The Blaketown Rugby Club is a legendary, fiercely proud grassroots club based in the coastal suburb of Blaketown in Greymouth. Competing in the West Coast Rugby Football Union, Blaketown has earned a reputation over its century-long lifespan as an absolute powerhouse of “Coasters” rugby.
Foundation & The Early Ascent
1923 Roots: The club was born in March 1923 when 30 local residents gathered in the Blaketown School gymnasium. Led by elected President Tom Collins, they registered a single 4th Grade team—the lowest competitive tier at the time.
Rapid Growth: The club expanded at lightning speed. By 1924, they fielded three junior grades. Their junior side completely dominated the late 1920s, winning consecutive titles from 1925 to 1928, which forced their promotion to the Senior ranks in 1929. Blaketown has fielded a Senior team every single year since.
Building McLean Park: In 1930, the club constructed a massive training shed near Coakley Street. By the mid-1950s, through immense volunteer labor and equipment donations from local working-class supporters, they transformed McLean Park into the club’s permanent, dedicated home ground.
The “All Nations” War Era
World War II hit the West Coast hard, draining the region of young men and putting grassroots rugby at a massive low ebb. Blaketown survived using a highly unconventional recruitment strategy: they became known as the “All Nations” team. Club members would literally wait on the Greymouth wharf for merchant and shipping vessels to tie up, convincing international seamen to come ashore and fill out the weekend’s match-day roster.
The Coast Powerhouse: 25+ Championships
Following the war, Blaketown evolved into arguably the most dominant club team on the Coast. They won their first Senior West Coast Championship in 1945.
Between 1945 and 2015, Blaketown amassed a staggering 25 Senior Championship titles. Their most dominant eras included a three-peat in the mid-1970s (1974, 1975, 1976) and a massive modern golden run where they won five titles in six years between 2004 and 2009.
Notable Players & Leadership
While a Blaketown player has famously never been capped as an active All Black, the club has produced remarkable elite rugby and league talent, as well as high-profile national administrators:
Allan McEnaney: The club’s most celebrated home-grown player of his era. He was selected as a New Zealand Colt in 1955, touring Australia and Ceylon alongside rugby icons Colin Meads and Wilson Whineray, finishing the tour as the top try-scorer.
Paul Griffin: A former Blaketown junior who achieved international stardom further afield, moving to Europe and playing 42 test matches at halfback for the Italian National Team between 2004 and 2009.
Dual-Code Reps: Hard-nosed players like M. Scandrett, W. McNeight, and V. Goodall represented the South Island, with McNeight and Goodall also successfully transitioning to play internationally for the New Zealand Kiwis rugby league side.
John Sturgeon: Blaketown is immensely proud of its administrative legacy. John Sturgeon, a deeply respected former Blaketown club president, rose through the ranks to become the President of the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) and famously managed the All Blacks.
Today, Blaketown remains the beating heart of its coastal Greymouth community—built on a legacy of volunteer grit, a tough playing style, and a heavily decorated trophy cabinet.
