Waikato team to take on Southland

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Waikato coach Chris Gibbes today announced his side for the first round robin game of the ITM Cup, to take on Southland this Friday night at Rugby Park Stadium in Invercargill.

Waikato Head Coach Chris Gibbes said “we are all looking forward to getting our campaign under way for 2011. Southland are a fierce rival of ours and we are expecting a massive arm wrestle in Invercargill, but we are up for the challenge”.

Waikato rugby legend Marty Holah returns to the Red, Yellow & Black number seven jersey after four years and New Zealand Seven’s rising star Declan O’Donnell debuts on the left wing.

In the reserves, former Cantabrian Marcel Cummings-Toone looks set to gain his first cap for his new side along with Rena Schuster.

The Waikato team is

  1. Ben May
  2. Aled de Malmanche
  3. Nathan White (Captain)
  4. Toby Lynn
  5. Romana Graham
  6. Matt Vant Leven
  7. Marty Holah
  8. Alex Bradley
  9. Tawera Kerr-Barlow
  10. Stephen Donald
  11. Declan O’Donnell
  12. Jackson Willison
  13. Save Tokula
  14. Sitiveni Sivivatu
  15. Trent Renata

Reserves:

  1. Marcel Cummings-Toone
  2. Toby Smith
  3. Chris Middleton
  4. Zak Hohneck
  5. Brendon Leonard
  6. Tim Mikkelson
  7. Rena Schuster
  8. Ted Tauroa

Clark appointed GM of Highlands Super Rugby franchise

Rugby Southland CEO Roger Clark has been appointed General Manager of the Highlanders’ Super Rugby franchise.

Clark has for the last four months been the Highlanders’ Project Manager on a secondment funded by the New Zealand Rugby Union, and has played an important role in both the on and off field re-structuring of the Highlanders’ franchise to date.

Clark’s employment is the first of a number of direct appointments intended to be made by the Highlanders before the start of the 2011 Investec Super Rugby season. In announcing the appointment, Highlanders’ Chairman Ross Laidlaw said:

"Roger was the standout applicant for this new position. He has 12 years’ experience as a rugby administrator and is highly respected as such both within the franchise region and beyond. One of Roger’s many tasks will be to build and lead an off field Highlanders’ management group – handling the franchise’s commercial, marketing, high performance and team management functions – which will work closely alongside Coach Jamie Joseph and his boys on the paddock."

Laidlaw also acknowledged the assistance and support of both the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Highlanders’ three regional provincial unions in relation the management re-structuring.

Meanwhile, Clark is looking forward to, but does not under estimate, the challenges of his new role:

"My principal task is to establish and maintain the Highlanders’ franchise as a commercially viable organisation. A continuation of significant operating deficits is not acceptable. There are many other important things to do. To build and maintain relationships with all our stakeholders; to assist Jamie Joseph in establishing a Highlander identity and culture, which will hopefully encourage the community to engage with the Highlanders; and to work with our provincial unions, particularly in the areas of player identification, development, recruitment and retention."

Rugby Southland Chairman Owen Shaw, acknowledged Clark’s contribution as CEO of the Stags:

"Roger has been instrumental in leading a resurgence of rugby in Southland as our CEO for the last 12 years. Whilst we are naturally disappointed to lose him, we are 100 per cent behind the new Highlanders’ leadership and wish Roger every success in his new role. We recognise how important it is for rugby in our region that the Highlanders is a successful franchise.”

Clark’s appointment takes effect immediately, but he will remain available to Rugby Southland to ensure a smooth transition to his successor.

Jimmy Cowan recommits to New Zealand rugby

Jimmy Cowan recommits to New Zealand rugby

Jimmy Cowan recommits to New Zealand rugby

Popular All Blacks, Highlanders and Southland halfback Jimmy Cowan has re-signed with the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) and Rugby Southland through until the end of 2012, it was announced today.

The re-signing will see the Highlanders captain play his provincial rugby for Southland and Super Rugby for the Highlanders for the next three years.

Jimmy Cowan said: “I really enjoy playing my rugby in New Zealand, and I’m looking forward to the next few years with the All Blacks, Southland and the Highlanders.”

Cowan, who turns 28 next month, made his All Blacks debut in 2004 and has played 32 Tests since then, including all five Tests on the 2009 end of year Telecom Northern Tour to Japan and Europe.

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2009 Steinlager Rugby Award nominees announced

The nominees for this year’s Steinlager Rugby Awards, New Zealand’s premier rugby awards, have been announced.

The Steinlager Rugby Awards recognise and acknowledge the achievements of New Zealand’s teams, coaches, players, referees and volunteers in 2009. The ceremony will be held at the SkyCity Convention Centre, Auckland, on Thursday 17 December and broadcast live on SKY Sport and The Rugby Channel.

A new name is being introduced for the award which annually recognises the great contribution volunteers make to community rugby. The winner of this year’s volunteer award will be honoured with the Charles Monro Rugby Volunteer of the Year trophy, named after the man who introduced rugby to New Zealand. Nominees are Otago’s Blair Crawford, Auckland’s David Hickey and Peter Te Tai from Southland.

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Air NZ Cup Final: Canterbury tame Lions

Canterbury celebrated their first back-to-back successes in the Air New Zealand cup in Christchurch on Saturday night, beating Wellington by three tries to two in a 28-20 victory.

Canterbury, led 25-10 after 60 minutes, but found themselves only five points ahead in a tense final six minutes, and down to fourteen men with fullback Colin Slade in the sinbin. They secured their win when with a late penalty leaving Wellington wondering what they have to do to. They have reached six of the last seven finals and lost them all, and Canterbury are their main tormentors, winning on three occasions, the first two in Wellington itself.

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