Source: Radio New Zealand
Touch rugby players in action. Brett Phibbs
Touch New Zealand and New Zealand Rugby have joined forces to help try and grow both sports.
The two organisations have announced a new partnership which recognises Touch Rugby as the official non-contact summer form of the game of rugby.
New Zealand Rugby said the partnership will “create one of the largest participation footprints in New Zealand sport” and a stronger “year-round rugby ecosystem”, from non-contact summer Touch Rugby through to junior, school and club rugby in the winter.
The aim is to increase participation numbers across all forms of rugby.
More than 150,000 New Zealanders play touch each year according to Touch NZ.
John Cowpland /www.photosport.nz
In 2024, the number of people playing rugby grew six percent from 2023 to 156,000, with a 15 percent rise in female players.
However, there are areas of concern for NZR, such as retaining teenage boys in the sport and attracting boys to the junior grades.
In 2024, 21,737 boys aged between five and 13 played rugby, significantly fewer than in 2019 when 25,944 registered for the code.
The number of junior girls playing rugby increased 53 percent between 2019-2024, the number of junior boys in the sport dropped by 9.5 percent over the same period.
A Harbour junior rugby team celebrates at Moller Park. Rachel Holland
The perception of risk and injury is believed to be a major factor contributing to the lower participation numbers among junior boys.
New Zealand Rugby chief executive, Steve Lancaster, told RNZ’s Morning Report that’s one of the reasons the partnership has been created.
“We know that as New Zealand evolves, as our societies and communities evolve, people want to access rugby and touch rugby in different ways,” Lancaster said.
“So having touch rugby as a part of our broader rugby family and being able to offer year-round both contact and non-contact forms of the game is important.”
New Zealand Rugby chief executive Steve Lancaster fronts media in Auckland following his appointment to the role. Nick Monro/RNZ
Lancaster said the partnership will help NZR provide a solution for those not wanting to play contact rugby.
“We know that not everybody wants to play full contact 15-a-side rugby, and that might be because of their perceptions around the risk of injury. It might also just be around the time commitments.
“One of the beauties of touch rugby is that you can just rock up and play on a Wednesday night or a Thursday night, have a run around and you’re done.”
Touch New Zealand will now begin the process of becoming an Associate Member of New Zealand Rugby and chief executive Joe Sprangers hoped the partnership would take touch to new heights.
“We live in a world of diminishing resources and time and I think by working together we’ll be better able to address that,” Sprangers told Morning Report.
“Rugby is the biggest brand in the country and there is immense benefit to the sport of touch to be attached to that brand and be part of that family.
“This partnership recognises that history and the strength of our game. Touch Rugby is already loved and played by thousands of New Zealanders, and the opportunity to become part of the New Zealand Rugby whānau gives us a stronger platform to grow, promote and support the game into the future.”
Both Lancaster and Sprangers hope the partnership will help increase player numbers in both sports.
“I think it goes both ways,” Sprangers said.
“I mean, one thing we’ve always said to our high performance people, our players, people that come through our system is, you know, we can’t offer you a professional pathway. Rugby and other sports can. You should go there if you get that opportunity.
“All we ask is that once you’re finished there, you come back and bring your kids back because that’s the longevity of the sport is the children coming through the system.”
Portia Woodman-Wickliffe scores for the Black Ferns. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
Lancaster believes touch and rugby compliment each other.
“We talk about on-ramps and off-ramps, and actually touch rugby for us is both an on-ramp and an off-ramp. You look across our Black Ferns Sevens programme, pretty much all of that team have come through touch pathways,” Lancaster said.
“Some of our All Blacks have started in touch, but equally, for people like myself who can’t go near a rugby field anymore, touch rugby is a viable option, right? It’s an opportunity to get back down to the club, throw an oval ball around, connect with mates. So it’s both.”
Lancaster said the partnership reflected the changing way New Zealanders engage with sport.
“People want different ways to play. They want formats that are social, accessible, competitive, non-contact, family-friendly and fun. Touch Rugby delivers all of that and more.”
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand