Draft:National Provincial Championship

Teams

Current teams

Northland

North Harbour

Auckland

Counties Manukau

Waikato

Bay of Plenty

Taranaki

Hawke's Bay

Manawatu

Wellington

Tasman

Canterbury

Otago

Southland

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Locations of the National Provincial Championship teams.

In 1879, the first provincial unions were established in Canterbury and Wellington to oversee rugby in their areas. Over the next decade, several other unions emerged. In 1892, the New Zealand Rugby Football Union was created to standardise the sport nationwide. Its founding members included Auckland, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu, Marlborough, Nelson, South Canterbury, Taranaki, Wairarapa, Wanganui, and Wellington. Initially, the major South Island unions such as Canterbury, Otago, and Southland all opposed the NZRFU's central authority, but by 1895, all three had joined.

In 1976, the inaugural National Provincial Championship featured twenty-six provincial unions from across the nation, split into two divisions. The first division included eleven teams, seven from the North Island and four from the South Island. Division Two was organised by island. Bay of Plenty emerged as the first champions of Division One, while Taranaki claimed the Division Two North title and South Canterbury took the Division Two South title. In 1985, the structure expanded to include nationwide Division Two and Division Three. Changes in 2006 further adapted to the professionalisation of rugby, eliminating promotion and relegation. The top fourteen teams competed in the newly established National Provincial Championship, while the remaining twelve amateur or semi-professional unions formed the Heartland Championship.

Throughout the competition's history, several unions have been formed and renamed. To assemble a squad for the 2006 season, Tasman was created in December 2005, making it the newest provincial union in New Zealand through the merger of Nelson Bays and Marlborough Rugby Union. North Harbour, established in 1985, is another of New Zealand's recent provincial rugby unions, having been promoted to the first division in 1987 after finishing first in the third division during its inaugural year. The former competition also welcomed additional participants, such as the Central Vikings, while two other unions underwent name changes over the years. In 1994, the North Auckland Rugby Union, founded in 1920, was renamed Northland. South Auckland Counties gained full union status in 1955, and the following year, it was shortened to Counties, before becoming Counties Manukau in 1996.

Team	Colours	Moniker	Location	Venue	Established	Joined	Coach
Auckland		Gulls	Auckland	Eden Park	1883 (1883)	1976	Craig McGrath
Bay of Plenty		Steamers	Tauranga	Tauranga Domain	1911 (1911)	1976	Richard Watt
Canterbury		–	Christchurch	Rugby League Park	1879 (1879)	1976	Marty Bourke
Counties Manukau		Steelers	Pukekohe	Navigation Homes Stadium	1955 (1955)	1976	Reon Graham
Hawke's Bay		Magpies	Napier	McLean Park	1884 (1884)	1976	Brock James
Manawatu		Turbos	Palmerston North	Arena Manawatu	1886 (1886)	1976	Mike Rogers
North Harbour		Heat	Auckland	North Harbour Stadium	1985 (1985)	1985	Ben Afeaki
Northland		Taniwha	Whangārei	Okara Park	1920 (1920)	1976	Dale MacLeod
Otago		Razorbacks	Dunedin	Forsyth Barr Stadium	1881 (1881)	1976	Tom Donnelly
Southland		Stags	Invercargill	Rugby Park Stadium	1887 (1887)	1976	James Wilson
Taranaki		Bulls	New Plymouth	Yarrow Stadium	1885 (1885)	1976	Neil Barnes
Tasman		Mako	Nelson	Trafalgar Park	2006 (2006)	2006	Gray Cornelius
Waikato		Mooloo	Hamilton	Waikato Stadium	1921 (1921)	1976	Ross Filipo
Wellington		Lions	Wellington	Wellington Regional Stadium	1879 (1879)	1976	Alando Soakai

Former teams

In May 1996, Hawke's Bay and Manawatu jointly announced their intention to form a Central rugby team, as both unions recognised they could not maintain a competitive first division team without significant funding. New Zealand Rugby approved the team to compete in the 1997 and 1998 seasons. However, since Hawke's Bay and Manawatu did not merge, they were ineligible for promotion to the first division, leading to the team's eventual dissolution shortly after.

After the Tasman Rugby Union was established in December 2005, Nelson Bays and Marlborough ceased operations as Tasman took over the management and delivery of grassroots rugby at junior school and senior club levels for both regions. Marlborough, founded in 1888, had a proud history, notably defending the Ranfurly Shield six times in 1973 and 1974. Nelson Bays was established in 1968, resulting from the merger of Nelson and Golden Bay-Motueka. Nelson was formed in 1885, becoming the sixth provincial union in New Zealand, while Golden Bay-Motueka was established in 1920.

