The Tasman Rugby 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 its m ...

Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay (; officially Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere), originally known in English as Blind Bay, is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along ...

, a bay at the north end of the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

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 ...

. Headquartered in

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

, TRU is New Zealand's newest provincial union, founded in 2006 with the amalgamation of the existing

Marlborough Marlborough may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Marlborough, Wiltshire, England ** Marlborough College, public school * Marlborough School, Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England * The Marlborough Science Academy in Hertfordshire, England Austral ...

and Nelson Bays sub unions. The union's premier team is the Tasman Mako which compete in New Zealand's provincial rugby competition, the

Bunnings NPC Bunnings Group Limited, trading as Bunnings Warehouse or Bunnings, is an Australian household hardware chain. The chain has been owned by Wesfarmers since 1994, and has stores in Australia and New Zealand. Bunnings was founded in Perth, Wester ...

Club rugby

There are 22 clubs in the Tasman Union.

History

When the

New Zealand Rugby Union New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to t ...

(NZRU) reviewed the domestic competitions in 2005, a new 14 team premier division of competition was created, as the Air New Zealand Cup, taking the place of the

National Provincial Championship The National Provincial Championship may refer to: * National Provincial Championship (1976–2005), original competition before reform into 14 sides * National Provincial Championship (2006–present) The National Provincial Championship, o ...

(NPC). The restructured domestic competition opened the door for the Nelson Bays and Marlborough Rugby Unions to form a relationship, forming one organisation in an attempt to be awarded a position in the new competition.

Early years: 2006 to 2010

A Tasman 15 played Canada 'A' on April 26, 2006 at Trafalgar Park. The Tasman side won by 40 points, the final score being 48 points to 8. The Mako were grouped in Pool A of the

2006 Air New Zealand Cup The 2006 Air New Zealand Cup was the inaugural season of the Air New Zealand Cup, contested by teams from New Zealand. The season ran from July to October 2006. At the end of the regular season, the top team from ''Repechage A'' and ''B'' joine ...

. In their first ever match in the

Air New Zealand Cup The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

, the Mako earned a bonus point in a loss to the North Harbour team, losing 33 points to 27. They were defeated by

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

the following week by 40 points. However, the Mako won their first match in round three, defeating Manawatu by 43 points to 0. Their only other win of the season came at home against , with an impressive 56–15 win. Despite the season record of just 2 wins and 7 losses, the Mako showed the ability to compete and provided a platform to build for the future. Ti'i Paulo captained the side. The 2007 season was disappointing for the Mako, finishing the season with a record of 2 wins and 8 losses. Wins came against and , with close losses against and . Early on in the 2008 season, the NZRU announced that Tasman and would be relegated from the competition at the end of the season, due to failing to meet a set of criteria including financial stability. With the axe hovering over them, the Mako produced their best season yet, silencing their critics. In round 2 against , Tasman first five

Miah Nikora Miah Nikora (born 28 April 1985 in Gisborne, New Zealand) is a professional rugby union player and head coach from New Zealand. He currently is head coach of Civil Projects Solutions Poverty Bay senior rugby club. He primarily played at fly-hal ...

nailed a stunning last minute drop goal to snatch a 14–16 victory and claim the Mako first scalp over a major union. This was followed with wins over , , and a draw against to see the Mako finish the season 7th on the ladder. Facing a strong side in the quarter finals, the Mako lost 48–10. However, their strong season coupled with public pressure forced the NZRU to reverse its decision and announce that Tasman and would remain in the competition. There were doubts as to whether Tasman would contest the

2009 Air New Zealand Cup The 2009 Air New Zealand Cup was the 33rd provincial rugby union competition, the fourth since the competition reconstruction in 2006, involving the top 14 provincial unions in New Zealand. It ran for 15 weeks from 30 July to 7 November. It was ...

, with funding issues and disagreement amongst its stakeholders on its future. However, these disputes were resolved and Tasman finished the 2009 season in 9th place with 6 wins and 7 losses, with their most memorable performance coming in round 9 against . Tasman won 12–8 in the most significant result of their short history. The Mako had come from the brink of extinction to topple the biggest union in the country. 2010 was disappointing for the Mako, finishing the season in 12th place on the ladder with just 4 wins, failing to hold on to their mid table status achieved in the previous two seasons. However, the Mako managed to upset eventual champions and neighbours in round 4, with a famous 27–25 victory at Trafalgar Park.

Championship division: 2011 to 2013

In 2011, the ITM Cup was restructured into two competitions, with the top 7 teams competing for the Premiership title and the next 7 teams competing for the Championship title. Each province played the other 6 teams in their own division once, plus 4 interdivisional matches. The Tasman Mako played in the Championship for 2011. Despite taking just 2 wins and finishing in last spot for the season, the Mako were well received by their fans by playing a positive attacking brand of rugby that included 4 losses by 4 points or less. Upset victories were achieved against 21–19 in Napier, and (again) 30–28 in Nelson.

Shane Christie Shane Christie (born 23 September 1985) is a New Zealand rugby union player. Early career Born in the city of Palmerston North on New Zealand's North Island, Christie was raised in the town of Nelson, on the northern tip of South Island before ...

and James Marshall were selected for the

New Zealand sevens The New Zealand national rugby sevens team competes in the World Rugby Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens, Summer Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games. They have won a record twelve World Rugby Sevens Series titles. The team has been o ...

team that year.

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

was a good season for the Mako, recording a win over to start their season the Mako went on to win 5 out of their 10 round robin games and made the semi final where they lost to 41-34. In

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

for the first time in their short history the Mako gained promotion to the Premiership division as they won the Championship playing 12 games in the season and coming away with 10 wins, including a 49-28 win over in the semi final at

Lansdowne Park Lansdowne Park is a urban park, historic sports, exhibition and entertainment facility in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, owned by the City of Ottawa. It is located on Bank Street adjacent to the Rideau Canal in The Glebe neighbourhood of central Otta ...

and the victory which sent them to the Premiership which was a tight 26-25 win over at Trafalgar Park.

Premiership division: 2014 to 2021

Tasman was promoted to the ITM Cup Premiership division for the 2014 season. The Mako had a very good first year in the Premiership in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, making it all the way to the Premiership final where they lost in a close contest 36-32 to at

Yarrow Stadium Yarrow Stadium is situated in the central suburb of Westown in New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand, with main vehicle access off Maratahu Street. Named the third best rugby stadium on earth by ''New Zealand Rugby World'' magazine in May 2009, Ya ...

. The Mako played 12 games in the 2014 season with 8 wins, 3 losses and a 16-16 draw against at

Eden Park Eden Park is New Zealand's largest sports stadium, with a capacity of 50,000. Located in central Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, it is three kilometres southwest of the CBD, on the boundary between the suburbs of Mount Eden and King ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

was again a solid year for the Mako, playing 11 games with 7 wins and 4 losses. The Mako made it to the semi final but lost 44-24 against at

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

were very similar years for the Mako, making the final in both seasons. The 2016 season saw the Mako play 12 games with 8 wins, 3 losses and a 27-27 draw against at

North Harbour Stadium North Harbour Stadium is a stadium situated in Albany, in North Shore City, New Zealand. It was opened in 1997, after nearly a decade of discussion, planning and construction. Rugby union, association football, rugby league, and baseball are a ...

. While the 2017 season saw the Mako play 12 games, winning 7 and losing 5. Both years though saw the Mako go down to in the final, played at

Christchurch Stadium Orangetheory Stadium is a rugby football stadium in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was formerly called AMI Stadium, and before that, the Addington Showgrounds. History The park is part of a complex with Christchurch Arena and Addington Raceway a ...

both years, with the 2016 scoreline being 43-27 and the 2017 scoreline being 35-13. The team also went through a rebrand, changing the logo and team colours ahead of the 2016 season. The logo was later changed back after it received widespread criticism.

