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Chiefs (Super Rugby)

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This article is about the Super Rugby team. For the English team, see Exeter Chiefs.

Chiefs
UnionNew Zealand Rugby Union
Founded1996
LocationHamilton, New Zealand
RegionBay of Plenty
Counties Manukau
King Country
Thames Valley
Waikato
Taranaki
Ground(s)FMG Stadium Waikato
(Capacity: 25,000)
Coach(es)Clayton McMillan
Captain(s)Luke Jacobson
Most capsLiam Messam (182)
Top scorerDamian McKenzie (1247)
League(s)Super Rugby Pacific
2024Playoffs: Runners-up
Team kit
2nd kit
Official website
www.chiefs.co.nz

The Chiefs (Māori: Rangatira;[1] formerly known as the Waikato Chiefs and officially called the Gallagher Chiefs for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Hamilton, Waikato. The team competes in the Super Rugby Pacific competition, previously known as the Super 12 and Super 14, and are one of the competition's five New Zealand teams. Their primary home ground is FMG Stadium Waikato.

The Chiefs are central to six provincial teams; Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki and Counties Manukau playing in the National Provincial Championship (NPC), with Thames Valley and King Country competing in the Heartland Championship.

The Chiefs field three main teams, the Gallagher Chiefs who compete in DHL Super Rugby Pacific, the Chiefs Manawa who compete in Sky Super Rugby Aupiki and their age-group team the University of Waikato Chiefs U20s.

The Chiefs teams play in red, black and yellow colours with jerseys in recent years having strong Māori cultural elements to tie the club to its region. Māori culture, values and traditions are also a cornerstone of the club’s culture, implemented during Dave Rennie’s time as head coach and continued by current head coach Clayton McMillan.[2]

Until 2004, the Chiefs were the only New Zealand side never to have qualified for the Super 12 semi-finals. In that year the Chiefs earned their first semi-final berth, and in the end achieved fourth place (defeated 37–20 in the semi-final by the ACT Brumbies). They subsequently reached the 2009 final, but found themselves on the short end of a record 61–17 defeat by the Bulls.

The Chiefs were rewarded with a home final after a strong 2012 season. The Chiefs defeated the Sharks 37–6, winning their first title. In 2013, the Chiefs became the fourth team to record back-to-back title wins, when they defeated the Brumbies 27–22 at Waikato Stadium.

In 2021 the Chiefs Rugby Club established their women's team, formerly known as the Chiefs women, now the Chiefs Manawa. The Chiefs Manawa won the inaugural season of Sky Super Rugby Aupiki in 2022 and were runner-up in the competition in 2023 and 2024.

History

[edit]

The Chiefs were founded in 1996 as the Waikato Chiefs for the inaugural Super 12 season in 1996. Prior to the Super 12, the Super 10 competition had been in place, which NPC teams took part in, including Waikato. In the first year of competition the Chiefs placed 6th in the overall standings, missing out on making the finals; winning 6 of their 11 regular season matches. The following season the Chiefs placed 11th, winning 4 games and losing 7. In 1998 the Chiefs performed closer to the standard of their 1996 season and placed at 7th in the final standings. In 1999 the side were able to do one better and claimed 6th position on the ladder but were still yet to make the playoffs.

In 2000 the Chiefs won 3 of their regular season games and finished the regular season in 10th place. The following season the team equalled their best position again – finishing 6th. In 2002 the team won 4 games and lost 7 to finish in 8th position, and the season after, 2003 Super 12 season, fell to a 10th-place finish. But the season after, the Chiefs won 7 regular season games and came 4th on the ladder – claiming the first semi-final spot in their history. The Chiefs lost the semi-final against the Brumbies. In 2005 the team finished 6th. In 2006, the Super 12 expanded to the Super 14, with the addition of a new Australian and South African club. The Chiefs won 7 of their 13 games and drew once with 5 losses to come 7th. In 2009, the Chiefs made their second ever semi-final, defeating the Hurricanes 14 – 10 to advance to the final for the first time. They lost the final to the Bulls by the biggest-ever margin of 61–17. In the 2010 and 2011 seasons, they were unable to replicate their form of 2009, missing the playoffs in both seasons.

