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Ngati Porou East Coast Rugby Football Union

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Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby Football Union
NicknameNgāti Porou East Coast
Founded1921
LocationRuatoria
GroundWhakarua Park (Capacity: 3,000)
ChairmanNew Zealand Val Morrison
CoachNew Zealand Hosea Gear
LeagueHeartland Championship
BERJAYA
BERJAYA
BERJAYA
BERJAYA
BERJAYA
BERJAYA
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Team kit
Official website
www.npec.co.nz

The Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby Football Union (NPEC) is a constituent union in the New Zealand Rugby Union located on the East Coast of the North Island. Its provincial team plays in the Heartland Championship and its home ground is Whakarua Park, Ruatoria. It is the smallest Union in New Zealand in the sense of player numbers and population base.

The union was previously called East Coast. Due to the high number of players from the Ngāti Porou iwi, the team became known as Ngāti Porou East Coast and in August 2023 the Union was officially renamed the Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby Football Union on the New Zealand incorporated societies register.

History

[edit]

The East Coast Rugby Football Union was formed in 1922 when they split from the Poverty Bay Rugby Football Union.

East Coast won the 2012 Heartland Championship Meads Cup defeating Wanganui 29–27 at Whakarua Park on 27 October 2012.,[1] In the 2022 Heartland Championship the team won the Lochore Cup beating Mid Canterbury by 25 to 20. They become the 6th team to have won both the Meads Cup and the Lochore Cup.[2]

The team is renowned for losing 54 consecutive games over eight years. However former All Blacks Ma’a Nonu and Hosea Gear were involved in the side when they broke that drought in a 50-26 win over Buller in October 2021.[3][4]

Clubs

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Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby Football Union is made up of 10 clubs:

  • Hicks Bay
  • Hikurangi Sports Club
  • Ruatoria City Sports Club
  • Tawhiti
  • Tokararangi
  • Tokomaru Bay United
  • Tihirau Victory Club (TVC)
  • Uawa Sports
  • Waiapu
  • Waima

Club champions

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Rangiora Keelan Memorial Shield

  • 2022 - Tihirau Victory Club 39 Waiapu 17
  • 2023 - Hicks Bay 13 TVC 7
  • 2024 - Waiapu 19 Ruatoria City 18
  • 2025 - TVC 19 Waiapu 12

National Provincial Championship

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East Coast won the NPC 3rd Division twice. Firstly in 1999 defeating Poverty Bay 18–15 in the final at Ruatoria. Secondly and possibly even more impressively, defeating North Otago the following year in front of their home crowd at Oamaru in a come-from-behind 25–21 victory to record back to back NPC 3rd Division Championships.

1999 NPC 3rd Division champions

[edit]
Round Comp Home team Score Away team Score
Week 1 NPC BERJAYA Buller 18 BERJAYA East Coast 36
Week 2 NPC BERJAYA West Coast 41 BERJAYA East Coast 13
Week 3 NPC BERJAYA Wairarapa Bush 15 BERJAYA East Coast 31
Week 4 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 10 BERJAYA Poverty Bay 15
Week 5 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 30 BERJAYA North Otago 9
Week 6 NPC BERJAYA Horowhenua-Kapiti 20 BERJAYA East Coast 14
Week 7 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 74 BERJAYA Buller 8
Week 8 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 18 BERJAYA South Canterbury 6
Semi Final NPC BERJAYA Horowhenua-Kapiti 20 BERJAYA East Coast 21
Final NPC BERJAYA East Coast 18 BERJAYA Poverty Bay 15
  • Overall Season standing: Champions

2000 NPC 3rd Division champions

[edit]
Round Comp Home team Score Away team Score
Week 1 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 20 BERJAYA South Canterbury 14
Week 2 NPC BERJAYA North Otago 26 BERJAYA East Coast 26
Week 3 NPC BERJAYA Buller 12 BERJAYA East Coast 44
Week 4 NPC BERJAYA South Canterbury 12 BERJAYA East Coast 6
Week 5 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 33 BERJAYA Wairarapa Bush 20
Week 6 NPC BERJAYA Poverty Bay 28 BERJAYA East Coast 30
Week 7 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 33 BERJAYA West Coast 27
Week 8 NPC BERJAYA East Coast 31 BERJAYA Horowhenua-Kapiti 30
Semi Final NPC BERJAYA East Coast 18 BERJAYA Wairarapa Bush 17
Final NPC BERJAYA North Otago 21 BERJAYA East Coast 25
  • Overall Season standing: Champions

