The Foresters Rugby Club in New Zealand holds a unique place in grassroots rugby history. Rather than being a traditional town club that played in weekly local competitions, it was established as a highly prestigious invitation and fundraising side in the King Country province.
Here is the history of the Foresters in New Zealand.
Foundation and Purpose (1952)
The Foresters Rugby Club was established in 1952. Its primary, foundational objective was philanthropic: to raise critical funds for the King Country Primary Schools Rugby Football Union.
Specifically, the money raised by the Foresters went directly toward supporting primary school rugby development and funding the region’s junior representative teams competing in the historic Northern Region Roller Mills Tournament (New Zealand’s oldest primary school rugby tournament, running since 1925).
The North vs. South Divide
Because King Country is a vast, rugged, and geographically spread-out region in the central North Island, junior rugby fundraising was divided into two distinct invitation sides:
• The Foresters: Represented South King Country, drawing its administrative support, organizers, and invitation players primarily from the Taumarunui and Tūrangi sub-unions.
• The Olympians: Acted as the northern counterpart, representing North King Country (specifically the Ōtorohanga and Maniapoto sub-unions).
First-Class Fixtures & Notable Matches
To generate crowd interest and maximize fundraising, the Foresters would assemble star-studded invitation sides—often featuring prominent local senior players, provincial stars, and veterans playing out the twilight of their careers.
They regularly played high-profile exhibition fixtures against the main King Country provincial team, usually hosted at the Taumarunui Domain. Because these games featured top-tier talent playing with classic exhibition flair, they were officially recognized as first-class fixtures.
• The 1961 Clash: On October 7, 1961, a famous match between the Foresters and King Country was held at the Taumarunui Domain, drawing a massive local crowd and producing a dedicated 12-page match day programme that remains a collector’s item for NZ rugby historians.
• The 1964 Draw: On October 3, 1964, the Foresters played an incredibly thrilling 25–25 draw against the full King Country provincial side in Taumarunui.
Legacy
The Foresters epitomized the classic era of New Zealand rugby, where the sport’s top senior players routinely gave back to the grassroots. Through their exhibition matches in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, the Foresters ensured that generations of young King Country schoolboys had the boots, gear, and travel funding required to wear the provincial jersey.
