2021 Bunnings NPC
2021 Bunnings NPC – Click Here
Key Information
In 2011 New Zealand Rugby announced what is the current format of the premier domestic competition in the country – the Bunnings NPC.
The Bunnings NPC consists of two professional divisions, each consisting of seven teams.
The Premiership is the top division, with the winner being crowned the champion while the lowest ranked team is relegated to the Championship.
The Championship, essentially a second division, plays for the same named title.
All teams play 10 regular season games (five home, five away), followed by the Semi-Finals and Final.
All Bunnings NPC Premiership/Championship teams play against each other once, as well as four crossover matches against Bunnings NPC teams from opposite divisions.
The teams in the Premiership division for 2021 are:
- Tasman
- Canterbury
- Hawke’s Bay
- Bay of Plenty
- Auckland
- Waikato
- Wellington
The teams in the Championship division for 2020 are:
- Counties Manukau
- Otago
- Northland
- Manawatu
- North Harbour
- Southland
- Taranaki
All games (including crossover matches) carry full competition points, four for a win, two for a draw as well as the bonus point format.
Two Semi-Finals will take place between team’s ranked 1 v 4 and 2 v 3 in the Premiership and Championship respectively.
TIES DURING OR AT CONCLUSION OF ROUND ROBIN
In the event that two or more Premiership teams or two or more Championship teams have the same number of competition points the positions of the Provincial Unions will be determined in accordance with the following criteria, which will be applied in the order in which they appear below until the tie is broken:
a. Where any two Provincial Unions are tied:
i. The winner of any Round Robin match played between the two Provincial Unions in that year will have the higher position.
ii. The Provincial Union which has the higher points difference in the Round Robin will have the higher position.
b. Where three or more Provincial Unions are tied:
i. if all tied Provincial Unions have played each other the tied Provincial Union with the most competition points in that year against the other tied Provincial Unions shall have the higher position.
ii. if all tied Provincial Unions have not played against the other tied Provincial Unions, the tied Provincial Union which has the higher points difference in the Round Robin will have the higher position.
c) If a tie cannot be broken by the criteria set out in subclauses (a) and (b) of this clause: i. The Provincial Union that scored the most tries in the Round Robin shall have the higher position.
ii. The Provincial Union that scored the most points in the Round Robin shall have the higher position.
iii. The toss of a coin will be used.
TIES IN FINALS ROUND
In the event that teams are tied at the end of a semifinal or final match, the winner will be determined by the following criteria, which shall be applied in the order in which they appear until a result is determined:
a. The winner following a further ten (10) minutes of extra time each way.
b. The team scoring the most tries in the match (including extra time).
c. The winner of the Round Robin match played that year between the two teams.
d. The team having the higher points difference at the end of the Round Robin.
e. The team that scored the most tries in the Round Robin.
f. The team that scored the most points in the Round Robin.
g. The team with the higher Finals Ranking.
All Bunnings NPC Premiership/Championship teams play against each other once, as well as four crossover matches against Bunnings NPC teams from opposite divisions.
All games (including crossover matches) carry full competition points, four for a win, two for a draw as well as the bonus point format.
Current teams
Locations of teams in the 2021 Bunnings NPC
| Team | Match venues | 2021 Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | City | Capacity | |||
| Auckland | Eden Park | Auckland | 50,000 | Premiership | |
| Bay of Plenty |
Baypark Stadium | Tauranga | 20,000 | Premiership | |
| Rotorua International Stadium | Rotorua | 34,000 | |||
| Canterbury | AMI Stadium | Christchurch | 18,000 | Premiership | |
| Hawke’s Bay | McLean Park | Napier | 22,000 | Premiership | |
| Tasman | Lansdowne Park | Blenheim | 15,000 | Premiership | |
| Trafalgar Park | Nelson | 18,000 | |||
| Wellington | Sky Stadium | Wellington | 40,000 | Premiership | |
| Waikato | Waikato Stadium | Hamilton | 36,000 | Premiership | |
| Counties-Manukau |
ECOLight Stadium | Pukekohe | 12,000 | Championship | |
| North Harbour |
North Harbour Stadium | Albany | 25,000 | Championship | |
| Manawatu | FMG Stadium | Palmerston North | 15,000 | Championship | |
| Northland |
Toll Stadium | Whangarei | 18,000 | Championship | |
| Otago | Forsyth Barr Stadium | Dunedin | 30,000 | Championship | |
| Southland |
Rugby Park Stadium | Invercargill | 20,000 | Championship | |
| Taranaki | Yarrow Stadium | New Plymouth | 30,000 | Championship | |
History
The Bunnings NPC (colloquially referred to as “National Provincial Championship” or “NPC“) is the highest level of New Zealand domestic professional rugby union competition, contested annually from late August to early November and managed by the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU). Bunnings Warehouse took over the naming rights of the National Provincial Championship in 2021.