Team	Colours	Moniker	Location	Venue	Established	Joined	Departed	Seasons
Central Vikings		Vikings	Napier	McLean Park	1996 (1996)	1997	1998	2
Marlborough		Red Devils	Blenheim	Lansdowne Park	1888 (1888)	1976	2005	29
Nelson Bays		Griffins	Nelson	Trafalgar Park	1968 (1968)	1976	2005	29

Results

1976–1991

On 18 September 1976, the first Radio New Zealand National Championship was decided when Bay of Plenty defeated Hawke's Bay and Manawatu lost to Marlborough. Both Bay of Plenty and Manawatu entered those matches tied at the top of the table with fifteen points. Despite some unions having additional matches left, Bay of Plenty's victory brought their total to seventeen points, securing their position as champions.

The winners of Division One would receive a trophy called the Rugby Cup. Bay of Plenty captain Tuck Waaka was the first to hold this trophy until it was replaced during the 2006 season. In 2016, it was reinstated to celebrate the competition's fortieth anniversary and was once again awarded to the winners.

The 1991 season was the final one to feature a straight round-robin format with no finals. During this time, Otago went on an impressive run and ultimately defeated North Harbour at Carisbrook to win the competition. This victory marked the end of Auckland's four-year winning streak before the introduction of finals in the following season.

Edition	Season	Champions	Runners-up	Coach
1	1976	Bay of Plenty	Manawatu	Eric Anderson
2	1977	Canterbury	Counties	Tiny Hill
3	1978	Wellington	Counties	Ian Upston
4	1979	Counties	Auckland	Hiwi Tauroa
5	1980	Manawatu	Auckland	Graham Hamer
6	1981	Wellington	Manawatu	Ian Upston
7	1982	Auckland	Canterbury	John Hart
8	1983	Canterbury	Wellington	Alex Wyllie
9	1984	Auckland	Canterbury	John Hart
10	1985	Auckland	Canterbury	John Hart
11	1986	Wellington	Auckland	Earle Kirton
12	1987	Auckland	Wellington	Maurice Trapp
13	1988	Auckland	Wellington	Maurice Trapp
14	1989	Auckland	Canterbury	Maurice Trapp
15	1990	Auckland	Waikato	Maurice Trapp
16	1991	Otago	Auckland	Laurie Mains

1992–2005

Finals were introduced for the first time during the 1992 season of the National Provincial Championship. Waikato emerged as the inaugural finals winners, marking their first victory in the competition since its inception in 1976. After finishing the qualifying round in fourth place, they decisively defeated top qualifier Auckland in the semifinal and then triumphed over defending champion Otago in front of 30,000 spectators at Rugby Park in Hamilton.

The term golden era was referred to Auckland's remarkable success from 1982 to 1996, during which they won eleven out of fifteen National Provincial Championships. In addition to these titles, they enjoyed an impressive Ranfurly Shield reign that lasted nine years, with sixty-one successful defences, an achievement unmatched in the over 100-year history of the shield. This period of success set numerous Ranfurly Shield records that still stand today. Grant Fox holds the record for the most matches played (57) and the most points scored (932), while Terry Wright recorded the most tries (53). North Otago suffered the largest margin of defeat (139–5) in a game where John Kirwan scored a record eight tries.

Edition	Season	Champions	Score	Runners-up	Venue	Location	Coach
17	1992	Waikato	40–5	Otago	Rugby Park	Hamilton	Kevin Greene
18	1993	Auckland	27–18	Otago	Eden Park	Auckland	Graham Henry
19	1994	Auckland	22–16	North Harbour	Onewa Domain	Auckland	Graham Henry
20	1995	Auckland	23–19	Otago	Eden Park	Auckland	Graham Henry
21	1996	Auckland	46–15	Counties Manukau	Eden Park	Auckland	Graham Henry
22	1997	Canterbury	44–13	Counties Manukau	Lancaster Park	Christchurch	Robbie Deans
23	1998	Otago	49–20	Waikato	Carisbrook	Dunedin	Tony Gilbert
24	1999	Auckland	24–18	Wellington	Eden Park	Auckland	Wayne Pivac
25	2000	Wellington	34–29	Canterbury	Jade Stadium	Christchurch	Dave Rennie
26	2001	Canterbury	30–19	Otago	Jade Stadium	Christchurch	Steve Hansen
27	2002	Auckland	40–28	Waikato	Waikato Stadium	Hamilton	Wayne Pivac
28	2003	Auckland	41–29	Wellington	Westpac Stadium	Wellington	Wayne Pivac
29	2004	Canterbury	40–27	Wellington	Westpac Stadium	Wellington	Brian McLean
30	2005	Auckland	39–11	Otago	Eden Park	Auckland	Pat Lam

2006–present

After the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the New Zealand Rugby Union conducted a review of its competitions, leading to talks about a new format. It was ultimately decided that thirteen provincial unions, along with the newly established Tasman, would form part of the revamped premier division, which would be renamed the Air New Zealand Cup. The other unions would continue to operate within the Heartland Championship, eliminating the second and third divisions that had been introduced in 1985.

