Invercargill Rugby Club (Blues) Explained

Teamname:	Blues
Fullname:	Invercargill Blues RC
Ground:	Balmoral Drive
President:	Darryl Olphert
Captain:	Sam Muir
Coach:	Ratu Filimoni Tagicakibau, Mark Crosbie Management - Tori Clarke, Greg Payne
League:	Premier Division, Womens, Bs, Cs
Pattern B1:	_black_hoops
Pattern Ra1:	_black_hoops
Pattern La1:	_black_hoops
Pattern So1:	_black_hoops
Leftarm1:	0000CC
Body1:	0000CC
Rightarm1:	0000CC
Shorts1:	0000CC
Socks1:	0000CC

Blues RC (Invercargill) is an amateur rugby team that plays in the Premier Division of Southland Club Rugby. Founded in 1874, the club has a prestigious history, and it boasts 31 Galbraith Shield titles including a record period of eight in a row.

The club also has a strong women's rugby team.^[1]

Notable players

Blues has had many players achieve Southland Stags honours as well as a number of All Blacks and other New Zealand representatives.

The following have represented the All Blacks.

Player	All Black number	Year of All Black debut
Henry Braddon^[2]	2	1884
Simon Culhane^[3]	946	1995
Ethan de Groot^[4] ^[5]	1197	2021
Elliot Dixon^[6]	1149	2016
Les George^[7]	439	1938
Paul Henderson	897	1989
James O'Donnell^[8]	9	1884
Steven Pokere^[9]	825	1981

The club has also had a representative of the New Zealand women's national rugby union team (Black Ferns), Amy Rule.^[10]

Other notable players include:

• Michael Fatialofa^[11]
• David Henderson^[12]
• Kendrick Lynn^[13]
• Jay Renton, New Zealand under-20 representative^{[14] [15]}
• Daniel Townson^[16]
• James Wilson^[17]

Galbraith Shield victories

• 1911 & 1912
• 1930 & 1931
• 1936 & 1937
• 1939
• 1945-1947
• 1958
• 1964
• 1967
• 1970 & 1971
• 1974
• 1977
• 1981-1983
• 1987-1994
• 2003
• 2005
• 2019

See also

• Blues Invercargill
• Southland Rugby Clubs
• Howitt, Bob. Article: Southland's oldest club. Rugby News magazine (November 2023). Charlotte Smulders (Publisher), New Zealand.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Marist knock over previously unbeaten Blues to claim women's title. Logan. Savory. 16 June 2019. Stuff.
2. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
3. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
4. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
5. Web site: The Eastern Southland kid ready to step onto rugby's biggest stage. Logan. Savory. 21 October 2023.
6. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
7. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
8. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
9. Web site: Stats | allblacks.com. stats.allblacks.com.
10. Web site: Amy McKenzie Rule | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
11. Web site: Michael J Fatialofa | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
12. Web site: David Bruce Henderson | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
13. Web site: Kendrick Graeme Lynn | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
14. Web site: Jay L Renton | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
15. Web site: Teenage halfback Jay Renton's rise continues with Highlanders opportunity. Logan. Savory. 20 November 2017. Stuff.
16. Web site: Club Stalwarts: Blues flanker Daniel Townson just keeps trucking. Logan. Savory. 14 July 2020. Stuff.
17. Web site: James William Rangi Wilson | New Zealand Rugby History. VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. www.vcsnet.co.nz. www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.