Matthew Phillip Proctor (born 26 October 1992) 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 currently plays as a utility back for the

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...

in the

Premiership Rugby Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

and for the 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 ...

Club career

In October 2012, he was named in the Hurricanes squad for the

2013 Super Rugby season The 2013 Super Rugby season was the third season of the new 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The tournament was won by the Chiefs, who defeated the Canberra-based Brumb ...

. He scored a try on debut against the

Stormers The Stormers (known for sponsorship reasons as the DHL Stormers) is a South African professional rugby union team based in Cape Town in the Western Cape that competes in the United Rugby Championship, a trans-hemispheric competition that also ...

on 27 April 2013, playing on the wing. After the departure of the Hurricanes' long-serving midfield combination,

Ma'a Nonu Ma'a Allan Nonu (; born 21 May 1982) is a professional rugby union player from New Zealand who currently plays for the San Diego Legion in Major League Rugby (MLR). He plays in the inside centre, but can also cover outside centre and wing. H ...

and

Conrad Smith Conrad Gerard Smith (born 12 October 1981) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player, who played predominantly at centre. He captained the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, and played for New Zealand from 2004 until 2015. He was a key mem ...

, Proctor became a regular starter for the club in 2016. At the end of the season, Proctor started for the Hurricanes in the 2016 Super Rugby Final, in which the team won Super Rugby for the first time. Proctor's form continued into the 2017 season, leading to rumours of an All Black call-up. However, Proctor lost his place in the starting lineup in 2017, after struggling with injury, while midfield team-mates,

Vince Aso Vince Aso (born 5 January 1995) is a New Zealand rugby union player who currently plays as a midfield back for Wellington in New Zealand's domestic Mitre 10 Cup and the in the international Super Rugby competition. Early career Born and rai ...

and

Ngani Laumape Koinonia Halafungani Laumape (born 22 April 1993) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer who currently plays as a centre for Kobelco Kobe Steelers. Laumape previously played in Super Rugby for the Hurricanes and was previously a rugby league ...

, were the top two scorers of the competition for the year. Although Proctor missed the Hurricanes' historic fixture against the touring

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...

, in 2017, he did start for the

Māori All Blacks The Māori All Blacks, previously called the New Zealand Maori, New Zealand Maoris and New Zealand Natives, are a rugby union team from New Zealand. They are a representative team of the New Zealand Rugby Union, and a prerequisite for playing i ...

against the Lions, in a 10–32 loss, on 17 June 2017. Having re-gained his place in the Hurricanes' starting XV in the

2018 Super Rugby season The 2018 Super Rugby season was the 23rd season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. After two seasons in which 18 teams participate ...

, Proctor was then named as Wellington's Captain for the

2018 Mitre 10 Cup The 2018 Mitre 10 Cup season was the thirteenth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on August 16, when North Harbour hosted Northland. It involved the top f ...

, succeeding England international flanker, Brad Shields, as the team's leader. On 11 January 2019, Proctor signed a three-year deal with English Premiership side

ahead of the 2019–20 season.

International career

Proctor was a member of the New Zealand Under 20 team which competed in the

2012 IRB Junior World Championship The 2012 IRB Junior World Championship was the fifth annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams. This competition replaced the now defunct Under 19 and Under 21 world championships. The event was organised in South A ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Proctor was named in the New Zealand's 51-man All Blacks squad for the 2018 end-of-year tour, by All Black Head Coach

Steve Hansen Sir Stephen William Hansen and High Chief Of Vaiala, (born 7 May 1959) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player. He is also the father of Black Ferns assistant coach, Whitney Hansen. He was the head coach of the New Zealand nati ...

, in the wider training squad to travel to Japan. In the absence of New Zealand's regular starting lineup, who travelled to Europe earlier than the rest of the team, Proctor was named to start in the 3 November test against Japan. Proctor was one of eight players to make their test debut for New Zealand in the game, including his Hurricanes team-mate Gareth Evans, as well as only two players to start on debut that day, the other being Blues loose forward,

Dalton Papalii Dalton Reece Papalii ("Pa-pa-lee-e") is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays for Counties Manukau in the Mitre 10 Cup and the in the Super Rugby competition. Papalii has played 22 tests for the All Blacks, New Zealand's international tea ...

. Proctor had a fine performance and scored a try on his debut, with New Zealand beating Japan by 69–31.

References

External links

itsrugby.co.uk profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Proctor, Matt Living people 1992 births New Zealand rugby union players Rugby union wings Rugby union fullbacks Wellington rugby union players Hurricanes (rugby union) players Northampton Saints players Rugby union players from Wellington City Māori All Blacks players People educated at St. Patrick's College, Wellington New Zealand international rugby union players Expatriate sportspeople in England