Heartland Championship

[edit]

Heartland Championship placings

[edit]
Heartland Championship Results[5][6][7][8]
YearPldWDLPFPAPDBPPtsPlacePlayoffs
QualSemifinalFinal
2006 8107111244−1332611thNo—
2007 8206130210−7031111thNo—
2008 800850306−2560012thNo—
2009 810787337−2500411thNo—
2010 800896384−2881112thNo—
2011 8602189198−93273rdMeads CupWon 23–17 against North OtagoLost 10–30 to Wanganui
2012 8701230177+533311stMeads CupWon 26–15 against North OtagoWon 29–27 against Wanganui
2013 8206173225−5251310thNo—
2014 800867367−3000012thNo—
2015 8008112368−2562212thNo—
2016 8008166458−2923312thNo—
2017 800898353−2550012thNo—
2018 800899447−3482212thNo—
2019 8008153319−1660012thNo—
2021 8305242258−168208thNo—
2022 8404155242−872187thLochore CupWon 37-30 against Horowhenua-KapitiWon 25-20 against Mid Canterbury
2023 8503222183+397274thMeads CupLost 17-34 to South Canterbury—
2024 8404212236-244207thLochore CupLost 31-34 to King Country—
2025 8008112470−3581112thNo—

There was no Heartland Championship in the 2020 season due to Covid-19 restrictions.

2012 Meads Cup winners

[edit]
Round Comp Home team Score Away team Score
Week 1 NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 23 BERJAYA West Coast 16
Week 2 NPC BERJAYA South Canterbury 37 BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 9
Week 3 NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 20 BERJAYA Buller 18
Week 4 NPC BERJAYA Mid Canterbury 13 BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 20
Week 5 NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 25 BERJAYA Wanganui 17
Week 6 NPC BERJAYA Thames Valley 38 BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 53
Week 7 NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 56 BERJAYA King Country 24
Week 8 NPC BERJAYA Poverty Bay 14 BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 24
Semi Final NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 26 BERJAYA North Otago 15
Final NPC BERJAYA Ngāti Porou East Coast 29 BERJAYA Wanganui 27
  • Overall Season standing: Champions

Ranfurly Shield

[edit]

Ngāti Porou East Coast has challenged for the Ranfurly Shield eight times losing heavily on each occasion.

Matches

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1953Wellington BERJAYA42–0BERJAYA East CoastWellington
1968Hawke's Bay BERJAYA31–0BERJAYA East CoastNapier
1981Waikato BERJAYA54–0BERJAYA East CoastHamilton
1987Auckland BERJAYA72–0BERJAYA East CoastAuckland
1997Auckland BERJAYA115–6BERJAYA East CoastRuatoria
2002Canterbury BERJAYA51–6BERJAYA East CoastChristchurch
2013Waikato BERJAYA65–10BERJAYA East CoastRuatoria
2021Hawke's Bay BERJAYA93–5BERJAYA East CoastNapier

All Blacks

[edit]

Six All Blacks have played rugby for East Coast:

Super Rugby

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Ngāti Porou East Coast along with Waikato, Counties Manukau, King Country, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, and Thames Valley make up the Chiefs Super Rugby region. Ngāti Porou East Coast was formerly part of the Hurricanes from 1996 until February 2025 where they announced their change of allegiance to the Chiefs.[9]

References

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  1. ↑ "East Coast comeback overwhelms Whanganui". October 27, 2012. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved 2012-10-29.
  2. ↑ "Bunnings Heartland 2022 | FINAL Highlights | East Coast v Mid Canterbury". allblacks.com. October 23, 2022.
  3. ↑ "Nonu inspires East Coast to drought-breaking win". The New Zealand Herald. October 16, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Stuff". Stuff.
  5. ↑ "Standings (2006–present)". Heartland Championship. Archived from the original on 10 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  6. ↑ "Fixtures and Results (2006–present)". Heartland Championship. Archived from the original on 10 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  7. ↑ "Finalists found in Lochore and Meads Cups". Newshub. 23 October 2010. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "2010 Lochore and Mead Cups finals wrap". Heartland Championship. 31 October 2010. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Flynn, Corey (2025-02-07). "Chiefs Rugby Club welcome Ngāti Porou East Coast Rugby Union as provincial affiliate". Chiefs. Retrieved 2025-02-07.
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