Bringing a game to the regions has been a focus for Canterbury Rugby as we look to reconnect with our community, and having this opportunity to do so along with the Southbridge Shield is a match made in heaven.
Canterbury Rugby has never played a Bunnings NPC match in Rangiora, and to do so at the Showgrounds provides us with an opportunity to return to a place that means a lot to the people in North Canterbury, and return rugby to one of our more historic grounds.
The day will be an big celebration of rugby, topped off by the Southbridge Shield being contested for by North Canterbury and Ellesmere 100 years on from it’s introduction.
Canterbury Chief Executive Officer Tony Smail can’t wait for the chance to take our Round 5 match with Taranaki north of the Waimakariri.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for Canterbury’s NPC side to be a part of a very special day,” said Smail.
“NPC and FPC really are an extension of the community game, so to be able to play this game in the community is exactly what Canterbury Rugby is all about.”
North Canterbury Rugby President Terry O’Loughlin agreed. “To have the opportunity to have this level of rugby in our community is really something special. Many of the guys playing for North Canterbury or Ellesmere on that day aspire to one day play for Canterbury, so to have them play on the same field as them, to be able to rub shoulders with professional rugby players will be pretty special.”
Six games of rugby will be played across the day, starting with the under 16’s at 9:30am, while the North Canterbury Seniors will look to defend the Southbridge Shield on the main oval at 12 o’clock, before Canterbury’s NPC kick off at 2:05pm.
Canterbury’s Captains training run will also be held at the Showgrounds on the Friday, “This will not only be a great day for rugby, but all of Rangiora and the wider Waimakariri district,” said Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon.
“I want to acknowledge the work of Canterbury Rugby and the Northern A&P Association for making this event happen. Not only will it be a great event for the people of the Waimakariri District and our visitors from out of town but with the NPC match also live on SKY Sport and broadcast around New Zealand, it’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase the excellent facilities we have right here in Waimakariri.”
Tony Smail also made special mention of the Northern A&P committee’s commitment to helping make the celebration come to fruition. “There hasn’t been rugby played at the show grounds since 2010, so there’s plenty of work to do, but there’s certainly plenty of rugby history and stories of club and rep games played there in the past, so to have the committee’s willingness to have the day there is really positive.”
Melanie Morris, Committee President said, “The Northern A&P committee is excited to have rugby back at the Showgrounds for what is sure to be a brilliant day of the sport and our community.”
Community Welcome
Canterbury name side for clash with Taranaki at the showgrounds
Marty Bourke has tinkered with Canterbury’s engine room for Saturdays Bunnings Warehouse NPC clash against Taranaki in Rangiora, with North Canterbury’s Luke Romano back in the second row alongside Ellesmere junior Sam Darry, who made a successful return from a broken arm last week. The duo will be backed up with the physical presence of Zac Gallagher who’s on the bench for his first run in NPC in 2023.
North Canterbury locals Joe Moody and Ben Funnell will wear one and two with Seb Calder set to start at Tighthead Prop. Canterbury’s loose forward trio of Harmon, Christie and Grace get another shot to further their combinations.
Alex Harford has been handed a start in the number 10 jersey for the first time this year, with Fergus Burke mssing this weekend’s match.
Ellesmere’s Ngane Punivai gets another crack on the left wing with newly minted All Black Dallas McLeod shifting to the wing and former All Black Ryan Crotty moving into the midfield. Mitchell Drummond will again start at halfback with England international Willi Heinz set to finish the match off the bench.
“We’re really looking forward to taking our team out to Rangiora, representing the whole of Canterbury is about who we are, so to be able to do that on what will be a very special day for two of our Sub-Unions is a pretty cool” said Coach Marty Bourke.
“Our jersey this year represents the 48 clubs that make up Canterbury and the training kit we wear every day during the week are the colours of North Canterbury and Ellesmere, which showcases the important places our communities play in making Canterbury successful.”
“Many of our team come from the wider parts of Canterbury, there is a pathway for kids in the country to chase their dreams and become an All Black or a super rugby player and it’s through the likes of our respective sub unions. This week we have really celebrated our communities so to top it off by going to Rangiora and doing what we love in front of those who we do it for is pretty special”.