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

was again a very good year for the Mako, winning 9 out of 10 of their round robin fixtures - losing only to 36-10 at

. The team made the semi finals but lost 16-21 to in a controversial game at Trafalgar Park. 20 of the Mako squad from the 2018 season would go on to earn

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 ...

contracts for the

2019 Super Rugby season The 2019 Super Rugby season was the 24th season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. The 2019 season was the second season using the ...

. Ahead of the 2018 season, the team changed their name from the Tasman Makos to Tasman Mako, with 'Mako' being the correct plural of the Māori name. After just 14 seasons the Tasman Mako reached the pinnacle of

provincial rugby, winning the

2019 Mitre 10 Cup The 2019 Mitre 10 Cup season was the fourteenth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on August 8, when Southland hosted Northland. It involved the top fourtee ...

and doing it unbeaten. After going through the round robin with 10 wins from 10 games the Mako played at

coming away with a 18-9 win in a game that went right down to the wire. The Mako then had their fourth crack at the Premiership title when they faced at Trafalgar Park and it was fourth time lucky as the Mako came away with the win 31-14. The Mako became just the second team to win back to back premiership titles, winning the

2020 Mitre 10 Cup The 2020 Mitre 10 Cup season was the fifteenth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on September 11, when North Harbour hosted Canterbury. It involved the top ...

. Hit hard by injury and without many players from their 2019 heroics the Mako were not as dominant in 2020 with heavy losses in the regular season to (40-24), (31-10) and (0-29). The Mako finished second on the premiership standings and came up against in the semi final at Trafalgar Park, coming away with the win 19-10. They qualified for their sixth final in eight years, coming up against at

. In what was a thrilling game the Mako came away with the win 12-13. Tasman were unable to defend their premiership title in

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

, it was a great start to the season with wins over (14–27), (16–11) and (29–48) before the side suffered a first loss 22–39 at the hands of . The Mako bounced back thumping 51–14 before having a crack at the Ranfurly Shield against where they were again unsuccessful 34–22. The side then played a non competition match against in miserable conditions, coming away with the win 26–9. A third loss came against 24–20 in Christchurch meaning it was a must win game for the Mako in Round 10 against where they came away with an impressive 34–22 win. were favourites ahead of the semi final in Napier after losing only 1 game in the regular season, Tasman came up big hanging on to win 27–33. Yet another final for the Mako and they had a chance to make it a three peat when they met in the final in Hamilton, the side conceded 2 intercept tries and because of this lost 23–20.

Combined competition: 2022 to present

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

was a season full of disappointment for the Mako with just 4 wins from 10 games, failing to make the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The side was missing many key players with injury and All Blacks duties but still managed to drop many games they should have won. The best performance of the season came over (52-17).

Ranfurly Shield

Tasman has not held 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 ...

but Marlborough held the shield for six challenges in 1973. Tasman have been involved in three

challenges since the union's inception in 2006. Tasman lost their first challenge 26–20 at the hands of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

in 2008, and their second challenge 49–40 to

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

in 2012. Their third challenge was against

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

in 2021, where they were defeated 34–22.

Season standings

The following is a summary of every season for the Tasman Mako since 2006. Position indicates the teams regular season finish. Key:
''Blue bar denotes Championship division''
''Green fill denotes Cup winner''

Bunnings NPC

Records and statistics

All Blacks

Players that have represented Tasman Mako in any fixture since their inception in 2006, and also played for the

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 ...

. *''# Represents the players 'All Black cap number'.''

Centurions

Players that have played 100 or more games for the Tasman Mako since their inception in 2006. *''# Represents the players 'Tasman Mako cap number'.''
Source
New Zealand Rugby History

50 or more

Players that have played 50 or more games for the Tasman Mako since their inception in 2006. *''# Represents the players 'Tasman Mako cap number'.''
Source
New Zealand Rugby History

Top points scorers

Source
New Zealand Rugby History

Top try scorers

Source
New Zealand Rugby History

References

External links

Tasman Mako
official website
Bunnings NPC
official website {{Authority control New Zealand rugby union teams New Zealand rugby union governing bodies Sport in the Marlborough Region Sport in the Nelson Region Sport in the Tasman District Sports organizations established in 2006