Bunnings Warehouse has secured naming rights for the NPC, FPC, Heartland Championships & Super Rugby Aotearoa U20s tournament.
Farah Palmer Cup presented by Bunnings reverts to Premiership-Championship format.
NZR General Manager Community Rugby Steve Lancaster said 2021 was shaping up as a special year for provincial rugby.
“We’re seeing a resurgence in interest in our communities after a tough year for everyone. A lot of people are going back to their clubs to connect with friends and whanau and no doubt that support will transfer into our flagship domestic competitions.
“After looking at some format changes, the Bunnings Warehouse NPC will remain in its current 14-team premiership-championship format in 2021 including crossover matches between the two divisions. The Farah Palmer Cup presented by Bunnings will revert to the same format after splitting into north and south pools for the COVID-disrupted 2020 season.”
The draws for both competitions and the Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Championships will be announced shortly.
— Update – 16th August 2018 —
2017 Mitre 10 Cup Results – CLICK HERE
2016 Mitre 10 Cup Results – CLICK HERE
New Zealand-owned home improvement and garden retailer, Mitre 10 will sponsor men’s and women’s national provincial rugby competitions from 2016 through to 2020.
Mitre 10 will be the new title sponsor for the national domestic championship, formerly known as the ITM Cup and the Heartland Championship which was previously supported by Pink Batts.
With the inclusion of the Women’s Provincial Championship and support of the Jock Hobbs Memorial National Under 19 tournament, Mitre 10 becomes the first sponsor of all major fifteens domestic rugby competitions in New Zealand.
The ITM Cup (colloquially referred to as “National Provincial Championship” or “NPC“) is the highest level of New Zealand domestic professional rugby union competition, contested annually from late August to early November and managed by the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU).
Building off competitions dating back to the National Provincial Championship in 1976, with teams from a number of provinces, the ITM Cup officially started with the 2006 season with 14 teams after the National Provincial Championship (NPC) was split into this professional competition and the amateur Heartland Championship competition.
The competition was known as the Air New Zealand Cup to the end of the 2009 season; the name changed to the ITM Cup for the 2010 season after ITM, the trading name of Independent Timber Merchants Co-operative Ltd., a New Zealand building supplies retailer took over as lead sponsor.
2015 Results – CLICK HERE
Format and sponsorship
Format
Air New Zealand Cup logo used from 2006 through 2009.
The ITM Cup competition has changed a number of times. There have been up to three Divisions, with promotion/relegation between Divisions. Since 2006 there have been semi-finals and a final in each Division. Winners receive four competition points; if the game was a draw two points are awarded to each team. The Rugby union bonus points system is also used, where any team scoring four or more tries or losing by less than seven points receives an extra competition point. The top four teams at the end of the round-robin phase then played semifinals – the first placed team hosting the fourth team, and the second team hosting the third team. The two winners played the final at the home ground of the top surviving seed.
In 2013, the ITM Cup has two Divisions, the Premiership and the Championship, each with seven teams. All teams play all other teams in their own Division and four teams from the other Division. This keeps up some of the traditional provincial rivalries.
Naming rights
ITM has naming rights starting with the 2010 season, and the competition is the ITM Cup. During the Air New Zealand Cup era, airline and flag carrier of New Zealand Air New Zealand had naming rights and the competition was referred to as the Air New Zealand Cup.
