
The festive season is over, and the holiday season will soon be too. It’s back to the grind for many, but for others it means it’s all downhill to another rugby season filled with excitement and drama, mystery and intrigue.
We’ve put together some themes and topics to ponder over before the 2025 season kicks off (mostly from a Wellington perspective) in no particular order.
CAN NORTHS ROAR IN 2025?
Cast your thoughts back to this time 20 years ago. Norths had just won their maiden Jubilee Cup in 2004, the first of four titles in seven years. Famous players such as Alapati Leiua and Buxton Popalii were just entering secondary school. Porirua Park has been relatively quiet for the past two years (forced up to the No. 2 by football in 2023) and the ‘northern limelight’ has shifted to Paremata-Plimmerton. It would only be good for the competition if Norths can capture some of their old magic. Jeremiah Avei-Collins, who was recently playing sevens for Pare-Plim, looms as a key player to take them into a new era. Premier coaches Shane Pihema and Greg Mullany are taking the helm of Norths this year.
Norths with the Swindale Shield in 2018.
HOME GROUND ADVANTAGE
Following on from the above, Norths might be forced up on to their No. 2 ground again, at least for one or two early season matches such as versus Ories on the Easter Saturday round. Why? Because the Phoenix women’s football team reportedly have home games brushing up against the start of the rugby season. If so, a real shame as part of Norths getting their swagger back is playing on Jerry Collins Stadium. As well as Norths, OBU head into the new season without their home ground set in stone, Rugby League Park being their preference and Nairnville Park the back-up. Avalon might not have the Sportsville facilities but should still have Fraser Park to play on. Hutt Old Boys Marist always start the season away, with the Hutt Rec unavailable this year until round 4 on 26 April. Petone have their ongoing red stickered stand issue to contend with.
+++++
The Hutt Rec (above) to host its first match on Anzac Weekend, HOBM v Paremata-Plimmerton, and below the former grandstand’s opening on 3 August 1934.
+++++
THE YEAR OF THE RAM
We had an exact same entry in last year’s equivalent article – but still just as relevant this time round. This year represents the 12th season since Upper Hutt and Rimutaka merged to form the Upper Hutt Rams. They were fourth in the Swindale Shield in 2014 and in 2023, and fifth last season, their best campaigns. They have yet to make a Jubilee Cup semi-final. With loads of playing and coaching talent and a recently refurbished home ground, is it unreasonable to expect them to finally step up this season?
Happy Days for the Upper Hutt Rams with this 23-21 win over the HOBM Eagles last year.
+++++
PETONE THE TEAM TO BEAT IN WOMEN’S CLUB RUGBY
The Petone Ponies had a mighty season in 2024, winning all games before them on their way to the final, held to a draw in that by Ories but winning the title. As such, they head into the new women’s season as the team to beat. Can they be caught? After winning the title in 2023, Marist St Pat’s folded in 2024. They returned in November via their sevens team and have got their coaches in place for 2025 so it is safe to say they will be back. Lookout for Oriental-Rongotai who have been rebuilding but made the final and almost knocked off Petone, the Ponies to a 24-24 draw but winning on most tries countback. Poneke combined with OBU last year, and were big improvers, but OBU might be fielding a standalone women’s team again too, while the Axemen tried to get theirs up and running last season.
The Petone Ponies after winning the 2024 Tia Paasi Memorial Cup, despite being held to a 24-24 draw in the final by Ories.
+++++
BOMB SQUAD
The Springboks have enjoyed much success with their vaunted ‘Bomb Squad’ that involves a 6-2 or 7-1 split of forwards on the bench. Waikato and Counties Manukau women often took the same approach in the Farah Palmer Cup and were among the most successful teams. Will there be other copycats? Imagine Tawa with six forward reserves or tussling with Wainuiomata on a William Jones heavy only for them to introduce a Bomb Squad.
