HONOURS

A player must be a Ponsonby member in the year(s) chosen for New Zealand to qualify for this list. There have been 24 Black Ferns chosen from Ponsonby, which ranks third among all clubs in the country.

Click on the link above for a full list of the club's Black Ferns, or on a name below for an individual profile. Recently Wellington-based journalist Adam Julian has completed profiles of most Black Ferns and these have been put up on www.allblacks.com; links have been added for each of the Ponsonby players.

​​​​​​​Tangaloa Edwards: New Zealand 1989.

Ana Nemaia: New Zealand 1989

Christine Papali'i: New Zealand 1989-90-92.

Nina Sio: New Zealand 1989-91-92. Later a Black Fern in 1994 from another club.

Elsie Paitai: New Zealand 1990-91.

Kimi Tiriamai: New Zealand 1990-91.

Sandra Wihongi: New Zealand 1990-92.

Anna Richards: New Zealand 1991-92-93-94. Previously a Black Fern in 1990, and later a Black Fern in  1996-97-98-99-2000-01-02-03-04-05-06-07-08-10, from other clubs.

Tracy Lemon: New Zealand 1991-94. Later a Black Fern in 1995 from College Rifles club.

Cheryl Waaka: New Zealand 2003-04. Previously a Black Fern in 1997-98-99-2000-01-02 from other clubs.

Linda Itunu: New Zealand 2003-04-06-07-08-09-10-14-15-17-18

Nicole Borthwick: New Zealand 2005.

Fa'anati Aniseko: New Zealand 2007.

Eloise Blackwell: New Zealand 2011-12-13-14-15-16-17-20-21. Also Black Fern in 2018-19 from Eden club.

Aleisha-Pearl Nelson: New Zealand 2012-14-15-16-17. Later a Black Fern from College Rifles club.

Portia Woodman: New Zealand 2013. Later a Black Fern from Ardmore Marist club.

Charmaine McMenamin: New Zealand 2013-16-17-18-19-20-22.

Te Kura Ngata-Aerengamate: New Zealand 2014. Later a Black Fern from Ardmore Marist club.

Aldora Itunu: New Zealand 2015-16-17-18-20-21-24.

Theresa Fitzpatrick: New Zealand 2017-18-19-22.

Natahlia Moors: New Zealand 2018-19-20.

Cristo Tofa: New Zealand 2020. Previously a Black Fern from North Harbour.

Sylvia Brunt: New Zealand 2022-23-24.

Sophie Fisher: New Zealand 2023.

Ponsonby players have represented New Zealand Maori since the first official team was chosen to go to Australia in 1910. To date 20 players have taken the field for New Zealand Maori, and the list can be seen by clicking the link above. Note that the number of matches is only those played while a member of Ponsonby; Alby Pryor, for instance, played several more matches before coming to the club.

Click the link above for the full list, or on the names below for individual profiles.

George Sellars: New Zealand Maori 1910-12-14

Bill Cunningham: New Zealand Maori 1910-12

Jack Hall: New Zealand Maori 1910-12

Dick Pelham: New Zealand Maori 1926-27

Tom French: New Zealand Maori 1952-54-55-57

Dave Menzies: New Zealand Maori 1954-55-56

Alby Pryor: New Zealand Maori 1956-57-58-59-60

Ron Rangi: New Zealand Maori 1963-64-65-66

Del Naera: New Zealand Maori 1963

Danny Rota: New Zealand Maori 1969

Joe Whiu: New Zealand Maori 1976-77-78

Leon Toki: New Zealand Maori 1977-78

Mark Brooke-Cowden: New Zealand Maori 1985-86

Bernie Smith: New Zealand Maori 1986

Basil Ake: New Zealand Maori 1987

Jasin Goldsmith: New Zealand Maori 1991

Carlos Spencer: New Zealand Maori 1996-2000-02-05

David Gibson: New Zealand Maori 2003

Akira Ioane: New Zealand Maori 2015-16-17-18-19

Rieko Ioane: New Zealand Maori 2015-16-17

Leni Apisai: New Zealand Maori 2022

While women's rugby is not yet as big a sport in the Pacific Islands as it is in New Zealand, the Island nations are now regular attendees at World Cups and play occasional test matches outside that four-year cycle. Ponsonby has seen nine players chosen for Manu Sina, the Samoa women's test team, since 2002. Click the link above for the full list, or on a name below for individual profiles.

Louena Ahki: Samoa 2002

Mel Leaitua: Samoa 2002-06.

Sosefina Leaitua: Samoa 2002-06.

Ala Leavasa: Samoa 2002-06; World XV 2003.

Puna Tia: Samoa 2002-06; World XV 2003.

Barbara Tyrell-Tu'uga: Samoa 2002.

Cynthia Apineru: Samoa 2014.

Italia Tipelu: Samoa 2014.

Contessah Wright: Samoa 2014.

Twenty-one All Blacks have represented Ponsonby during their careers who were only chosen for New Zealand while with other clubs; the list even includes two Ponsonby Life Members, Keith Nelson and Lin Colling. While these men aren't counted in the list of the club's All Blacks, you can follow the link above for a full list, or click on the names below for individual profiles.

