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 ...

is a popular sport in

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, a ...

History

Like many other Pacific nations, Tokelauan rugby is a popular, but often not formally organised sport. Tokelauans due to their small numbers, and scattered island population, have often preferred rugby sevens to the XV game, although Tokelau did play rugby 15s at the 1983 South Pacific Games, including a creditable 15–28 loss to , a much larger Pacific nation. Rugby sevens has been a sport in the

South Pacific Games The Pacific Games (French: Jeux du Pacifique), is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from Oceania. The inaugural Games took place in 1963 in Suva, Fiji, and most recently in 2019 in Apia, Samoa. The Games were ...

since the late 1990s. There is also a semi-formal league structure. Tokelau's main problems are related to population and geographical factors - its population is a mere 1,416, and lives on three widely separated tropical coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean. All of this makes a rugby infrastructure difficult to construct, and the islands are beset by rising sea levels. The geographic future of Tokelau depends on the height of the ocean. No significant land is more than two metres above

high water Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables can ...

of ordinary tides. This means Tokelau is particularly vulnerable to any possible

sea level rise Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...

s caused by

global warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. There is also a lack of land for specifically designated rugby pitches. Tokelau's close relationship with

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 ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, however, ensures that rugby union gets a lot of media coverage in Tokelau. Tokelau took part in a rugby sevens tournament in the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

in June 2009.

Rugby league comparison

As is the case with most Pacific Islands,

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

has had a presence in Tokelau since the late 1980s.Rugby League Planet
retrieved 8 July 2009 However, like some other national rugby league teams, the national side has relied on Australian based players with Tokelauan heritage to bolster its strength.

References

External links

Tokelau Sevens team

Tokelau Community 7s

Federation of Oceania Rugby Unions
{{Oceania in topic, Rugby union in

History

Rugby league comparison

See also

References

External links