In 2016 Mitre 10 take over the mantle as naming rights sponsor for 5 years from 2016 to 2020
History
| Season | Champions |
|---|---|
| 1976 | Bay of Plenty |
| 1977 | Canterbury |
| 1978 | Wellington |
| 1979 | Counties Manukau |
| 1980 | Manawatu |
| 1981 | Wellington |
| 1982 | Auckland |
| 1983 | Canterbury |
| 1984 | Auckland |
| 1985 | Auckland |
| 1986 | Wellington |
| 1987 | Auckland |
| 1988 | Auckland |
| 1989 | Auckland |
| 1990 | Auckland |
| 1991 | Otago |
| 1992 | Waikato |
| 1993 | Auckland |
| 1994 | Auckland |
| 1995 | Auckland |
| 1996 | Auckland |
| 1997 | Canterbury |
| 1998 | Otago |
| 1999 | Auckland |
| 2000 | Wellington |
| 2001 | Canterbury |
| 2002 | Auckland |
| 2003 | Auckland |
| 2004 | Canterbury |
| 2005 | Auckland |
The 2006 reorganization of New Zealand provincial rugby replaced the NPC’s former three-division setup with two competitions. This differs from the original two-division setup used in the NPC from its creation in 1976 to 1984 in two key ways. The two current competitions are nationwide, while the original NPC Division two was split on a North Island/South Island basis; and the NZRU ruled that there would initially be no promotion or relegation between the Air New Zealand Cup and Heartland Championship, a feature that had always been present in the former NPC. The number of teams was reduced to 26, as the Marlborough and Nelson Bays unions merged to form the new Tasman union.
The 2006 expansion of the Super 12 and Tri Nations Series had a major effect on the Air New Zealand Cup. This expansion created the Super 14, adding two extra fixtures to that competition, and also added two more Tri-Nations matches for the All Blacks in non-World Cup years. Because of these changes, it was intended for players in the All Blacks selection pool to make only limited appearances in the Air New Zealand Cup.
Pre Air New Zealand Cup: National Provincial Championship
Before 2006, a number of competitions involving regional and provincial rugby union teams had taken shape in New Zealand. The earliest of these was the National Provincial Championship, which was launched in 1976 and continued until 2006.
National Provincial Championship
The competition was launched as the National Provincial Championship in 1976. The competition, was the major domestic rugby competition in New Zealand. The National Provincial Championship saw many alterations to its format and brand.
It was first contested in 1976, and although the basic format of Division One was much the same from then until the 2006 reorganization, there were a number of changes to the lower divisions.
The only change before 2006 was in 1998, when the number of teams in each division was changed to ten in Division One, nine in Division Two, and eight in Division Three. Having an even number of teams in Division One removed the necessity for byes.
Starting that year, automatic promotion/relegation between the top two divisions was ended. In its place, the winner of Division Two played a promotion-relegation match against the bottom club in Division One to determine whether the clubs would switch places.
Through 2002, this match was hosted by the bottom team in Division One, but the site was changed in 2003 to the home field of the Division Two champion. Auckland were the most successful team in the championship, having won 15 of the 30 series.
Air New Zealand Cup
The inaugural 2006 season was played by 14 teams over 13 weeks from 28 July until the grand final on the 21 October. The inaugural format saw the season split into two rounds. In round one teams split into two pools and played everybody in their pool as well as a bye week.
In round two the top three teams from each pool went into the top six, which faced every team they did not play in round one Every other team was split into either Repechage A and Repechage B, and the winners of each repechage filled the two remaining spots for the quarterfinals with the top six.
The quarterfinals were followed by semifinals and a grand final. The new competition saw the introduction of four teams elevated from Division two of the 2005 NPC; Counties Manukau, Hawke’s Bay, Manawatu and Tasman (the amalgamation of the Nelson Bays and Marlborough unions). The competition was won by Waikato 37–31, after they beat Wellington in the Grand final in front of a capacity crowd of 25,000 fans at Waikato Stadium. The leading try-scorer was emerging star Richard Kahui from Waikato with eight tries, and the leading point-scorer was Jimmy Gopperth from Wellington with 121 points.
