Otago Rugby Union eNewsletter

Editorial

We're getting to the business end of senior rugby with Semi Finals taking place in Metro, Southern and Central this weekend!!! Make sure you get along to support your team. You can check out the Club Rugby draw & all results by clicking HERE.

Congratulations to both Christian Lio-Willie and Fabian Holland, we were so incredibly proud to be able to witness their All Blacks debuts last weekend at Forsyth Barr Stadium!!! Both lads have been selected again this weekend and we wish them the best of luck. Unfortunately Maia Joseph was unavailable for Black Ferns selection this weekend, we wish her a speedy recovery from her injury.

In All Blacks U20's news, Dylan Pledger helped guide the lads into the Semi Finals with 2 tries in a 69-22 win against Ireland! The future sure looks bright.

It's Pre Season for both our FPC and NPC teams!! Keep an eye on our socials early next week for squad announcements. Then convince the boss to let you off early next Friday to come watch the Otago v Southland pre-season game. More details below.

Representative Rugby is just around the corner and we have open training sessions coming up for any boys or girls who would like to put their name forward for the 2025 Otago Metro or Country representative teams. Scroll down for more info.

2025 Season Memberships are on sale now. With 5 NPC Home games (including 2 Double Headers with Otago Spirit) get in behind Otago and secure your membership HERE

The 2025 NPC & FPC Draws are out! Scroll down to check out our Home Games, or check out the full Draws here… FULL NPC DRAW, FULL FPC DRAW.

Scroll down for more rugby news and announcements like development opportunities, weekly happenings, rugby courses and more…

ODT Interesting Reads!

Next week we will be starting school visits over in Central Otago in preparation for our Girls ONLY Tackle clinics - Queenstown starting Monday 11th of August.

We are offering two options, Contact Ready (new to rugby) or Mini Festival (players with 2+ years of tackle experience).

Keep an eye out in your school newsletters, Otago Rugby could be coming to your school to deliver fun, exciting, sessions purely focusing on how to tackle, how to be tackled and how to fall safely - to help build girls confidence as they start to transition from non-contact to contact versions of our game!

Last week, young wāhine from across the region came together to sharpen their skills and grow their game.

The Wāhine Development Camp 2025 brought together players from across the Otago region, with support from Matatū Head Coach Whitney Hansen, team psychologist Jess Hansen, and Otago Spirit’s Head Coach Matt Direen. All backing the next generation of wāhine rugby talent.

A huge thank you to Taieri College for hosting this epic day, and to everyone involved making it a big success. The future of women’s rugby is bright!

In 2015 Otago Polytechnic, with the Otago Rugby Football Union, established the ORFU Scholarship to assist students with both sporting and academic aspirations

Two Scholarships are on offer for players wishing to study at the Otago Polytechnic in 2026. One male and one female will be chosen.

Applications for the 2026 Otago Rugby/Otago Polytechnic scholarship applications are now open!

The following conditions apply:

Two FULL fees scholarships for one year of full-time study will be awarded at the discretion of the Otago Rugby Football Union for study starting in the year 2026*.
This scholarship applies to Domestic students only.
Candidates for the scholarship must be nominated by the Otago Rugby Football Union.
Candidates must meet minimum entry requirements for their programme of choice.
The scholarship may be held concurrently with other awards/grants, subject to approval of Otago Polytechnic
Otago Polytechnic and the Otago Rugby Football Union has the power to terminate the scholarship if the recipient ceases to follow regulations of the programme of study and/or bring the reputation of the Otago Polytechnic or the Otago Rugby Football Union into disrepute.

APPLY HERE

* Please note...receiving a scholarship does not ensure inclusion into the Otago Women’s and Men’s Academy programmes for 2026.