Niue Rugby Football Union is the governing body for
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 ...
in
Niue
Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...
. It was founded in 1952,
[ and became affiliated to the ]World Rugby
World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...
(formerly the IRB) in 1999.
The Niue Rugby Football Union is a member of the Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions
Oceania Rugby, previously known as the Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions (FORU), is the regional governing body for rugby union in Oceania. It was founded in 2000 to represent the interests of Oceania rugby within World Rugby, the international go ...
(FORU),[ and was also a member of the former ]Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance
The Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance (PIRA) was set up in 2002 as a basis of co-operation between the Fiji, Samoa and Tonga Rugby Unions. Niue and the Cook Islands also became members of the Alliance and supplied players to the Pacific Islanders
...
and was eligible to supply players to the Pacific Islanders team.
Rugby union in Niue
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 ...
is the most popular sport in Niue
Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...
. It is a tier-three rugby union playing nation.
National team
The Niue national rugby union team
The Niue Island national rugby union team is the national team of the third tier rugby union playing nation of Niue Island. The team first started playing in 1983 in mainly competes in the Oceania Cup, which it won in 2008. Rugby union in Niue I ...
first started playing in 1983. They have yet to qualify for the Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...
.
Niue won the current FORU Oceania Cup
The Oceania Rugby Men's Championship (formerly known as the Oceania Cup) is an international rugby union competition for countries and territories from Oceania with national teams in the developmental band. It is administered by Oceania Rugby.
T ...
in 2008, defeating New Caledonia 27–5 in the final on 1 September 2008.
History
Teams from Niue have competed in the Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...
.
When Niue competed in the 2001 Wellington 7s, they took a completely local-based squad, and though they scored tries 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 ...
and Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, they were crushed in most games. Infamously, they surprised everyone by beating Japan 31–19 in 2002.
The New Zealand player Frank Bunce is the great nephew of Sir Robert Rex, the former Premier of Niue
Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...
.
See also
*Niue national rugby union team
The Niue Island national rugby union team is the national team of the third tier rugby union playing nation of Niue Island. The team first started playing in 1983 in mainly competes in the Oceania Cup, which it won in 2008. Rugby union in Niue I ...
* Niue national rugby sevens team
* Niue Island Sports Association
References
External links
IRB Niue page
Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions, Niue page
Oceania Nations, Niue
Rugby union in Niue
Organisations based in Niue
1952 establishments in Niue
Rugby union governing bodies in Oceania
Sports organizations established in 1952
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