Fabian Holland (rugby union)
NZ international rugby union player
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fabian Holland (born 9 October 2002) is a professional Dutch rugby union player who plays as a lock for Otago in New Zealand's National Provincial Championship (NPC) competition[1] and for the Highlanders in Super Rugby.[2][3][4]
| Born | 9 October 2002 Alkmaar, North Holland, Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 204 cm (6 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 124 kg (19 st 7 lb; 273 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Christchurch Boys' High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Otago | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born in the Netherlands, he represents the New Zealand national team, having lived in the country since 2019.
Early life
Holland was born in Alkmaar in the Netherlands,[5] and grew up in the nearby village of Akersloot. Holland began playing rugby at Castricumse Rugby Club at age five. In 2014, the All Black Sevens team held a training camp at Holland's club, further inspiring his pursuit of rugby and a passion for the All Blacks.[6]
Holland moved to New Zealand in early 2019 to study and play rugby at Christchurch Boys' High School for what was initially meant to be a stay of six months.[7]
Career
After leaving high school, In 2021 Holland moved to Dunedin and signed with the Highlanders, joining the under-20 squad. He also joined the Dunedin Rugby Football Club (Inc) where he has played for the Premier team when available.[7][8][9]
In 2021, he signed a high performance contract with the Highlanders and played for the Highlanders development team, known as the Bravehearts.[7] On 23 June 2022, the Highlanders announced that Holland had signed a three-year (fully professional) contract with the Dunedin-based franchise.[2]
International career
Holland played for the New Zealand under-20 team in 2021[10] and the New Zealand Barbarians under-18 team in 2020.[11] In 2020, Holland made the New Zealand Schools team.
In June 2025, Holland was named in the All Blacks squad for the 2025 France tour of New Zealand. Later that year Holland was also capped for all six games of The Rugby Championship and made several appearances during the end-of-year internationals After a successful debut season with the All Blacks, Holland was named Men's 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year by World Rugby, beating other nominees Ethan Hooker, Henry Pollock and Joseph-Aukuso Sua'ali'i.[12]