In 2012, following the disappointing results of previous years, the Chiefs underwent a significant change in personnel. This included the recruitment of new coaches, including Dave Rennie and Wayne Smith, and players, including Aaron Cruden, Ben Tameifuna, Brodie Retallick and Sonny Bill Williams. The changes had an immediate impact as the Chiefs finished at the top of the New Zealand conference, qualifying for a home semi-final, which they won, defeating the Crusaders 20–17. They subsequently hosted the final for the first time in the teams's history, comprehensively defeating the Sharks by 37 – 6, claiming their first title. They also set many club records in the 2012 season, including: most home wins, best home streak, best season winning streak, and most points and tries scored.[3]

In 2013, the Chiefs again won the Super Rugby title and the New Zealand conference with a regular-season record of 12 wins and four losses. They also won the BNZ Cup, a new trophy established by the NZRU for the New Zealand side with the best record in intra-conference matches.

In 2016 the Chiefs played a touring Wales side, winning the one-off encounter 40-7. In doing so they became the first New Zealand Super Rugby franchise to defeat an international team.[4]

In 2017 the Chiefs played the British and Irish Lions side in Hamilton, losing the encounter 34-6. In the regular season, they finished 3rd in the NZ conference and 6th overall, putting them through to the playoffs. They won a thriller quarter final against the Stormers in Cape Town (17-11) but lost in the semi-finals to the Crusaders (27-13)

In 2018 the Chiefs finished 3rd in the NZ conference and 5th overall. This result put them through to the quarter-finals, in which they lost a tight battle against the Hurricanes (32-31)

The Chiefs didn't have a great start to the 2019 season, losing 4 games straight off the bat, including a loss to the Sunwolves (30-15). However, the Chiefs redeemed themselves by defeating the Bulls 56-20 and going on to win more. They ended up finishing 3rd in the NZ conference and 7th overall, which put them through to the quarter-finals. However, the Chiefs would lose to the Jaguares 21-16 in Buenos Aires

After 7 rounds in 2020, the Chiefs were 3rd in the NZ conference and 5th overall. However, the COVID-19 pandemic suspended the 2020 Super Rugby season from going ahead, for travel and health reasons. Despite this, NZRU created a domestic Super Rugby tournament called Super Rugby Aotearoa, which started in June 2020. The Chiefs played well but didn't win a single game in Super Rugby Aotearoa 2020.

The Chiefs lost their first 2 games of Super Rugby Aotearoa in 2021, and then got their first win in the competition against the Hurricanes (35-29). In the 2023 season, the Chiefs won 13 of the 14 regular season matches, going on to host the Crusaders at FMG Stadium Waikato for their first home final since 2013. The Crusaders however remained the Super Rugby Pacific champions winning 25-20.

Franchise area and ownership

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Franchise area

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Since 1999, the Chiefs have represented the provincial unions of Bay of Plenty, Counties Manukau, King Country, Thames Valley and Waikato.

From 1996 to 1998 the Chiefs also represented North Harbour and Northland, with Counties Manukau and Thames Valley falling under the Auckland Blues catchment. Had the Blues been allowed to represent the Auckland, North Harbour, Counties Manukau and Northland unions, they would have been able to field almost a full national team due to player contracting rules at the time. In an effort by the NZRU to make things more fair, the Chiefs were given North Harbour and Northland, while the Blues were given Counties Manukau and Thames Valley. By 1999, clear regional dominance of national team players no longer existed, so North Harbour and Northland were 'returned' to the Blues in exchange for Counties Manukau and Thames Valley.

Taranaki was originally part of the Hurricanes from 1996, but switched to the Chiefs in 2013.[5]

Ownership

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The Chiefs are a wholly owned subsidiary of the NZRU. However, in an effort to bring more capital into the sport, the NZRU established a system of privatised operation in 2013. In 2014, it was announced that a new entity, 'Chiefs Rugby Club Limited Partnership', had been established, with the NZRU granting the newly formed company a seven-year licence, until the end of the 2020 season, to operate the club. Chiefs Rugby Club itself is 50% owned by the provincial unions within the Chiefs' catchment and 50% by a group of private investors.

Grounds

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Hamilton New Plymouth Rotorua Pukekohe Mount Maunganui
FMG Stadium Waikato Yarrow Stadium Rotorua Int'l Stadium Navigation Homes Stadium ASB Baypark Stadium
Capacity: 25,000 Capacity: 26,000 Capacity: 26,000 Capacity: 12,000 Capacity: 19,800

Development team

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The Chiefs have fielded a development team in competitions such as the Pacific Rugby Cup and in matches against other representative teams for several seasons. Known as the Chiefs Development XV or the Chiefs Taua, the squad is selected from the best emerging rugby talent in the Chiefs catchment area and is composed of Chiefs contracted players, wider training group members, under 20s, and selected club players.[6][7]

Honours

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Super Rugby (1996–present)

[edit]
  • Champions (2)

2012, 2013

  • Runners-up (3)