Ned Davy played briefly in Auckland as a member of the Ponsonby club in 1877. He had made his name in the Thames area and soon moved on to Wellington, from where he was the oldest man chosen to make the 1884 tour of Australia. His brother Henry ("Hookey") played for Ponies for some years.

Joe Warbrick played for Ponsonby as a 15-year-old schoolboy in 1877, and is believed to be the youngest-ever first-class player in New Zealand. By the time he was chosen in the first New Zealand team, in 1884, he was back in the Bay of Plenty, where the family was from.

Tim O'Connor was originally a stalwart of the Auckland club, who had to transfer to Ponsonby towards the end of his career when the District Scheme was introduced in 1891. He was also a member of that first New Zealand team in 1884.

Fred Murray was just a young player when the District Scheme was introduced in 1891 but already making a mark; unfortunately for Ponsonby he lived outside the district boundaries and was lost to the club. He was chosen for two early tours of Australia, in 1893 and 1897.

Frank Wilson played for Ponsonby towards the end of the District Scheme and first represented Auckland in 1906. Keenly sought by University when it was allowed to join Senior ranks in 1908, he played the rest of his peace-time rugby with the Students and made the All Blacks in 1910.

James Barrett, like Frank Wilson, was lost to Ponsonby when the District Scheme ran its course. He joined Marist when that club became a Senior entity, and was one of the club's first All Blacks when he was picked for the home matches against Australia in 1913.

Ces Badeley played for the club in the early days of World War I. On his return from the fighting he became a leading light with the Grammar Old Boys club, and made the All Blacks in 1920-21-24. A chronic knee injury all but ended his career just after he led the All Blacks to Australia. The 1915 Fourth Grade photo includes both Badeley brothers as young men. 

Vic Badeley, like his brother, played for Ponsonby in 1915; Vic was only 16. The brothers were both starring in the Auckland Grammar First XV that year as well but managed to play for both teams. Vic Badeley won All Black honours from Grammar Old Boys in 1922 but suffered a career-ending head injury in 1924. The 1915 Fourth Grade photo includes both Badeley brothers as young men.

Tuna Swain made the 1928 All Blacks from Hawke's Bay, where he had also been part of the Ranfurly Shield era, and came to Auckland in early 1929 when he joined Ponsonby. However he only played a handful of matches before injuring a knee and never played again. He had declared himself unavailable for the 1929 Australian tour before his injury.

Ron Dobson played for Ponsonby after returning from war service - he was a member of the famed Kiwis - but transferred to Northcote after the memorable 1948 championship season, winning New Zealand selection for the home series against Australia in 1949.

Rex Orr played for Ponsonby towards the end of his career, the best part of which was spent with Otago during its great Ranfurly Shield days; he was an All Black at home in 1949. Orr left his teaching position and returned to the Air Force for some years, playing for Ponsonby while stationed at Hobsonville.

Noel Bowden was a member of a well-known Ponsonby family but gained his All Black jersey during the years he was teaching away from Auckland; he played against Australia in 1952 while in Taranaki. He returned to the club towards the end of his career, before taking a prominent part in off-field club affairs.

Keith Nelson is Ponsonby through and through but was only chosen for New Zealand while studying dentistry at Otago University in 1962-63-64. He played for Ponsonby before heading south and for many years after returning home, but was never again selected for the All Blacks.  

Keith Murdoch played for the club in 1966, during a period of his life when he was travelling throughout New Zealand. He had been in Hawke's Bay in 1965 and then went cray-fishing off the Chatham Islands for a couple of years after leaving Auckland. He played for New Zealand in 1970 and 1972.

Lin Colling came to the club when he moved north from Otago in 1974, but his last New Zealand selection had been for the British tour in 1972-73. Despite continued good form, he was never chosen in his time in Auckland.

Terry Morrison was another Otago player to head north in the early 1970s and play for Ponsonby; despite playing his best rugby in his Auckland days his brief All Black career (he played in 1973) was over while he was still a student at Otago University.

Greg Burgess played for Ponsonby in between moving north from Otago University and transferring to Takapuna, shortly before he gained All Black selection in 1980; most of his representative rugby was played in his Takapuna days.

Jasin Goldsmith was already an All Black when he came to Ponsonby although he was only 19 when he made the move from Hamilton; he was the third-youngest player ever chosen for New Zealand when picked in 1988. Bad injuries virtually ended his career soon after he came to Auckland.

Isitolo Maka began his career with Ponsonby before moving south to get a chance with the Highlanders in Super rugby's early days, as his progress had been blocked by a long line of high-quality loose forwards in Auckland. His brief All Black career began and ended in 1998.

Kevin Senio began his club career with Ponsonby but a lack of opportunity caused him to move first to Counties-Manukau and then to Bay of Plenty, from where he was chosen for New Zealand in 2005. After ending his professional career Senio returned to Ponsonby as a player and then a coach.

