Central Vikings Rugby Union

Central Vikings Rugby Union was a New Zealand rugby union team that played in the second division of the NPC for two seasons in 1997 and 1998. The team, formed from the merger of the Hawke's Bay and Manawatu unions, featured current and future All Blacks and a former All Black in coach Frank Oliver. It came second in its division in 1997, and first in 1998, and would have progressed to the first division. However, following financial trouble it split back into the two separate unions.

Central Vikings Rugby Union
Nickname(s)The Vikings
Founded1996
RegionHawke's Bay
Manawatu
Ground(s)McLean Park
Palmerston North Showgrounds
Coach(es)Frank Oliver
Captain(s)Bull Allen
Most capsOrcades Crawford
Tom Deighton (26)
Top scorerJarrod Cunningham (382)
Most triesRoger Randle (16)
League(s)NPC
19981st

Reviving the Central Vikings as a Super Rugby team was floated in 2016, but this did not occur.

History

The Central Vikings Rugby Union was founded in December 1996 with the merger of the Hawke's Bay and Manawatu unions. The Vikings were formed with the hopes of lifting themselves out of the 2nd division and to be competitive in the 1st division. The Central Vikings had two All Blacks in the team which included Bull Allen and Christian Cullen as well as featuring various Super 12 players such as Chiefs star Mark Ranby who later became an All Black himself. The Central Vikings finished 2nd in 1997 when they were beaten 63–10 by Northland but even if they had won, they weren't allowed to progress into the 1st division. They finished 1st in 1998 when they beat the then Nelson Bays team, now part of Tasman Makos. They were subsequently allowed to progress to the 1st division. The Vikings however got into financial trouble and they split back to Hawke's Bay and Manawatu for the 1999 season.

The Vikings were largely hindered in their second season after not only losing All Black legend Christian Cullen but also losing the then All Blacks Coach John Hart after Hart was advised he could not coach NPC, Super Rugby and All Black teams at the same time. Despite of these disadvantages the Vikings went on to win the second division and were picked to be a major force in the first division before financial problems prevented them from advancing and ultimately caused the end of the Vikings.

With the announcement that New Zealand might receive a 6th Super Franchise in the SANZAR Super Rugby competition beginning 2016, the Hawke's Bay union announced its interest in forming this franchise together with Manawatu, effectively resurrecting the Central Vikings brand as a Super Rugby franchise. This never came to fruition and instead the Super Rugby added the South African Southern Kings, the Argentinan Jaguares and the Japanese Sunwolves.

Controversy

In December 1997 a special meeting of the Hawke's Bay Rugby Football Union was held to decide the future of the Central Vikings Rugby Union. Eight of the Hawke's Bay Union's 21 clubs called the meeting to seek agreement for Hawke's Bay to withdraw from the Vikings. A vote on a resolution calling for Hawke's Bay to withdraw from the combined Hawke's Bay–Manawatu team was lost, 7–12, in a secret ballot. Once the resolution was lost, HBRFU president Tom Mulligan said there was no reason for the meeting to continue. The Vikings were then given the all-clear to continue as an NPC second division rugby team.

Fixtures/Results

1997 Season

The Central Vikings played their first match against Fiji in Palmerston North on June 2, 1997.

Date Comp Home team Score Away team Score
02-05-97 PS Central Vikings 10 Fiji 19
06-08-97 PS Central Vikings 38 Wellington 21
23-08-97 NPC Central Vikings 72 Thames Valley 0
30-08-97 NPC Wanganui 6 Central Vikings 42
06-09-97 NPC King Country 35 Central Vikings 41
13-09-97 NPC Central Vikings 90 Nelson Bays 21
20-09-97 NPC South Canterbury 7 Central Vikings 87
26-09-97 NPC Northland 42 Central Vikings 13
03-10-97 NPC Central Vikings 10 Bay of Plenty 31
11-10-97 NPC Central Vikings 95 Wairarapa Bush 12
19-10-97 NPC Bay of Plenty 6 Central Vikings 29 Semi final
25-10-97 NPC Northland 63 Central Vikings 10 Final
  • Note - PS = Pre Season, NPC = National Provincial Championship
  • Overall Season standing: 2nd

1998 Season

Former Manawatu rugby captain and All Black trialist Andrew McMaster returned from Ireland, where he had four years coaching the Monkstown club, to join the Central Vikings as the new Vikings assistant coach. The Central Vikings had a non-championship match against Southland on 1 August 1998. Southland only just managed to hold on to the game, although they scored five tries to the Vikings two. Southland 31 (P Taylor 2, P Alatini, B Leckner, P Miller tries; A Kimura 3 cons)

Central Vikings 29 (A Powdrell, D Bellamy tries; J Cunningham 2 cons, 5 pens). Halftime 19-13 to Southland.

Date Comp Home team Score Away team Score
01-07-98 PS Central Vikings 30 New Zealand Marist XV 29
01-08-98 PS Central Vikings 29 Southland 31
22-08-98 NPC Central Vikings 79 Wairarapa Bush 12
29-08-98 NPC Central Vikings 43 Marlborough 11
05-09-98 NPC Thames Valley 5 Central Vikings 52
12-09-98 NPC Nelson Bays 18 Central Vikings 34
19-09-98 NPC Central Vikings 25 Wanganui 12
26-09-98 NPC Wairarapa Bush 3 Central Vikings 55
03-10-98 NPC Bay of Plenty 19 Central Vikings 37
10-10-98 NPC Central Vikings 29 King Country 8
17-10-98 NPC Central Vikings 23 King Country 20 Semi final
24-11-98 NPC Central Vikings 33 Bay of Plenty 18 Final
  • Note - PS = Pre Season, NPC = National Provincial Championship
  • Overall Season standing: 1st

Players

Coaches
  • Frank Oliver - 1997–98 (Coach)
  • Andrew McMaster - 1998 (Assistant Coach)
  • Mark Shaw - 1999 (Coach)

Frank Oliver was the coach of the Central Vikings in the two seasons they played in the second division of the NPC 1997–98. In 1998 former Manawatu rugby captain and All Black trialist Andrew McMaster joined the Central Vikings as the Assistant coach, after four years of coaching the Monkstown club in Ireland. Former All Black and Manawatu flanker Mark Shaw was set to replace Frank Oliver as the head coach of the Central Vikings, however the Vikings split before playing in the 1999 season so Shaw did not coach them through the season.

Sponsors
  • Lowe Walker (originally signed a three-year contract, however they left the Vikings during 1998)
  • Lion Red

References
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