Canterbury’s bench is set to pack some punch, with Oli Jager lining up for his 51st cap for Canterbury, with Daniel Lienert-Brown and George Bell adding their weight to the pack. Reed Prinsep makes his long-awaited return to the paddock, while speedsters Jone Rova and Solomon Alaimalo will cover the backs.
Bourke also said there was plenty of banter in the coaching group this week with Alex Robertson having previously coached Ellesmere in 2017 and 2018, and Matt Todd playing his junior rugby in North Canterbury, highlighting the pathways within Canterbury rugby.
Canterbury name strong side for home semifinal against Hawkes Bay
Canterbury welcome back a number of players this weekend, as they look to start another home finals run in the Farah Palmer Cup, presented by Bunnings Warehouse.
The forwards remain unchanged from the come-from-behind win against Auckland, highlighted by young loose forward Lucy Jenkins bringing up her 50th game for the province.
“Lucy is a real competitor.” said FPC Head Coach Jimmy Sinclair, “Watching her journey through the ranks of Canterbury Rugby, debuting as a 16-year-old in 2017, to now being a Black Fern has been really special.”
“Lucy’s preparation pregame enables her to be one of the most consistent performers in the environment and we can’t wait to honour her on her special milestone this weekend.”
In the backs, Rosie Kelly, Grace Steinmetz and Grace Brooker all return after missing the trip to Auckland, while Hayley Hutana moves into the #15 jersey.
Chelsea Bremner also returns to action via the bench, recovering from a broken finger.
“We’re now at the pointy end of the season, and we’ve got to prepare for each week like it’s our last.” said Sinclair.
“Hawke’s Bay will look to take it to us on Sunday, they have a real strong power game and we’ll be prepared for this. We know they’ll be a different team to win we last played them in Hastings and we know they’ll be fired up for a chance to knock us out and make the final.”
Kick off in the Semi-Final is 1:05pm, Sunday the 3rd of September at Rugby Park, with entry just $10, with U16’s free.
Grassroots Rugby grows great players
More often than not the love for rugby grows from the grassroots, and that’s no different for two Canterbury women, Grace Brooker and Alana Bremner.
Both playing for country teams and debuting for Canterbury in 2018, Bremner was part of the Black Ferns 2021 winning World Cup squad. Brooker debuted for the Black Ferns in 2019, but due to a serious knee injury was unavailable for World Cup selection.
Bremner speaks fondly of her years playing for Banks Peninsula in the Ellesmere Rugby Sub-Union, saying the community is what makes country rugby special, “It’s a club that’s done heaps for me, that’s where I grew my love for the game.”
The only girl in her club team for some time, Bremner credits her teammates for not treating her any differently “a lot of that rugby has shaped me into the player I am today, so really grateful I was able to play in that club competition for so many years.”
Brooker played for Oxford in North Canterbury along with her representative playing brother, Danny, who Brooker names as the person she most admires as well as her biggest influence.
Bremner and Brooker, alongside West Melton juniors Lucy Jenkins and Hannah King, are a part of the Canterbury squad that is set to take on Hawke's Bay at home this Sunday in the Semi Finals of the Farah Palmer Cup, with kick off at 1:05pm at Rugby Park, as the women’s side look to defend their Premiership title.
Written by Hannah Yates
Senior Representative Draw - 1-2 September
Southbridge Shield Teamlists
Southbridge Shield Match Preview
100 years on from its inception, the Southbridge Shield will go on the line between North Canterbury and Ellesmere.
Back at the Rangiora Showgrounds for the first time in 17 years, it presents an intriguing challenge for Ellesmere who will be desperate to win the shield back after losing it at Lincoln last year 13-0.
The match also doubles as the final of the Tane Norton Trophy, with both sides beating Waitaha and the Cantabrians to set up the decider in an extremely poignant year for the representative trophy following the recent passing of the Canterbury Rugby Life Member.