+++++
FEEL THE PAIN OF THE MCBAIN
The famous McBain Shield between Petone and Hutt Old Boys Marist is in the very last round, on 28 June, and at the Hutt Rec this year. How good would it be if it was also the Swindale Shield decider! If not, there could be two big games that day, with the winners being crowned elsewhere. As always now, the season starts with the Jubilee Cup final re-match, with OBU hosting Tawa in that one. The Hardham Cup rematch between Wainuiomata and Pare-Plim is at Ngati Toa Domain in round two, while some of the other notable matches of the 91 in the first round include Tawa hosting Petone that same date, the Villagers trip to Maidstone in round four, Ories facing MSP in round six, OBU at Petone and Ories at Pare-Plim in round eight, HOBM welcoming Ories to the Hutt Rec in round nine, and the Jim Grbich Memorial clash between Ories and Poneke in round 12. Another one we’ve got noted is the clash between Avalon and Wellington at Fraser Park in round six (see more on these two teams below).
Flashback to the 2011 McBain Shield.
+++++
RATHKEALE JOINING WELLINGTON SCHOOL COMPETITION
The big news in college rugby this off-season is that the Rathkeale College First XV is joining the College Sport Wellington competition. They will have to qualify for the Premiership but if they qualify it could mean they will join Wairarapa College in the competition next year. Rathkeale have competed in the Central North Island 1st XV for the past decade-plus but have decided to exit that competition citing the considerable logistic challenges which extends as far north as Wesley College, west to New Plymouth’s Francis Douglas, and east to the Hawke’s Bay’s St John’s Hastings and Napier’s Lindisfarne College. Competing in Wellington isn’t new to Rathkeale with their 1st XI Football and Hockey currently doing so, but this would be new to their 1st XV rugby. It is also only with their First XV, with their Second xv and Development XV sides and their U15s continuing to compete in the Wairarapa schools’ competition.
+++++
WELLINGTON COLLEGE SEEK TO GO ONE BETTER
It’s almost a decade since Wellington College won the First XV Premiership but with arguably their best back Archie Sims and forward Z’Kdeus Schwalger returning in 2025 along with a trio of All Blacks (Piri Weepu, John Schwalger, Neemia Tialata) in the coaching staff will Wellington College go one better than they did in 2024. Wellington College has a larger contingent of players returning than champions, St Patrick’s College, Silverstream.
Wellington College players celebrate their 29-7 semi-final win over Scots College last year. They fell to St Pat’s Silverstream in the final.
+++++
ELSEWHERE – HAMILTON BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL
It’s not surprising the Hamilton Boys’ High School First XV held both the National Top Four and Moascar Cup titles at the end of 2024. However, with legendary coaches Nigel Hotham and Greg Kirkham (358 wins in 420 matches) now departed will Hamilton struggle to maintain their success? After all, they were twice beaten by Tauranga Boys’ College to relinquish the Super 8 title. Fast-rising Tauranga also won the Super 8 Fifteens and Sevens titles as well as the National Condor Sevens and Under 15s titles. In the Hurricanes region, Feilding High School are now the team to beat, and now have a genuine local rivalry with Palmerston North Boys’ High School should they meet more frequently, while Napier and Hastings Boys’ High Schools will be eager to get back to the Top 4.
+++++
MINNOWS TO STEP UP?
The other 12 clubs may disagree, but for the sake of the viability of a 14-team Premier competition, recent perennial wooden spooners the Avalon Wolves and the Wellington Axemen need to be winning some games and climbing up the charts. Avalon and Wellington have alternated the 13th and 14th spots for four out of the past five years, while Wellington has won six of 65 matches in this period and Avalon four. For inspiration, both can look at Paremata-Plimmerton who were dead last in 2021 but rose to be first round winners in 2023. Of note, Auckland has taken a broom to their club rugby competition this year, with proverbial sweeping changes. These can be read here: https://www.aucklandrugby.co.nz/newsarticle/143740?newsfeedId=333564
+++++
MEDIA AND COVERAGE
Independent media coverage of local rugby, and indeed local sport, continues to slip slide away, with two further recent losses being the recent passing of longtime local sports journalist and friend of this website Nicholas Boyack (RIP) and the closure of more local newspapers such as the Horowhenua Chronicle that covered the Ramsbotham Cup competition and Horowhenua-Kapiti rugby. In Wellington, the ‘Post’ is seemingly too high level to lower itself to local sport, plus much of it is behind a paywall. Kudos to Peter Lampp and George Heagney for keeping the Manawatu Standard’s local sports and club rugby coverage going. We are assuming that Gordon and the team at Te Upoko will be returning in 2025 with radio commentaries? Huddy Sports will no doubt have the visuals covered, along with the great work on livestreaming by several clubs, but who else is there to promote the game?
