Mike Peter Delany (born 15 June 1982) is a retired 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 last played 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 ...

and in the

Mitre 10 Cup The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in t ...

. Delany plays at

fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

but can also cover fullback. Prior to playing for the , he played for the in

. Delany was chosen as one of 4 new caps to the New Zealand team for their End of Year of tour of 2009, playing one match on the tour. In 2011 he signed for the Panasonic Wild Knights. In 2012, due to injuries to both starting and back up five-eighths

Colin Slade Colin Richard Slade (born 10 October 1987) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He played primarily at first five-eighth, as well as all other backline positions on occasions. He was first selected for the All Blacks in 200 ...

and

Lima Sopoaga Lima Sopoaga (born 3 February 1991) is a professional rugby union player who plays for Lyon in the Top 14 competition. His regular playing positions are Fly-Half and Centre. Early life Sopoaga was born in Wellington, New Zealand. His family co ...

for the Highlanders, Delany signed with his former team to fill the position until they returned. Whilst still under contract with the

Panasonic Wild Knights Saitama Wild Knights (formerly Panasonic Wild Knights) is a Japanese rugby union team formerly based in Ōta city, Gunma prefecture which plays in the Top League. Inspired by Tony Brown at fly half (though he was not captain), it dominated the l ...

, he played on loan at

Clermont Auvergne Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne () is a French rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the French league system. Clermont are two times French ...

, but signed a two-year deal with the French club in April 2013. On 19 February 2015, Delany travelled to England to join

Newcastle Falcons Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union. The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Cl ...

in the

Aviva Premiership 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 ...

on a three-year deal. In 2017, Delany returned to New Zealand to play for Bay of Plenty. Following a great performance during the

2017 Mitre 10 Cup The 2017 Mitre 10 Cup season was the twelfth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on August 17, when North Harbour hosted Otago. It involved the top fourteen ...

, he signed with the Crusaders for 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 ...

. He made 5 appearances for the Crusaders en route to the club winning their ninth title. This was Delany's first title at the professional level. He retired at the conclusion of 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 ...

References

External links

Newcastle Falcons Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delany, Mike 1982 births Bay of Plenty rugby union players Saitama Wild Knights players Highlanders (rugby union) players Chiefs (rugby union) players ASM Clermont Auvergne players Living people New Zealand international rugby union players New Zealand rugby union players Rugby union players from Rotorua New Zealand expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Expatriate rugby union players in France New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Japan New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in France Rugby union fly-halves People educated at Rotorua Boys' High School