2009, 2023, 2024

  • Playoffs Appearances (12)

2004, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022

  • Super Rugby Aotearoa Runners-up (1)

2021

  • New Zealand Conference Champions (2)

2012, 2013

  • BNZ Cup Winner (2)

2013, 2014

Brisbane Global Tens

[edit]
  • Champions (1)

2017

Records and achievements

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Season standings

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A season-by-season summary of Chiefs regular season results is shown below:

Super 12 Super 14 Super Rugby Super Rugby Aotearoa Super Rugby Trans Tasman Super Rugby Pacific
Season Pos Pld W D L F A +/- BP Pts Notes
1996 6th 11 6 0 5 291 269 +22 4 28
1997 11th 11 4 0 7 272 295 −23 3 19
1998 7th 11 6 0 5 279 291 −12 5 29
1999 6th 11 5 0 6 248 301 −53 6 26
2000 10th 11 3 0 8 257 352 −95 8 20
2001 6th 11 6 0 5 301 330 −29 4 28
2002 8th 11 4 0 7 323 341 −18 8 24
2003 10th 11 2 0 9 257 274 −17 9 17
2004 4th 11 7 0 4 274 251 +23 5 33 Lost semi-final to Brumbies
2005 6th 11 5 1 5 272 250 +22 6 28
2006 7th 13 7 1 5 325 298 +27 6 36
2007 6th 13 7 1 5 373 321 +52 10 40
2008 7th 13 7 0 6 348 349 −1 6 34
2009 2nd 13 9 0 4 338 236 +102 9 45 Lost final to Bulls
2010 11th 13 4 1 8 340 418 −78 8 26
2011 10th 16 6 1 9 332 348 −16 6 40* 1
2012 1st 16 12 0 4 444 358 +86 8 64* Defeated Sharks in final1
2013 1st 16 12 0 4 458 364 +94 10 66* Defeated Brumbies in final1
2014 5th 16 8 2 6 384 378 +6 8 44 Lost qualifier to Brumbies
2015 5th 16 10 0 6 372 299 +73 8 48 Lost qualifier to Highlanders
2016 6th 15 11 0 4 491 341 +150 7 51 Lost semifinal to Hurricanes
2017 6th 15 12 1 2 433 292 +141 7 51 Lost semifinal to Crusaders
2018 5th 16 11 0 5 463 368 +95 5 49 Lost quarterfinal to Hurricanes
2019 7th 16 7 2 7 451 465 −14 4 36 Lost quarterfinal to Jaguares
2020 5th 6 4 0 2 194 128 +66 3 19 Season cancelled due to COVID-192
2020 5th 8 0 0 8 155 212 −57 5 5 No playoffs, round robin only3
2021 2nd 8 5 0 3 187 230 −43 0 20 Lost final to Crusaders4
2021 5th 5 4 0 1 170 111 +59 3 19 5
2022 3rd 14 10 0 4 453 348 +105 5 45 Lost semifinal to Crusaders
2023 2nd 14 13 0 1 487 261 +226 7 59 Lost final to Crusaders

Notes

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^1 Teams were awarded four points for a bye during the Super Rugby seasons from 2011 to 2013. Each team took two bye rounds each season. These additional 8 points are included in their season points tally.
^2 All matches after Round 7 were cancelled. the season remained incomplete and no champion was awarded.[8]
^3 Super Rugby Aotearoa was announced as a stand-in replacement competition for Super Rugby, between New Zealand Super Rugby sides. It was played as a round robin competition, with no finals. All teams played the other four teams twice, with the title awarded to the highest ranked team at the conclusion of the round robin fixtures.[9][10]
^4 Super Rugby Aotearoa adopted the same format in 2021 as the inaugural tournament in 2020, with the addition of a final between the top two ranked teams at the conclusion of the round robin stage.[11]
^5 Super Rugby Trans Tasman was a crossover competition between the teams involved in Super Rugby Aotearoa and Super Rugby AU. Each team from Super Rugby AU played each team from Super Rugby Aotearoa once, and vice versa. A final was played between the top two seeded teams at the conclusion of the round robin matches.[12][13]

Results per opposition

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Chiefs Super Rugby results vs different opponents [1]