+++++
OBU WITHOUT PRESTON AND PERRERS AND MAYBE HARKIN
It was a vintage season for Old Boys University last year, winning the Swindale Shield and Jubilee Cup double. OBU’s Premier record since their maiden Jubilee Cup winning season in 2015 stands at 122 wins and 42 defeats. Their second XV also won the Premier 2 Harper Lock Shield – making OBU the first to win Jubilee Cup/Swindale/Ed Chaney/Harper Lock outright in the same season. For all that, the spine of their side could be in rebuild mode this year. No. 8 Dougal Perrers has reportedly gone back to Brisbane, while halfback Kyle Preston is with the Crusaders and first five Callum Harkin has a Hurricanes training contract and may not automatically be playing each week. They could be in the market this off-season for a new loosie and a new first five, although Tom Henderson is the ‘Will Young’ of the Goats, so he can slot in like a glove, and Wellington College school leaver Ollie Church was in their sevens team in November. Mitchell McLeod, Thoma Takeuchi and Ollie Cuff (mostly on the wing last year) could be the contenders for the Premier squad halfback’s role.
+++++
A DOUBLE CENTURY OF TRIES FOR AYESHA
Provided she plays, even a couple of games as that’s all that may be required, for the Oriental-Rongotai women’s team then Ayesha Leti-L’iga is set to reach the milestone of 200 career tries in Women’s club rugby this season. This is a remarkable achievement and one we doubt has happened before? Not in Wellington club rugby anyway. Between her Poua commitments at the start of the year and then the Black Ferns, they need to accommodate this possibility for her! By our reckoning she enters 2025 having scored 194 tries in 81 matches for Ories.
Ayesha Leti-L’iga playing in last year’s final against Petone.
YOUNG GUNS RISING
Again, an updated entry from this same article last year! Always much anticipation at the start of the year for which school leavers will quickly rise through to the club rugby ranks. Not many players rising to higher honours in NZ age grade teams at present, but there is currently a core group of guys not far off the pace who will get their opportunities in senior rugby this year. Of course, many will start their careers off in the Colts teams, but some will be ushered into Premier rugby in 2025. Our annual school leavers to watch article nearer the start of the season will showcase many of these players. A new WRFU Academy/High Performance manager this year too, with Rick Whatarau having moved to Canterbury to become the Game Development Lead for CRFU.
+++++
SEVENS RUGBY
Sevens needs an injection in this part of the country. St Mary’s College aside, Wellington sides underachieved at Condor 7s this year. It is our opinion that there needs to be at least one more school sevens tournament after the Labour Day Naenae College local Condors. Schools, including Super 8 schools, need to prioritise the Hurricanes Schools tournament over others. It is the same with senior sevens; at least one more tournament in Wellington after the club tournaments should be looked at. Admirable that Manawatu has revived the Central 7s, but more unions should be taking part and prioritising this. It is understood that the National 7s is returning so hopefully this will happen.
+++++
THREE DECADES OF U85KG COMPETITIONS
The U85kg competitions turn 30 this season, and while the number of teams might be down considerably since the grade’s heyday in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the grade’s competitiveness is right up there in Wellington club rugby. There have been six different winners of the first round JC Bowl in as many years, these being: Avalon (2019), Upper Hutt Rams (2020), Eastbourne (2021), Johnsonville (2022), OBU Scallywags (2023) and Tawa Titans (2024). The Championship Paul Potiki Shield final last year saw OBU beating Tawa 31-27 to go back-to-back. Which club will come through in 2025 to challenge OBU and Tawa, and will we have a seventh straight different first round winner?
Part 1 was published here last week, as below:
We need more coverage of the local rugby