Founded in 1883, the Pirates Rugby Club Invercargill was one of the pioneering football clubs of Southland, helping establish organized rugby in Invercargill alongside the early Invercargill (“Blues”) and Star clubs.
Today, the historic club’s legacy lives on as part of Pirates Old Boys RFC (the Hawks), operating out of Surrey/Lithgow Park in Invercargill.
Key Historical Highlights
• Founding Era (1883): Formed in March 1883 by a group of about 30 young men seeking competitive fixtures in Invercargill. The club quickly grew into a provincial force, winning early local premiership honors in 1886, 1887, and 1889—even before the official formation of Rugby Southland in 1887.
• Breakaway & Rivalry (1928): In 1928, a group of breakaway members left Pirates to establish the Old Boys Rugby Club (initially intended for alumni of Southland Boys’ High School). This created a decades-long inner-city rivalry between the two Southland powerhouses.
• Galbraith Shield Success: Pirates built a strong championship tradition in Southland’s premier competition, lifting the coveted Galbraith Shield across multiple eras—including titles in 1903, 1949, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1976, and 1983.
The Full-Circle Amalgamation (2001 & 2011)
By the late 1990s, changing player demographics led to a famous twist of local rugby history:
• 2001 (Eastern Suburbs): At the end of the 2000 season, the two historic rivals that had split apart 72 years earlier—Pirates and Old Boys—agreed to merge. To ease the cultural transition, they initially competed under the name Eastern Suburbs Rugby Club with a Hawk logo.
• 2011 (Pirates Old Boys): A decade later, the club officially rebranded as Pirates Old Boys RFC to openly honor and celebrate the combined history of both foundational sides.
Combined Legacy & Representative Success
Across their shared and individual histories, the combined ledger of Pirates and Old Boys boasts a formidable footprint in New Zealand rugby:
• 19 All Blacks produced through the combined lineage.
• 6 New Zealand Rugby presidents and national team managers.
• Dozens of Southland Stags provincial representatives.
The modern Pirates Old Boys Hawks remain one of Southland’s top premier clubs, continuing to capture Galbraith Shield titles into the modern era.