Stephen Perofeta played briefly for Ponsonby in 2017, when he was a youngster on the verge of breaking into Super Rugby, and again in 2021 when he was not required by the Blues for a spell. Despite encouragement to stay, he returned to Taranaki, from where he was chosen for New Zealand in 2022.

There was also one near-miss: In 1914 Charles Gillespie, a 1913 All Black from Wellington, joined the club and was twice named to start but on both occasions he was a late withdrawal. As far as one can tell, he then left the club and never took the field in a Ponsonby jersey. His replacement in the team was a good one though - Bill Cunningham was persuaded to come out of retirement and fill the gap.

In 1955 Ponsonby invited the Olympic Year All Black, Mick Bremner, to turn out in the fund-raiser game against Petone. He did, playing a blinder, and probably put his name back in the selectors' minds for Springbok year, when he was recalled after three years in the wilderness. Although he was never a member at Ponsonby, he did turn out in the famous blue-and-black hoops.

National Selection Reps - Age Grades, New Zealand XV

This list includes all national selections apart from New Zealand or New Zealand Maori. Since a number of different names have been used for similar teams (New Zealand Colts, New Zealand Juniors, New Zealand Under-20s and so on) all players chosen for the various national selections are included here. Click on the link above for the full list.

Super Rugby was introduced in 1996 as the first fully professional competition in New Zealand, and as the flagship competition for the new SANZAR alliance. In its early stages it was organised on a regional basis, but gradually it developed into the franchise arrangement we know today, with players able to be contracted by any team that wants them. A full list of Ponsonby players to appear in Super Rugby can be seen by following the link above.

In 2021 the Blues and Chiefs played the first match between the respective women's teams. A competition featuring teams from four franchises was then played in 2022, with the format was a round robin with no playoffs; this was affected by Covid, with one match being scrapped and all matches played at one venue and in a compressed time frame. A year later semis and a final were introduced, with the competition spread over five weeks and most matches played as stand-alone fixtures, but agitation grows for overseas teams to be included. A list of Ponsonby players to have appeared in Super Rugby can be found by following the link above.​​​​​​​

Ponsonby has produced more than 250 Auckland A reps, who have played more than 4400 games in the blue and white hoops. Although no players from the club were in the first Auckland team chosen in 1875, they have been in the vast majority that have taken the field after that pioneering tour. Since 28 June 1983, when Auckland played King Country with a team that was somewhere between the A and B selection, Ponsonby players have been in 566 of the 567 Auckland teams to take the field to the end of 2024. The one exception was on 28 July 2004 in a Ranfurly Shield defence against Poverty Bay; Auckland was playing two defences in four days and chose two entirely different teams. As luck would have it the eight Ponsonby players all turned out in the second match, thus ending a run of 332 matches with one of the club's players in every Auckland team. 

For the full list of Ponsonby players to have appeared for Auckland A, click on the link above.

Ponsonby has been a significant force in women's rugby in New Zealand almost from day one. More than 70 players from Ponsonby have been chosen to play for Auckland A; the general agreement among New Zealand's statisiticans is that first-class records for women's rugby started with the introduction on the NPC in 1999. Click on the link above for the complete list of Ponsonby's Auckland A players.

For nearly 70 years Auckland would often field a Second XV in first-class matches, either as 'Auckland B' or 'An Auckland XV'. The latter designation was also used for Auckland Colts sides that played first-class rugby in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as not-quite full-strength teams that met unions like Bay of Plenty and Waikato in the 1950s. The full list of 117 Ponsonby players who appeared in first-class matches for these teams can be viewed by clicking the link above.

Since women's rugby has always been stronger in the greater Auckland area than anywhere else in the country for most of its first-class existence, it is natural that some players have transferred for a season or two under the same agreements that apply in the men's game. So far 18 Ponsonby players have appeared for other unions as loan players, mostly North Harbour; click the link above for the full list. 

Ponsonby has won the Auckland championship more often than any other club. Since the club is the oldest in Auckland one would expect a healthy number of titles but the 2019 success was the 50th, including four in pre-Union days. There was a flurry in the 1880s, which eventually led to the District Scheme being implemented, then a truly formidable side developed in the late 1900s which meant the scheme had to be dismantled - there was no other way of combatting the club's power with residential rules still in place. The Gallaher Shield was won for the first time in 1924 - it was awarded in 1922 - and since then it has filled its special cabinet on the wall after 36 seasons. The club holds the record with eight consecutive titles, in 2004-11; Ponsonby is also the only club to have had as many as four (1924-27). University, the nearest rival, has won 17 titles - a good haul, but one which only serves to underline Ponsonby's dominance. 

Only Otago University, which won its 53rd Dunedin championship in 2019, has won more titles in New Zealand club rugby.

Click on the links for a brief resume of each title-winning season.

1877

1878

1880

1882

1883

1884

1885

1887

1890

1891 (Club programme)

1897

1908

1909

1910

1913

1924

1925

1926

1927

1929

1930

1933 (Shared)

1936

1937

1938

1948

1954

1976

1978

1979

1981

1983

1985

1986

1988

1990

1993

1995

2001

2002

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2018

2019

2024