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IRB Junior World Championship 2010
New Zealand vs South Africa
Match scheduled:
Date: 17-06-2010
Time: 19:30 until 21:45
New Zealand vs South Africa :: Semi Finals - IRB Junior World Championships :: Estadio El Coloso del Parque, Rosario, Argentina
Watch live rugby TV
The NZRU Patron fills an honorary role as the figurehead for the organization. The current Patron is former All Blacks captain Sir Wilson Whineray, who has held the title since 2003 and was last re-elected for a three-year term starting in 2007. Previously, the role was filled ex officio by the Governor-General of New Zealand.
The President and Vice President of the NZRU are the Union's two officers who represent the NZRU and New Zealand Rugby at rugby and non-rugby functions and events. Unlike the NZRU Patron, the President and Vice President are entitled to attend NZRU Board Meetings, but are not entitled to vote on Board matters. The President and Vice President are elected for two years each. The current President is John Sturgeon, former All Blacks Manager, and the current Vice President is Bryan Williams.
[edit] NZRU Board
| Patron | Sir Wilson Whineray |
| NZRU Board Members | |
| President | John Sturgeon |
| Vice President[4] | Bryan Williams |
| Chairman | Jock Hobbs[5] |
| Central Representative | Graham Mourie |
| Maori Representative | Wayne Peters |
| Northern Representatives | Ivan Haines |
| Gerard Van Tilborg | |
| Southern Representatives | Mike Eagle |
| Mark Peters | |
| Independent Members | Ken Douglas |
| Bill Thurston | |
The NZRU Board is charged with setting strategy, direction and policy for the NZRU, and is ultimately responsible for the decisions and actions of NZRU management and staff. Many of the decisions concerning New Zealand’s national teams, domestic competitions, financial management and rugby traditions are made the Board. The Board has nine members: six zonal representatives, one Maori representative and two independent Board Members.
[edit] Zonal Representatives
New Zealand’s 26 Provincial Unions are divided into three zones – North, Central and South – and two representatives from each zone are elected to the Board. These zonal representatives are nominated by a Provincial Union within their zone and are elected by a vote of all 26 Unions at the Annual General Meeting. From the six zonal representatives, a Chairman is elected, currently Jock Hobbs holds this title and was first elected in 2002 as a Central Representative.
[edit] Maori Representatives
The Maori representative may be nominated by any Provincial Union and is elected by a vote of all the Unions at the Annual General Meeting. The Maori representative is automatically appointed as NZRU representative on and Chairman of the New Zealand Maori Rugby Board.
[edit] Independent Board Members
The two independent Board Members must be independent of any Provincial Union and are not nominated for the role. Instead, independent Board Members must apply for the position and are selected on the basis of their professional qualifications and experience by a committee of the NZRU Board.
[edit] NZRU Management and Staff
The NZRU Management and Staff is headed by a senior management team that includes the Chief Executive Officer, General Manager Professional Rugby, General Manager Community and Provincial Union Rugby, General Manager Commercial and Finance, General Manager Corporate Services and All Blacks Manager. The CEO is responsible with the Board for the establishment of the vision and strategy for the organization, acts as the key link between the Board and the staff, and is ultimately responsible for the administrative and operational aspects of the NZRU, the current CEO is Steve Tew, who was elected in 2008. The General Manager Professional Rugby oversees NZRU’s High Performance development, the Professional Players Collective Employment Agreement, Professional Player, Coach, Referee and other team management contracting, Other National Teams, Medical, Health and Safety, and Sports Science initiatives, the current General Manager Professional Rugby is Neil Sorensen. The General Manager Community and Provincial Rugby oversees the relationships between the NZRU and the Provincial Unions and leads and manages the NZRU’s Community rugby strategy and initiatives, Buck Anderson currently holds the title. The General Manager Commercial and Finance oversees a broad portfolio of interrelated business units, including commercial and marketing, finance, business planning and development, communications, broadcasting, and IT, Stuart Robb received this position in 2007. The General Manager Corporate Services oversees the support functions within the NZRU, including human resources, legal counsel, and office management, Kirsten Patterson holds this title. The All Blacks Manager heads a small team of staff dedicated to managing the All Blacks team and other activities specific to New Zealand’s top rugby team, Darren Shand is the current All Blacks Manager and has been so since 2004.
[edit] History
The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) was formed in 1892 to administer the game of rugby union at the national level. At that time, the national union was known as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union or NZRFU. The name was officially shortened in 2006 with the removal of the world “Football”.
The first rugby match to be played in New Zealand took place in Nelson in May 1870, between Nelson College and Nelson Football Club. The game spread quickly 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 Wellington.
[edit] Formation and Early Years
| Ernest Hoben |
|---|
| The NZRU’s strongest advocate and first secretary, Ernest Hoben, was a driving force behind the formation of the national union. In recognition of Hoben’s contribution, the "Ernest Hoben Room" at the NZRU’s offices in Wellington now displays all 26 provincial jerseys alongside photos of past All Blacks teams and the names of every All Black in New Zealand rugby history. |
On Saturday 16 April 1892, in a meeting held in Wellington, the New Zealand Rugby Union was formed. Inaugural members were the Provincial Unions of Auckland, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu, Marlborough, Nelson, South Canterbury, Taranaki, Waiararapa, Wanganui and Wellington. At the time, three major South Island Provincial Unions – Canterbury, Otago and Southland – resisted the central authority of the NZRU.
In 1893, the NZRU formally adopted the black jersey as the national playing strip and selected the first NZRU-sanctioned national team, for a tour of Australia. However, the earlier New Zealand team selected to tour New South Wales in 1884 is recognised as a New Zealand team and its players recognised as All Blacks.
By 1895, with the additions of the Bush, Canterbury, Horowhenua, Otago, Poverty Bay, Southland and West Coast unions, the NZRU was considered to be a complete and united collection of all New Zealand rugby players. However, the New Zealand rugby map[6] would be repeatedly redrawn in the following decades.
At the Annual Meeting in 1921, the NZRU elected its first Life Member, George Dixon, manager of the 1905 “Originals” All Blacks and the NZRU’s first Chairman, appointed in 1904. In another innovation, provincial delegates met prior to the Annual Meeting to arrange representative fixtures for the season ahead, introducing a new level of national coordination.
[edit] Provincial Rugby
In 1976, the National Provincial Championship was formed to help organise matches between provincial unions, it had two divisions in its first year of play but the format was repeatedly reorganized throughout its 30 year history, notably in 1992 the Rugby Union Bonus Points System was brought in to determine the top placed team. Auckland have been the most successful team in the NPC's history with 16 championships including the last in 2005. At the conclusion of the NPC there were three divisions and 27 Rugby Unions under the NZRU's jurisdiction, it was replaced by the Air New Zealand Cup and Heartland Championship in 2006 with 14 teams in the top competition, including the new Tasman Makos, who formed with the amalgamation of the Marlborough and Nelson Bays Rugby Unions, and 12 teams in the amateur Heartland Championship. After a 2010 change in sponsorship, the Air New Zealand Cup became the ITM Cup.
[edit] The All Blacks
The All Blacks are New Zealand’s number one national rugby side and have rated amongst the best in the world for well over 100 years. Their name and distinctive all-black playing strip have become well known to rugby and non-rugby fans worldwide.
The first New Zealand team was selected in 1884, for a tour to New South Wales. The team played its first match at home, against a Wellington XV, before recording eight wins in eight matches in Australia. Otago prop James Allan, who played eight matches for the 1884 team, has the title of All Black No 1.
In 1893, the first official NZRU-sanctioned New Zealand team was selected, for an 11-match tour to Australia. The team lost just once, to New South Wales in Sydney.
In 1894, an official New Zealand team hosted visiting opposition on home soil for the first time, in a match against New South Wales at Christchurch won 8–6 by the visitors, two years later, New Zealand beat Queensland at Wellington to record its first home win against visiting opposition.
New Zealand’s 1905–06 tour to the United Kingdom, France and North America might be considered the most important in New Zealand rugby history. The team played 35 matches in total, losing just once. In the United Kingdom especially, the team’s largely confident, attractive and comfortable wins made a strong statement about the quality of rugby in the colonies and New Zealand in particular. Moreover, the 1905–06 tour gave rise to the famous “All Blacks” moniker, as the fame surrounding the black-clad team spread. Nowadays, this team is known as “the Originals” – they were the first team to demonstrate the power and skill of New Zealand rugby, the first to make rugby a part of New Zealand’s cultural identity, and the first to be known as All Blacks.
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”.
In 1956, the All Blacks won a Test series against South Africa for the first time. The Springboks were the All Blacks’ greatest traditional rivals and had delivered some of the All Blacks’ worst defeats.
In 1978, the All Blacks achieved a Grand Slam for the first time. For southern hemisphere sides like New Zealand, a Grand Slam includes victories over the four Home Unions – England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales – in the course of a single tour. The team achieved a second Grand Slam in 2005 and a third in 2008.[7]
In 1987, the All Blacks won the inaugural Rugby World Cup, hosted by New Zealand and Australia.
[edit] Professional Era
In 1995, following the Rugby World Cup tournament in South Africa, international rugby turned professional with the IRB’s repeal of all amateurism regulations. For the first time, the NZRU negotiated with and contracted New Zealand rugby players. The NZRU also joined with the national unions of Australia and South Africa to form SANZAR, which sold the television rights for major southern hemisphere rugby competitions and helped to build the commercial foundation on which professional rugby is based. SANZAR remains an important rugby organisation and organises the Super 14 and Tri Nations competitions.
