Otago Rugby Union eNewsletter

Editorial

Good Afternoon Otago supporters. It's been a busy week out in the community with Training Sessions, Rippa Rugby, Girls 7s… It's all go, make sure you keep scrolling down to see what we have coming up in the next wee while and to make sure you don't miss out on some awesome rugby opportunities!

The Metropolitan Secondary School Girls 7s was held on Tuesday night at Logan Park. It was a great event and the teams gave their all. It was an awesome opportunity to see the growth and potential in the female secondary school space with some impressive talent being showcased. Check out the results and pics below.

The 2022 Otago Country Day is coming! A piece of rugby history will be on show in the mighty Big River Town, South Otago on Saturday 23rd July. Several hundred players, volunteers and supporters will be part of the annual Otago Country Rugby Day, which this year is will be hosted by the Balclutha Rugby Club. So mark the date in your calendars folks!

With club rugby well and truly underway we hope you've managed to get out on the sidelines to support your teams, if not, check out this weekend's draw here and head on down to cheer them on!

Both the NPC and FPC draws are now available which means you can lock in the dates and make sure your calendars are clear to come support our guys and girls. You can check out our home games and full draw below.

2022 Bunnings NPC Otago Season Memberships are on sale now, click here to lock your membership in!

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

ODT Interesting Reads

We are super excited to be gearing up for the 2022 rugby season and have created a little tool box to help get you started. Check out our links below for all things Community Rugby!

TOOLS FOR YOUR 2022 RUGBY SEASON

Want to see the latest Community Rugby Updates
Or looking for those Forms and Documents
Check out all you need to know for Junior Rugby
What about brushing up on Laws & Education
And to find your nearest club and contacts head to our Club Directory

CLICK HERE

What do you do do for a job?

I work for Strawberry, Queenstown. We install automation, control and AV systems.

How long did you play for and for who?

20 years, retired in mid 20's because of injuries. Prems for Kaik demons, and had a prem season with my junior club Wakatipu in '05 which was great fun. Stints overseas in Scotland and Canada as well.

What made you come to refereeing? The local high school sports coordinator reached out to some of us involved in the junior club because of a shortage of referees locally with the growing player numbers.

What have you enjoyed the most about refereeing? Been great to get back involved in the game and connect with some new and old friends.

What's your greatest refereeing moment to date? It's my debut year so was nice to initially get on the park and come off after the game looking forward to the next week.

What do you want to get out of refereeing for the future? To keep improving and keep the enjoyment levels up.

What would be your advice to someone who's thinking of taking up the whistle? Give it a crack. There's a good network of ref's that are happy to share their knowledge and stories to help you into the game and make it less daunting.

Thanks Craig for helping our game!

OUR Game, OUR Referees.

Wakatipu Rugby Club hosted the Otago Spirit for an open training session in Queenstown on Sunday before their women’s team kicked off against Albion.

We saw some talented tacklers among the junior girls and a lot of potential. Thank you to every girl who came out to train with Otago Spirit we can’t wait to see you all at the Otago Spirit home games this season...

Otago Spirit vs Northland - Saturday 30 July 4:45pm - Forsyth Barr Stadium

Otago Spirit vs Tasman - Saturday 13th August 11:35am - Forsyth Barr Stadium

Congratulations to the Wakatipu girls on winning their game 38-27.

On Tuesday the 31st of May Otago Rugby hosted a Rippa Rugby tournament at Logan Park. Couldn’t have been a better day with Dunedin having the hottest temperature in the country, with a few coming away with red faces!

With teams ranging from years 3/4, 5/6 and 7/8, we had a huge amount of skill. Many teams coming fresh from practices with our very own Otago Rugby Spirit player Keely Hill.

Huge congratulations to the winning teams below:

RESULTS

Year 3/4 - Carisbrook Makos

Year 5/6 Blue - St Clair Chiefs

Year 5/6 Yellow - STM Rapids

Year 7/8 - Tahuna Twisters

A big Shoutout to the student from John McGlashan, Otago Boys and Otago Polytechnic for helping out by refereeing many games!

The Otago Rugby High Performance programmes are an exciting opportunity for local and domestic talented young rugby athletes to discover a pathway in the game while upskilling themselves on all aspects off and on the field. The programme supports all accepted athletes whether they are studying or in the work force and also offers multiple avenues of support while these athletes take in the demands of possible professional rugby.

The benefits we have at Otago Rugby is the support of Otago University and Otago Polytech with wide range of educational opportunities within a stone's throw of the academy which is based at Forsyth Barr Stadium. The facilities and services that are available are a High-Performance gym facility, access to Bunnings NPC & Farah Palmer Cup coaches & staff, medical personnel, Sportscode video review facilities and also the pathway opportunity with the Highlanders.

While at the academy all athletes will be guided on their personal development through the six pillars of NZ Rugby; technical, tactical, physical, nutrition, mental skills, personal life skills, and will be assisted by multiple qualified staff within Otago Rugby.

In 2023, Otago High Performance department wishes to guarantee a place for a male and female player in the Men's Academy & Women's HP Groups respectively for country based players. Please note these players must be Year 13 to apply for a 2023 place.

All enquiries to Otago High Performance Development Manager:

Ryan Bambry - ryan.bambry@orfu.co.nz

Application form link: https://www.sporty.co.nz/viewform/199074

Otago Rugby Premier Competition Applicable Law Changes for 2022 (WRLV/EDSLVs)

As previously advised last year, New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is enhancing the safety and appeal of the sport in 2022, with an expansive range of Experimental Domestic Safety Law Variations (EDSLVs) being rolled out in school and club rugby next season.

The changes, which were approved by the NZR Board in late August, were developed following a series of trials and workshops in 2021, and are part of NZR’s ongoing commitment to improving participant’s experiences, safety, and the appeal of the game.

Click here and scroll down to see the Otago Rugby Premier Competition Applicable Law Changes for 2022 (WRLV/EDSLVs) that will be used in Metro, Southern and Central Premier Competitions from 1 January 2022.