Super Rugby
Opposition Span Played Won Drawn Lost Win%
New Zealand Blues 1996–2023 40 23 1 16 57.5%
New Zealand Crusaders 1996–2023 46 19 0 27 41.3%
New Zealand Highlanders 1996–2023 39 21 1 17 53.8%
New Zealand Hurricanes 1996–2023 42 19 2 21 45.2%
Australia Brumbies 1996–2022 29 12 1 16 41.4%
Australia Force 2006–2022 13 11 0 2 84.6%
Australia Rebels 2011–2023 10 9 0 1 90.9%
Australia Reds 1996–2022 25 14 0 11 56.0%
Australia Waratahs 1996–2023 27 14 0 13 51.9%
South Africa Bulls 1996–2019 23 13 2 8 56.5%
South Africa Cheetahs 1997–2017 11 7 3 1 63.6%
South Africa Lions 1996–2018 20 13 0 7 65.0%
South Africa Sharks 1998–2019 23 12 0 11 52.2%
South Africa Southern Kings 2013–2016 2 2 0 0 100.0%
South Africa Stormers 1996–2019 22 12 0 10 54.5%
Argentina Jaguares 2016–2019 4 2 0 2 50.0%
Japan Sunwolves 2017–2020 4 3 0 1 75.0%
Fiji Fijian Drua 2022-2023 2 2 0 0 100.0%
Samoa Tonga Moana Pasifika 2022–2023 3 3 0 0 100.0%
Overall 1996–2023 385 211 10 164 54.8%
Updated to: 29 April 2023

Current squad

[edit]
For player movements before and during the 2025 season, see List of 2024–25 Super Rugby transfers (New Zealand) § Chiefs.

The squad for the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season is:[14]

Chiefs Super Rugby squad

Props

Hookers

Locks

Loose forwards

Halfbacks (scrum-halves)

First five-eighths (fly-halves)

Midfielders (centres)

Outside backs

  • (c) denotes team captain.
  • Bold denotes internationally capped.

Current coaches and management

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Head coach

[edit]

Assistant coaches

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Management

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  • Martyn Vercoe (Team Manager)

Strength and Conditioning

[edit]
  • Christos Argus
  • Scott Joblin
  • Logan Posthumus

Medical

[edit]

Performance analysts

[edit]
  • Alistair Beeton
  • Jesse-James Tipene
  • Sam Dobson

Former coaches and captains

[edit]
See also: List of Chiefs (rugby union) players

Coaches

[edit]
Chiefs coaches by date, matches and win percentage*
Coach Period G W D L %
Brad Meurant 1996-1997 22 10 0 12 045.45
Ross Cooper 1998–2000 33 14 0 19 042.42
John Mitchell 2001 11 6 0 5 054.55
Kevin Greene 2002–2003 22 6 0 16 027.27
Ian Foster 2004–2011 106 53 5 48 050.00
Dave Rennie 2012–2017 104 71 3 30 068.27
Colin Cooper 2018–2019 34 18 2 14 052.94
Warren Gatland 2020 14 4 0 10 028.57
Clayton McMillan 2021–present 53 39 0 14 073.58
Totals (1996–present)* 384 210 10 164 054.69
Updated to: 24 April 2023

Notes:

^* Official Super Rugby competition matches only, including finals.

Captains

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References

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  1. ^ "Rangatira - te Aka Māori Dictionary".
  2. ^ "About Chiefs | Chiefs - Hamilton".
  3. ^ "2012 Super Rugby end of season awards - Sanzar". super.rugby. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Chiefs have field day in harpooning Wales for historic victory". Stuff. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  5. ^ "Canes hopeful of tempting Taranaki's finest". Stuff. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  6. ^ Burnes, Campbell (23 May 2014). "Rugby: Blues side offer an ideal stern challenge for Juniors". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 23 May 2014.
  7. ^ "Blues XV v Chiefs Development". Getty Images. 13 March 2007.
  8. ^ Decent, Tom (14 March 2020). "All Super Rugby matches to be cancelled after Sunday's fixtures". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  9. ^ "Super Rugby Aotearoa draw and 'experimental' rules". Otago Daily Times. 12 June 2020. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  10. ^ "Covid 19 coronavirus: New Zealand Rugby confirm details for 'Super Rugby Aotearoa' at alert level 2". NZ Herald. 7 May 2020. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  11. ^ "20 NZ derbies, one final! Super Rugby Aotearoa draw announced for 2021". www.rugby.com.au. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  12. ^ "2021 set for thrilling Trans-Tasman crossover". www.rugby.com.au. 12 November 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  13. ^ "Super Rugby Trans-Tasman kick off times and locations confirmed for 2021". www.rugby.com.au. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  14. ^ "Gallagher Chiefs name cohesive 2025 squad" (Press release). Chiefs. 11 November 2024. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  15. ^ "Clayton McMillan appointed as interim head coach for 2021 Gallagher Chiefs" (Press release). 28 February 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
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