“To have the opportunity to take on Ellesmere back at the showgrounds is unbelievably special. The showgrounds were the home of North Canterbury rugby for so long, so we’re fizzing for the occasion,” North Canterbury Senior Coach said Coach Matt Keane.
Kick off in the Southbridge Shield is set for 12:05pm on the Oval, with Ellesmere referee Sam O’Reilly in charge, with the support of AR’s Gavin Cate and Justin Currie, with George Welch and Richard Blackmore as sub-controllers.
The History of the Southbridge Shield
The 100th year of the Southbridge Shield will be played this weekend between North Canterbury and Ellesmere at the Rangiora Showgrounds on Saturday.
Gavin Eastwick, previously the President of the Ellesmere Rugby Sub-Union, has never missed a Southbridge Shield game in nearly fifty years. Eastwick believes it is the equivalent of a test match between the sub-unions, “it’s the be all and end all of the rugby season.”
Eastwick recalls during the 1990’s, “The games were reasonably competitive cause there were no big blow out scores” and “they were all pretty well contested.”
Former Canterbury and Crusaders coach Robbie Deans still keeps an eye on the progress of rugby from his hometown whilst he lives in Japan. “The history [of the shield] is huge” says Deans, who once came out of retirement to play one more Shield game, “I didn’t want to retire with the shield in Ellesmere. We got it back!” Deans recalled with a chuckle.
Despite North Canterbury having a strong winning streak during the 1980’s and 1990’s, the total wins are almost even, with Ellesmere only falling behind by single digits.
Graeme Bennie, the NC development side’s masseur, who played a handful of Southbridge Shield matches in the 1960’s, concurs with Eastwick about the competitiveness and severity of the shield matches to each team. “The boys will be drilled hard by their coaches this week” says Bennie, “the Southbridge Shield is always a big battle.”
The game will kick off at 12:05pm, with the Tane Norton Trophy also on the line.
Saturdays 100th anniversary match will be the first time a Southbridge Shield game has played as an NPC curtain raiser, with Canterbury taking on Taranaki at 2:05pm.
A luncheon will be held Friday 1st September at Rangiora RSA by NCRSU to honour the anniversary of the shield. Tickets can be purchased through NCRU website.
Shield History
In 1922, President of the Ellesmere Sub-Union and owner of Southbridge Hotel, Pat Delargey, donated the shield to be played for between clubs affiliated with CRFU. Originally named the Delargey shield and to be played for across six sub unions, it was agreed to be renamed the Southbridge Shield in 1932.
Ellesmere were the first to hold the silverware in 1922, with Ashburton, Peninsula, Hurunui and Malvern each holding it before North Canterbury won it for the first time in 1939. The shield was placed on hold, in North Canterbury’s possession, during World War II and resumed in 1946 when Hurunui took it home.
Besides the war years, only two more occasions appeared to cause a disrupt. 1931 has no recorded winner, with the likely cause being the Great Depression. The shield was also put on hold, in Ellesmere’s possession, for 2020 and 2021 due to COVID.
Written by Hannah Yates
Southbridge Shield tales
The Southbridge Shield is a special taonga for Canterbury Country Rugby, and entering into it’s 100th year, it is as important now as it has ever been.
Throughout the years it has been put on the line, a number of players have gone to battle for the Shield, putting their club allegiances behind them to join together as a sub-union and look to take bragging rights for the year, something that will live long in the memory as this story will tell.
We talked to four former players around the memories they hold in playing for the Southbridge Shield, which one hangs in the memory the longest, and what the Southbridge Shield means to them.
What year’s have you been involved in the Southbridge Shield?
Mark Maitland (MM) – Ellesmere: I played from 2009 till 2017.
Graeme Bennie (GB) – North Canterbury: I came to Rangiora in 1965 and I actually made the North Canterbury side the next year in 1966, so I played in the Southbridge Shield for four years until 1969. I then coached in the 1980’s for five years and then until recently, was the team masseur for North Canterbury.
Scott McIlroy (SM) – Ellesmere: My first Southbridge Shield game was Ellesmere’s centenary year in 2005, and that was played at the Rangiora Showgrounds too. I played about 20 games total for Ellesmere, so I would have played in 8 to 9 Southbridge Shield games.
Matt Newton (MN) – North Canterbury: I got called into the team in 2000 just for the Southbridge Shield game. How long did I play? That's the master question about how long I went for, probably too long if you ask my wife, but 2012 keeps ringing a bell to me. I then spent another couple of years coaching too, so got to see it in another form too.
What is your best Southbridge Shield memory?
MM: My last game when we went back up to Ashley and won it back off them was pretty special. I had to re-win it twice and probably winning it when you've lost it is probably the best, yeah.
SM: We had been on a run of wins, six in a row, and then North Canterbury won it at Waihora with a penalty on fulltime to stop us getting to seven. To go north and win it back was a big highlight.
GB: It was always a combative meeting the Southbridge Shield, and as time went on, you got to know the Ellesmere guys you were playing. In those days, we didn’t have a combined competition, so this was a chance to get to know the guys you were playing, particularly the ones who would go on to play Canterbury Country with you.
MN: Well, there's winning, it always makes it a lot easier or nicer to remember. I was probably lucky or unlucky enough that when I first made the North Canterbury side, we were on the end of like a really strong period and then it sort of did a bit of a swing when Ellesmere had a lot of young up and coming guys that went on and played a lot of high level rugby like Billy Fulton, Joe Maddox, Sam Broomhall.
It was special that I got on to play with, you know, some legends in North Canterbury, guys like Andrew Dunbar and particularly people like Karl Perkins. That guy was driving probably something ridiculous like 200k round trips to just to get to trainings and games from the back blocks of Kaikoura.
What’s your best Southbridge Shield Story?
MM: We played in Leeston, which they call Bulldog Oval, and our first five went down in the warm up. I ended up playing first five and we had a kick from about 45 metres out and there was no way I was going to kick it! It was a pretty crucial kick in the game and old Scott McIlroy has come up and said I'll slot it, and he did!
SM: We won a penalty around the 10 metre line, and they were going to kick it out because we needed three points to win, so the plan was to kick it out and drive it over. But I said I reckon I would be able to get over from here, and I did! The loosehead prop managed to get it over the posts to get the team in front.
MM: It was a real momentum swing for the game, it put us in front and we managed to hold on.
GB: I was a second five eight, and unfortunately for me, Roddy Wards used to play on the wing for Ellesmere. He was a great big fellow and he liked running off the 1st 5/8 or at first receiver from scrums, God knows what not. Unfortunately for me, I was the poor bugger on the end of it, trying to tackle him! You can imagine my relief when we played Canterbury Country on the same team! He was a force to be reckoned with in every country game but was a lovely, quiet, pleasant man off the field.
MN: I certainly remember a Jamie Nutbrown try where I called for him to dummy cut me and then go himself and score. I think if he had given me the ball, I would have run over untouched, but he carried three over the line to win the game, that’s a memory I'll never forget.
One thing I do remember was 2013’s Southbridge Shield. I had not long been out of the team and I got called in to give the fellas a speech, it was actually at the Kaikanui Tavern. And I felt that was really difficult, not long removed as a player for North Canterbury, still playing club rugby against some of these guys and to try and find the words.
What I sort of linked it back to was who they are representing, you know, they go back to the club and they have the same sort of people that are really interested in what they're up to, family and that sort of thing. So, you know, I just sort of spoke about reminding them who they're representing. And, you know, they're the why.
The job I work, I do some weekends, so maybe that was the reason why I didn't make the actual game, I can't quite remember, but Sean Thompson was playing that game and kicked quite a few points as they went on to win for the first time in a while. I happened to be at the Kaik when they came back. It was pretty cool to hear the stories and see how proud they were of getting it done and realizing that, you know, they were representing not just themselves and their families, but you know, the region and their clubs.
What does the Southbridge Shield mean to you?
Graeme Benny – North Canterbury: Oh look, apart from club rugby, which you know I'm still heavily involved with Saracens, the Southbridge Shield is, it's our Ranfurly Shield, no doubt about that and all my time that I've been associated with North Canterbury, it's never been a problem to get the team up for the Southbridge Shield challenge.