Waikato secured its first title since 1992 by winning the inaugural Air New Zealand Cup. Under the guidance of coach Warren Gatland, they defeated Wellington in front of a capacity crowd of 25,000 at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton.

Since 2006, Canterbury has reached the finals of the National Provincial Championship twelve times, winning nine of those matches. This achievement cements their status as the most successful team in the competition during this era. From 2008 to 2013, they set a record by winning six consecutive titles, a feat that has not been matched since the introduction of finals in 1992. During this period, only five other unions have found success, with Auckland, Taranaki, Tasman, and Waikato each winning twice, and Wellington securing the title once.

Edition	Season	Champions	Score	Runners-up	Venue	Location	Coach
31	2006	Waikato	37–31	Wellington	Waikato Stadium	Hamilton	Warren Gatland
32	2007	Auckland	23–14	Wellington	Eden Park	Auckland	Pat Lam
33	2008	Canterbury	7–6	Wellington	Westpac Stadium	Wellington	Rob Penney
34	2009	Canterbury	28–20	Wellington	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Rob Penney
35	2010	Canterbury	33–13	Waikato	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Rob Penney
36	2011	Canterbury	12–3	Waikato	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Rob Penney
37	2012	Canterbury	31–18	Auckland	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Tabai Matson
38	2013	Canterbury	29–13	Wellington	Westpac Stadium	Wellington	Scott Robertson
39	2014	Taranaki	36–32	Tasman	Yarrow Stadium	New Plymouth	Colin Cooper
40	2015	Canterbury	25–23	Auckland	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Scott Robertson
41	2016	Canterbury	43–27	Tasman	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Scott Robertson
42	2017	Canterbury	35–13	Tasman	AMI Stadium	Christchurch	Glenn Delaney
43	2018	Auckland	40–33	Canterbury	Eden Park	Auckland	Alama Ieremia
44	2019	Tasman	31–14	Wellington	Trafalgar Park	Nelson	Andrew Goodman
45	2020	Tasman	13–12	Auckland	Eden Park	Auckland	Andrew Goodman
46	2021	Waikato	23–20	Tasman	FMG Stadium Waikato	Hamilton	Ross Filipo
47	2022	Wellington	26–18	Canterbury	Orangetheory Stadium	Christchurch	Leo Crowley
48	2023	Taranaki	22–19	Hawke's Bay	Yarrow Stadium	New Plymouth	Neil Barnes
49	2024		–		Sky Stadium	Wellington

Championships by union

Since the competition began in 1976, twenty-nine teams have participated. Auckland holds the record for the most successful union, with seventeen titles, while Canterbury has been the top team during the professional era, winning nine out of twelve finals. Eight other teams have claimed titles from both eras. Among the current competitors since the 2006 restructuring, only four sides, Hawke's Bay, North Harbour, Northland, and Southland have yet to win a championship.

Team	Won	First	Latest	Lost	Win %
Auckland	17	1982	2018	7	70.83
Canterbury	14	1977	2017	7	66.67
Wellington	5	1978	2022	12	29.41
Waikato	3	1992	2021	5	37.50
Otago	2	1991	1998	5	28.57
Taranaki	2	2014	2023	0	100.00
Tasman	2	2019	2020	4	33.33
Bay of Plenty	1	1976	1976	0	100.00
Counties Manukau	1	1979	1979	4	20.00
Manawatu	1	1980	1980	2	33.33

Honours

Interprovincial

Nearly forty interprovincial trophies are contested in New Zealand rugby.

• 1853: Donald Stuart Memorial Shield – Southland
• 1922: Payne Trophy – Canterbury
• 1953: Coronation Cup – Wellington
• 1965: Harry Saundercock Memorial Trophy – Wellington
• 1975: Stan Thomas Memorial Trophy – Waikato
• 1986: Newstalk ZB Trans Harbour Trophy – Auckland
• 1993: Kel Tremain Memorial Trophy – Hawke's Bay
• 2001: Ryan Wheeler Memorial Trophy – Taranaki
• 2002: Brian Purdy Battle of the Bridge Memorial Trophy – Auckland
• 2005: Kevin Gimblett Memorial Trophy – North Harbour
• 2005: Lindsay Colling Memorial Trophy – Otago

• 2009: John Drake Boot Memorial Trophy – Bay of Plenty
• 2012: Peter Burke Trophy – Bay of Plenty
• 2016: Jonah Tali Lomu Memorial Trophy – Counties Manukau
• 2017: MacRae-Shelford Bay Cup – Bay of Plenty
• 2022: Heta Te Tai Trophy – Southland
• 2022: Nathan Strongman Memorial Trophy – Bay of Plenty
• N.D: Lion Red Challenge Cup – Counties Manukau
• N.D: Fred Lucas Memorial Trophy – Wellington
• N.D: John F. Henning Trophy – Wellington
• N.D: Supporters' Club Cup – Canterbury

Updated: 22 October 2024