considering:

• Its position on the international stage, with regards to World Rugby, SANZAR and rugby in the Pacific.
• The development and launch of a Vision for rugby, with Members eventually agreeing on “Inspiring and Unifying New Zealanders”.
• Developing an online presence and strategy to allow for sharing information and building connections locally and internationally.

In 2010, the rugby community gathered together to celebrate the Centenary of the first official Maori All Blacks team and to recognise the unique contribution of Maori to rugby in New Zealand. Centenary matches, a series of celebratory events, a postage stamp, commemorative jerseys and a publication were part of the Centennial celebrations.

It was important that the Centenary of that first match should be marked appropriately with a programme befitting the mana of the Maori All Blacks and the contribution of Maori rugby. The centrepiece of the centennial celebrations was the three-match Sealord New Zealand Maori Centenary Series, in which the Maori All Blacks faced the New Zealand Barbarians in Whangarei, Ireland in Rotorua and England in Napier.

A 26-man squad was named for the Centenary Series, captained by Liam Messam and featured 12 players who joined the Maori All Blaks for the first time. The team was presented with a special centennial jersey, Te Ao Ho-u (The New Dawn), which was officially blessed in Wellington and linked the 2010 players with their predecessors.

In the lead up to the Centenary, NZR issued an apology to those Maori players who were not considered for selection for teams to tour South Africa or to play South Africa as well as to the wider Maori community and New Zealand as a whole.

RWC 2011 was a unique time for our country and sport. The rugby was incredible and we got the result we wanted on the field when Richie and the All Blacks lifted the Webb Ellis Cup but the success of the Tournament went well beyond the win.

New Zealand and NZR over-delivered on our promises to the IRB and the Tournament unified our country in a way that hasn’t been seen in a very long time. The Tournament also exceeded all ticketing, visitor and broadcasting projections.

The 20 teams involved enjoyed a Tournament that was an operational success, with facilities and venues of the highest quality. Analysis of the games showed that there were fewer scrums, lineouts and kicks compared to Rugby World Cup 2007 and that the average number of passes increased from 224 to 263, all of which indicate an increase in running rugby.

The $268.5 million target set for ticket revenue was surpassed in the week leading up to the Final and total ticket revenue was more than 11 times the previous largest-grossing event in New Zealand history; the British and Irish Lions tour in 2005.

Over 130,000 visitors from around the world arrived in New Zealand specifically for RWC 2011, with 44 percent of visiting fans first-time visitors to New Zealand. Tens of thousands of Kiwis also travelled around the country enjoying the prevailing party atmosphere and the chance to celebrate together. Away from the games, visitors and locals were entertained and introduced to New Zealand by the REAL New Zealand Festival, which featured more than 1200 events and experiences in every corner of the country.

Hundreds of millions of people watched RWC 2011 and the hours of coverage viewed increased by 60 percent, attributed in a large part to innovation in digital and social media platforms. Audiences in Asia, the Americas and Africa all increased significantly.

In 2013, we refreshed our public facing name and identity to closer align with our organisation’s direction towards 2016 and better reflect the work we undertake across all areas of rugby including the community game.

In 2006, ‘Football’ had been dropped from the Union’s name and in 2013, the new name of New Zealand Rugby was adopted (New Zealand Rugby Union was retained as our legal name). This coincided with the Wellington office moving from CentrePort to 100 Molesworth Street, after the old building was identified as being at risk in an earthquake.

In 2012, NZR opened its first office in Auckland.

 In 2013, the All Blacks Sevens and Black Ferns Sevens joined the All Blacks and Black Ferns as World Cup holders – the first time that any country had held all four Rugby World Cups at one time

New Zealand hosted the Junior World Championship (JWC 2014) for the first time, with World Rugby and the participating teams saying what a great tournament it was.

The tournament was held between ECOLight Stadium in Pukekohe and QBE Stadium in North Harbour, with the Final played at Eden Park. Lower-than-expected attendance affected the tournament’s financial result, but the international broadcast coverage was unprecedented and the fans that did attend gave the teams fantastic support.

New Zealand Under 20 weren’t able to claim the win on home soil, with honours going to England, but the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd after tournaments was a special one for the team and their families.

Provincial rugby provides the elements that give rugby its heart and its strength. The players, coaches and referees put in huge hours. Every team is competitive and results are never assured.

However, there are two teams that have dominated what is now the Mitre 10 Cup and the Mitre 10 Heartland Championship: Canterbury and Wanganui. With six titles from seven seasons since 2010, Canterbury have asserted themselves as the dominant team of the modern era. Meanwhile, in the Heartland Championship, Wanganui have three Meads Cup wins from seven and appeared in a further two Finals. They also won the Lochore Cup in 2014, the same year Canterbury didn’t win a title.

The Ranfurly Shield remains hotly-contested as well, with teams and communities showing that Shield Fever is alive and well every time the Log O’Wood changes hands.

While much has been achieved and there has been considerable personal growth in many of those involved in professional rugby, there is still a significant opportunity, need and desire to further improve the culture and overall standards of behaviour within the professional game.

This includes ensuring that our attitudes towards women in rugby, diversity, respect, responsibility and inclusiveness are in keeping with a world leading sports organisation.  NZR is committed to focus on what can be done to make further improvements in NZR’s induction and ongoing education programme and ultimately the culture in the professional environments.

In response to a series of incidents of poor player behaviour and the community reaction to these, a Respect and Responsibility Review was confirmed, conducted by an independent panel. The Review will be conducted from November 2016 through May 2017 and the preliminary outcomes reported to the Board at its meeting in June 2017.

To find out more go to nzrugby.co.nz/what-we-do/rugby-responsibility/respect-and-responsibility-review

The breadth of NZR’s responsibility has been shown in the timeline – and in addition NZR has been considering:

• Achieving a great relationship with professional players through the Collective Employment Agreement negotiations with the New Zealand Rugby Players Association.
• Being an active leader and supporter for rugby in the Pacific.