Scott McIlroy - Ellesmere: It’s what we strive for. When I first started playing, you worked so hard to play in that game for the Ellesmere Seniors, it’s the biggest game of the year. You're representing the whole area, all of our clubs, and people.
Matt Newton – North Canterbury: It's just a symbol of club rugby and regional supremacy, it’s where the stronghold of club teams are at that at that one time, I feel.
Mark Maitland - Ellesmere: For me, it's a lot of things. I love the history of it but a big, big part of it when I was playing was about building on that history.
It allows you to play with other players within the region, you sort of get to play with the best of the best. It was a great pathway game... it definitely was a good opportunity to play and be recognized. It's so unique, it's pretty special.
Written by Josh Bamber
MainPower partners with Canterbury Rugby ahead of Rangiora match
Local lines company MainPower has partnered with Canterbury Rugby to support this Saturday’s Bunnings Warehouse NPC clash against Taranaki in Rangiora.
“When Canterbury Rugby announced that they were bringing their match to North Canterbury, it made complete sense to partner with them as the matchday partner,” said MainPower Chief Executive, Andy Lester.
“Canterbury Rugby’s community focus aligns nicely with ours at MainPower. We’re really looking forward to being part of this local event and supporting the development of rugby in North Canterbury.”
This weekend’s clash will add to an already festival style day where Canterbury Rugby’s Sub Unions North Canterbury and Ellesmere square off in their annual contest, with MainPower also a supporter of the North Canterbury Rugby Sub-Union.
“It’s already set to be a really special day of rugby, so to have MainPower partner with us to support the festivities will be extra special,” said Canterbury Rugby CEO Tony Smail.
“There’s been a fair amount of effort go into setting the day up,” said Smail, “but it just goes to show how connected our rugby community is and how they’re all willing and able to work together.”
The 2nd of September match against Taranaki will showcase the first time that a Bunnings NPC match has been played at Rangiora, and by being presented to the North Canterbury community by a local company such as MainPower, it maintains the strong synergy that this event is bringing to rugby in North Canterbury.
Retallick cousins relishing coaching role together
Cousins Brook and Andrew Retallick have taken on new roles as Assistant Coaches to the North Canterbury Development squad, the Stags.
The cousins were approached by the North Canterbury Rugby Sub-Union earlier this year to assist Troy Manaena in coaching the development squad.
Beginning at Amberley RFC as a child, Brook played his school years for Christchurch Boys’ High School, before returning to North Canterbury in 2007 where he has remained, excluding a couple of years, with Glenmark-Cheviot. As well as being a vital part of North Canterbury Rugby, Brook is Chief Fire Officer at Rangiora’s Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Spending almost two decades away from North Canterbury, Andrew Retallick racked up 150 games for Border Rugby Club in Taranaki, a couple of Ranfurly Shield wins, as well as winning the Heartland Championship in 2011 with Whanganui.
Andrew finished playing club rugby seven years ago but turned to coaching his clubs’ seniors and the Taranaki U20s side. A highlight for him this weekend will be watching some of his U20 Taranaki players in the line up against Canterbury in the NPC game at the Rangiora Showgrounds, after the Stags play Ellesmere.
Andrew moved back home to North Canterbury last year for the role of Principal at Woodend Primary, the same school he attended as a child.
Despite Brook and Andrew not having played together before, they’re both very excited to be working alongside each other, “We’re a very close family” says Andrew, and they’ll “feed off each other” when it comes to banter, which he hopes the players enjoy.
The Stags masseur Graeme Bennie sings the cousins praises, saying “you couldn’t get two better guys for the boys to learn from.”
The Retallick name boasts a number of family members playing across a range of representative teams, as well as the All Blacks spanning generations. Perhaps most widely known is Brook’s younger brother Brodie, who is currently in London preparing for his third World Cup.
That is a Family Christmas table any rugby loving kiwi would be eager to sit at.
Written by Hannah Yates