The 2007 season saw the NZRU dumping the pool system. The new format opened with a 10 week round-robin where each team missed out on playing three of the other teams. The finals format was not changed from 2006, with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and a grand final. The champion was Auckland, defeating Wellington in Wellington’s second successive grand final. Auckland finished the season at the top of the points table with a record 48 competition points, winning all ten matches. Jimmy Gopperth again finished as leading points scorer with a record 155, while Brent Ward from Auckland was the top try scorer with eight tries.
The 2008 champion was Canterbury, handing Wellington its third consecutive grand final defeat in a low-scoring 7-6 game. Blair Stewart from Southland was the leading points-scorer, with 105 points, while Wellington’s Hosea Gear was top try scorer with a record 14 tries. In August, the New Zealand Rugby Union announced that the Tasman and Northland teams would be relegated to lower competition after the completion of the season for failure to meet criteria which included financial stability, population, training, development, playing history, and administration. This decision was reversed in September, with Tasman and Northland remaining in the competition for two more years.
2009 saw more changes in the format. The season, which ran from 30 July to 25 October, was changed to a straight round-robin tournament where every team faced the others once over 13 weeks. Quarter-finals were dropped, with the top four regular season teams advancing directly to the semi-finals and the winners from each semi moving to the grand final. Regular season points were earned as per the Rugby Union Bonus Points System; 4 points for a win, 2 points for a draw and 1 point for scoring 4 tries or for losing by 7 points or less.
Semi-finals were played between four teams, the teams are seeded first to fourth and the two highest seeded teams play at home against the two lowest seeded teams meaning first plays fourth and second plays third. The highest seed still remaining in the grand final played at home.
ITM Cup
The 2010 ITM Cup was the 34th provincial rugby union competition, the fifth since the competition reconstruction in 2006 and the first under the new sponsor of ITM, involving the top 14 provincial unions. It ran for 15 weeks, with 13 used for a round robin and 2 for the finals, from 29 July to 5 November.
Changes in 2011 see the 14 teams split into two divisions, with the top seven playing in the Premiership, the rest in the Championship. The two divisions play each other, though their ten-game round-robin season sees each team playing only three games per year against teams in the ‘other’ division. Other key principles introduced was that the competitions must include Super Rugby players, have a stand-alone window, feature a full round-robin and playoffs, have promotion/relegation, guarantee four and five home games per team, be completed within a 10–12 week window and conclude by the end of October.
Current teams
Locations of teams in the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup
| Team | Match venues | 2018 Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | City | Capacity | |||
| Auckland | Eden Park | Auckland | 50,000 | Premiership | |
| Canterbury | AMI Stadium | Christchurch | 18,000 | Premiership | |
| Counties Manukau | ECOLight Stadium | Pukekohe | 12,000 | Premiership | |
| North Harbour | North Harbour Stadium | Albany | 25,000 | Premiership | |
| Taranaki | Yarrow Stadium | New Plymouth | 30,000 | Premiership | |
| Tasman | Lansdowne Park | Blenheim | 15,000 | Premiership | |
| Trafalgar Park | Nelson | 18,000 | |||
| Wellington | Westpac Stadium | Wellington | 40,000 | Premiership | |
| Bay of Plenty | Baypark Stadium | Tauranga | 20,000 | Championship | |
| Rotorua International Stadium | Rotorua | 34,000 | |||
| Hawke’s Bay | McLean Park | Napier | 22,000 | Championship | |
| Manawatu | FMG Stadium | Palmerston North | 15,000 | Championship | |
| Northland | Toll Stadium | Whangarei | 18,000 | Championship | |
| Otago | Forsyth Barr Stadium | Dunedin | 30,000 | Championship | |
| Southland | Rugby Park Stadium | Invercargill | 20,000 | Championship | |
| Waikato | Waikato Stadium | Hamilton | 36,000 | Championship | |
The Mitre 10 Cup consists of 14 teams of 26 players each. Each team is under the governance of a union, e.g. Auckland is governed by the Auckland Rugby Football Union; each team is the top male representative team that the union has to offer. The teams have not changed since 2006 launch of the competition, though the changes in 2011 means that they can be moved between the Premier and Champion divisions:
Champions
| Year | Attendance | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 25,000 | Waikato. | 37–31 | .Wellington |
| 2007 | 16,000 | Auckland. | 23–14 | .Wellington |
| 2008 | 21,200 | Canterbury. | 07–06 | .Wellington |
| 2009 | 12,000 | Canterbury. | 28–20 | .Wellington |
| 2010 | 10,500 | Canterbury. | 33–13 | .Waikato |
| 2011 | 14,000 | Canterbury. | 12–03 | .Waikato |
| 2012 | 12,000 | Canterbury. | 31–18 | .Auckland |
| 2013 | 15,100 | Canterbury. | 29–13 | .Wellington |
| 2014 | 21,000 | Taranaki. | 36-32 | .Tasman |
| 2015 | 21,000 | Canterbury. | 25-23 | .Auckland |
Total wins
| Team | Championships | Runners-up | Semi-finalists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canterbury | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Waikato | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Auckland | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Taranaki | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Wellington | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| Tasman | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Hawke’s Bay | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Southland | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Otago | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Counties Manukau | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Bay of Plenty | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Division Winners
Since 2011 teams have played in two separate divisions, with teams playing each team in their own conference once (home and away) and in the other conferences playing four or five teams. The winner of the Premiership division is awarded the ITM Cup, and the Championship division winner wins promotion to the Premiership division and win their division trophy.
| Year | Premiership | Championship |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Canterbury | Hawke’s Bay |
| 2012 | Canterbury | Counties Manukau |
| 2013 | Canterbury | Tasman |
| 2014 | Taranaki | Manawatu |
| 2015 | Canterbury | Hawkes Bay |
| 2016 | Canterbury | North Harbour |
| 2017 | Canterbury | Wellington |
Ranfurly Shield
The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as the Log o’ Wood, is perhaps the most prestigious trophy in New Zealand’s domestic rugby union competition.
First presented to Auckland in 1902, the Shield is based on a challenge system, rather than a league or knockout competition as with most football trophies.
The holding union must defend the Shield in challenge matches, and a successful challenger becomes the new holder of the Shield.
The Shield holder at the end of each season is required to accept at least seven challenges for the following year. All home games during league play, but not during knockout playoffs, in the ITM Cup or Heartland Championship are automatic challenges.
The remaining Shield defences must be made up of challenges from unions in the other domestic competition.
For example, since North Harbour, an Air New Zealand Cup team, held the Shield at the end of the 2006 Cup season despite losing their home quarter-final to Otago, they were forced to defend the Shield against Heartland Championship teams during the 2007 pre-season.
Having successfully done so, all their home fixtures in the round-robin phase were Shield defences until they lost the shield to Waikato.
The Shield is currently held by Taranaki
Inter union trophies
- Kel Tremain Memorial Trophy, Hawke’s Bay v Manawatu
- Brian Purdy Battle of the Bridge Memorial Battle of the Bridge Trophy, Auckland v North Harbour
- The Newstalk 1ZB Trans Harbour Trophy, Auckland v North Harbour
- John F Henning Trophy, Taranaki v Wellington
- The Lion Red Challenge Cup, Counties Manukau v North Harbour
- John Drake Memorial Trophy, Auckland v Bay of Plenty
- Coronation Cup, Manawatu v Wellington
- Stan Thomas Trophy, Auckland v Waikato
- Payne Trophy, Canterbury v Otago
- Harry Saundercock Trophy, Canterbury v Wellington
- Peter Burke Trophy, Bay of Plenty v Taranaki
- Donald Stuart Memorial Shield, Otago v Southland
- Supporters’ Club Cup, Auckland v Canterbury
- Fred Lucas Memorial Trophy, Auckland v Wellington
- Lindsay Colling Memorial Trophy, Auckland v Otago
- The Kevin Gimblett Memorial Trophy, Canterbury v North Harbour
- Ryan Wheeler Memorial Trophy, Taranaki v Waikato
Club competitions
Each respective province competing in the ITM Cup has a number of their own club leagues, which feed into ITM Cup teams. In New Zealand, the ITM Cup is the most prominent domestic competition below the Super Rugby, in which all the respective Unions are also aligned with Super Rugby sides.
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