Ben Austin Blair (born 26 March 1979 in
Westport, New Zealand
Westport ( mi, Kawatiri) is a town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. Established in 1861, it is the oldest European settlement on the West Coast. Originally named Buller, it is on the right bank and at the mouth of th ...
) is a former
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 it ...
footballer. He played four tests for
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. He scored 37 points on his All Blacks debut against Ireland A in 2001 at
Ravenhill in
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...
; however, as this was not a test match he was not capped. His first test match appearance came in November that year against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
.
Blair made his Canterbury debut in 1999 and his
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 ...
debut in 2001. He won the
Super 12 with 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 ...
in 2002, as well as the
NPC and 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 ...
with
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a 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.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...
. He also scored an
NPC First Division record of 37 points for
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a 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.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...
, against
Counties Manukau in only his fourth
NPC game.
In 2006, he moved to the
Highlanders, before moving to the
Cardiff Blues, with whom he played between 2007 and 2012. During his time in Cardiff he scored 1078 points, making him the all-time top points scorer for the team. He scored two tries for
Cardiff Blues, in the
EDF Energy Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
final against
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
at
Twickenham
Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...
in April 2009.
In 2012, Blair joined French club
SU Agen Lot-et-Garonne of the
Top 14
The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...
; however, he was forced to retire due to a knee injury without playing a single game for the side.
References
External links
sporting-heroes.net profilecardiffblues.com profile*
Foreign Contingent – French Top 14
1979 births
Living people
Canterbury rugby union players
Cardiff Rugby players
Crusaders (rugby union) players
Expatriate rugby union players in Wales
Highlanders (rugby union) players
New Zealand expatriate rugby union players
New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in France
New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Wales
New Zealand international rugby union players
New Zealand rugby union players
Rugby union fullbacks
Rugby union players from Westport, New Zealand
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