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Sport | Rugby league |
---|---|
Founded | 2008 |
Administrator | New Zealand Rugby League |
No. of teams | 6 |
Country | Cook Islands Fiji New Zealand Papua New Guinea Samoa Tonga |
Most recent champion(s) | New Zealand |
Most titles | New Zealand (5 defences) |
The Peter Leitch QSM Challenge Trophy (often shortened to "the Peter Leitch Challenge Trophy") is a rugby league challenge trophy that is contested when the New Zealand national rugby league team play a Pacific island side in non-Rugby League World Cup internationals. [1] Rugby League Four Nations games, however, do count and the challenge trophy has been contested at both the 2010 and 2014 editions. The trophy is named after New Zealand businessmen, philanthropist and Rugby League advocate Peter Leitch.
On 15 October 2008 New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) chairman Ray Haffenden announced that the Kiwis vs Tonga Test Match would be used to launch the Peter Leitch QSM Challenge Trophy. The NZRL wished to "acknowledged the close affinity and involvement [Leitch] has had with the Pacific Island and rugby league communities in New Zealand for many years." [2]
While held infrequently it was the NZRL's intention that the trophy will "be at stake in future internationals between the Kiwis and our Pacific neighbours.” [3]
The 2011 edition was cancelled by the NZRL due to a high number of injured New Zealand players. [4] This match would have been the first Rugby League test between the Cooks Islands and New Zealand.
Country | Challenges | Defences | Losses |
---|---|---|---|
New Zealand | 6 | 6 | 0 |
Tonga | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Samoa | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Papua New Guinea | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Cook Islands | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fiji | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. The team's colours are black and white, with the dominant colour being black, and the players perform a haka before every match they play as a challenge to their opponents. The New Zealand Kiwis are currently first in the IRL World Rankings. Since the 1980s, most New Zealand representatives have been based overseas, in the professional National Rugby League and Super League competitions. Before that, players were selected entirely from clubs in domestic New Zealand leagues.
The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.
The Tonga national rugby league team represents Tonga in rugby league football. They are currently the fourth ranked team in the world. The team was formed to compete in the 1986 Pacific Cup, and have competed at five Rugby League World Cups, starting in 1995 and continuing consecutively until the most recent tournament in 2017, where they achieved their best ever result as semi-finalists.
The Cook Islands national rugby league team has been participating in international rugby league football competition since 1986. The team is controlled by the governing body for rugby league in Cook Islands, Cook Islands Rugby League Association (CIRLA), which is currently a member of the Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation (APRLC). They are currently ranked 23rd in the RLIF World Rankings.
The Samoa national rugby league team represents Samoa in rugby league football and has been participating in international competition since 1986. Known as Western Samoa prior to 1997, the team is administered by Rugby League Samoa and are nicknamed Toa Samoa.
The Pacific Cup was a rugby league football competition for national teams from the Pacific region.
The Anzac Test is an annual rugby league football test match played annually between Australia and New Zealand for the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy.
Sir Peter Charles Leitch, also known as The Mad Butcher, is a New Zealand businessman. Although well known in New Zealand for the chain of butcheries he founded and is currently the brand ambassador of, Leitch is arguably just as well known for his charity, fundraising work and his promotion of rugby league.
The 2009 New Zealand rugby league season was the 102nd season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the second season of the Bartercard Premiership competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The Canterbury Bulls won the minor premiership and then the premiership by defeating Auckland 26–20 in the Grand Final.
The 2010 Rugby League Four Nations tournament was played in Australia and New Zealand in October and November 2010. The tournament was the second time the Four Nations had been held, following on from the 2009 edition held in England and France.
Sam Mataora is a Cook Island professional rugby league footballer. He played for the Canberra Raiders and Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League. His positions were prop and second-row.
The 2011 Rugby League Four Nations tournament was the third staging of the Rugby League Four Nations tournament and was played in England and Wales during October and November 2011, which was contested by regular contestants Australia, England and New Zealand, in addition to Wales, who had qualified for their first Four Nations by winning the 2010 European Cup. The tournament saw the return of international rugby league to London's Wembley Stadium for the first time since 1997, with a double-header played on 5 November 2011. Australia won the tournament, defeating England in the final at Elland Road, Leeds, on 19 November 2011. The match was the last of the 17-year professional career of Australia's captain Darren Lockyer.
The 2011 New Zealand rugby league season was the 104th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the National Competition run by the New Zealand Rugby League. The premier teams competed for the Albert Baskerville Trophy, which was won by the Auckland Pride when they defeated the South Island Scorpions 44 - 34 in the Grand Final.
The 2014 Rugby League Four Nations tournament was the fourth staging of the Rugby League Four Nations tournament played in Australia and New Zealand over three weeks from Saturday, 25 October to Saturday, 15 November 2014. The series was contested by regular participants Australia, England and New Zealand, joined by Samoa, having won their Pacific qualifier against Fiji. New Zealand won the tournament, defeating Australia in the final at Wellington's Westpac Stadium on Saturday 15 November.
Solomone Kata is a professional rugby union footballer who plays for the ACT Brumbies in Super Rugby.
The 2018 Baskerville Shield was a three match rugby league series between New Zealand and England for the Baskerville Shield. The hosts, England, won the series by two matches to one.
International rugby league matches were played throughout 2018.
The 2013 Pacific Rugby League International was created in advance of the international 2013 Rugby League World Cup campaigns played between Samoa and Tonga. Tonga won the test match 36–4. Tonga's Samisoni Langi won the player of the match award, scoring 16 points from two attempts and four conversions.
The 2019 Oceania Cup was the inaugural edition of the Oceania Cup. Contested by six teams, the competition began in June and concluded in November.
International rugby league matches will be played throughout 2019.
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