The 2013 Heartland Championship, the eighth edition of the

Heartland Championship The Heartland Championship competition, known for sponsorship reasons as the Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Championship, is a domestic rugby union competition in New Zealand. It was founded in 2006 as one of two successor competitions to the countr ...

since the 2006 reconstruction, was a rugby union competition involving the twelve amateur rugby unions in New Zealand. The tournament involved a round-robin stage in which the twelve teams played eight games each and then the top four advanced to the Meads Cup semifinals, while fifth to eighth advanced to the

Lochore Cup The Lochore Cup is a New Zealand rugby union trophy named after famed Wairarapa Bush and All Blacks player and coach Brian Lochore. It is contested during the Heartland Championship. It was first awarded in 2006, when the Heartland Championship ...

semifinals. In both of these knockout stages the top seeds (first and fifth) played at home against the lowest seeds (fourth and eighth), the second highest seeds (second and sixth) played at home against the third highest seeds (third and seventh) and the final had the higher seed play at home against the lower seed.

Teams

The 2013 Heartland Championship was contested by the following teams.

Pre-season

Two Heartland Championship teams, and , challenged for the

Ranfurly Shield The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as the Log o' Wood, is a trophy in New Zealand's domestic rugby union competition. First played for in 1904, the Shield is based on a challenge system. The holding union must defend the shield in challeng ...

in two matches that took place in at Whakarua Park,

Ruatoria Ruatoria ( mi, Ruatōria) is a town in the Waiapu Valley of the Gisborne Region in the northeastern corner of New Zealand's North Island. The town was originally known as Cross Roads then Manutahi and was later named Ruatorea in 1913, after the M ...

and Campbell Park,

Morrinsville Morrinsville is a provincial town in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island, with an estimated population of as of The town is located at the northern base of the Pakaroa Range, and on the south-western fringe of the Hauraki Plains ...

Standings

In the case of a two-team tie on points the ranking of teams is decided by: * (1) the winner of the round robin match between the two provinces; then * (2) highest point difference; then * (3) most tries scored; then * (4) a coin toss. In the case of a three-team or more tie on points the ranking of teams is decided by: * (1) the province with the most wins against other tied provinces in the Round Robin; then * (2) if two teams remain tied they shall be ranked according to the criteria listed above, but if ''more'' than two teams remain tied, they shall be ranked according to criteria (2) to (4) only.

References

{{Rugby union in New Zealand Heartland Championship Heartland Heartland

Teams

Pre-season

Standings

See also

References