Andrew Ellis (born 21 February 1984) is a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who plays the position of scrum-half for

Rugby New York Rugby New York, formerly known as Rugby United New York and now officially nicknamed the Ironworkers, are a professional rugby union team based in New York City that is a member of Major League Rugby (MLR). The team played an exhibition season in ...

Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...

(MLR). He previously played for the

Kobelco Steelers The Kobelco Kobe Steelers are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kobe Steel, and based in Kobe. They were the first ever Top League champions when the League started in the 2003-2004 season. The team rebranded as Kobelco Kobe Steelers ahead of ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, the

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

and

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

in provincial rugby.

Career

In 2005 Ellis played in the New Zealand under-21 side. His Super 14 rookie year saw him oust All Black

Kevin Senio Kevin Senio (born July 6, 1978) is a former New Zealand rugby union professional who most recently played professionally for ASM Clermont Auvergne. He is currently the head coach of Ponsonby Rugby club, based in Auckland, New Zealand. Senio is ...

from the

starting line-up. Ellis missed the 2006 Super 14 Final after sustaining a knee injury in the semi-final against the Bulls. Although injury meant Ellis was unavailable for the 2006

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

tests against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, he was later named to make his All Black debut against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

at Twickenham. For the

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 2 ...

Ellis was selected ahead of Wellington halfback

Piri Weepu Piri Awahou Tihou Weepu (born 7 September 1983) is a retired New Zealand rugby union player. Weepu played most recently for Wairarapa Bush in the Heartland Championship. Generally Weepu played as a half-back but also played at first five-eight ...

. After the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

Ellis wasn't selected for the All Blacks Squad again until 2015 against Samoa in Apia, as

Tawera Kerr-Barlow Tawera Narada James Kerr-Barlow (born 15 August 1990) is an Australian-born New Zealand rugby union rugby player . His regular playing position is scrum-half. He plays for La Rochelle in the Top 14. Kerr-Barlow represented New Zealand under 20 ...

was out for the

2015 Super Rugby season The 2015 Super Rugby season was the 20th season of Super Rugby and the fifth season featuring an expanded 15-team format. For sponsorship reasons, this competition was known as Asteron Life Super Rugby in Australia, Investec Super Rugby in New ...

and both Aaron Smith and TJ Perenara had played in the 2015 Super Rugby Final.

Personal life

Ellis attended

Burnside High School Burnside High School ( mi, Te Kura o Waimairi-iri) is a state co-educational secondary school located in the suburb of Burnside in Christchurch, New Zealand. With a roll of students, it is the largest school in New Zealand outside Auckland, and ...

from 1997 to 2001. He is the eldest of three children to Sue and Greg Ellis. He has two siblings: Amanda and Simon. Ellis married his wife, Emma Bainbridge, in 2007, after a seven-year relationship. In December 2009 they had a daughter, Scarlett. In 2018 Ellis helped launch Gravity satellite internet for rural New Zealanders with no traditional access to broadband.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Andrew 1984 births Living people New Zealand international rugby union players New Zealand rugby union players Rugby union scrum-halves Canterbury rugby union players Crusaders (rugby union) players Rugby union players from Christchurch People educated at Burnside High School New Zealand expatriate rugby union players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Japan Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Kobelco Kobe Steelers players Barbarian F.C. players Rugby New York players