Healthy jump in junior playing numbers in Wellington
To spot the next generation of Ma’a Nonus, Cory Janes and Rodney So’oialos, head down to your local park on a Saturday morning.
That’s because junior rugby in Wellington is thriving, with the 4,817 players aged 12 and under playing in the region in 2009 a six percent increase on the same number playing the game last year.
The increase in junior players in Wellington mirrors an overall trend nationally that has seen a rise in playing numbers in New Zealand of four percent.
The increase in the under 13 age group in Wellington from 4,558 in 2008 to 4,817 in 2009 also tracks the national trend of an increase in juniors attracted to the game, with a six percent increase throughout New Zealand from 68,897 to 73,209.
NZRU General Manager Community Rugby Brent Anderson welcomed the increase in juniors playing rugby as a positive sign that the game is continuing to have an important place in New Zealand communities.
“Following last year’s small increase, this year’s four per cent increase is great news after a year of many challenges. The increase is a testament to the initiatives in the Community Rugby Plan and the ongoing hard work of our PUs to deliver the game to their communities,” Mr Anderson said.
“Opportunities are being provided for kids to enter the game via our Small Blacks and Rippa Rugby programmes and the kids are availing themselves of these opportunities.”
There are 145,472 registered rugby players in New Zealand in 2009, representing an annual increase of 5,193 players registered with New Zealand’s 26 Provincial Unions.