Matatū
NZ women's rugby union team, based in Christchurch
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matatū is a New Zealand women's professional rugby union team that competes in the Super Rugby Aupiki competition. Matatū represents the South Island, specifically the regions covered by the Crusaders and the Highlanders.[1] They were crowned the champions of the 2023 Super Rugby Aupiki season.[2]
| |
| Union | New Zealand Rugby |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2021 |
| Location | Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Region | Tasman Canterbury Otago |
| Coach | Blair Baxter |
| Captain | Alana Bremner |
| Most appearances | Georgia Ponsonby (21) Alana Bremner (21) |
| Top scorer | Renee Holmes (59) |
| Most tries | Lucy Jenkins (8) Winnie Palamo (8) |
| League | Super Rugby Aupiki |
| 2025 | Runners-up |
| Official website | |
| www | |
History
Name, logo and colours
The team's name, logo and colours were officially unveiled on 12 October 2021. The name, logo and colours were created by a local artist and designer Morgan Mathews-Hale in partnership with Te Whaka Ako Limited. Matatū is a name gifted by Ngāi Tūāhuriri, which is one of five primary hapū of the Ngai Tahu iwi.[1]
The name Matatū, literally meaning "alert or vigilant", has been gifted to symbolise the teams tūmanawa (determined sacrifice), tūaho (legacy), tūhono (connections) and tūtira (unity) in representing Te Waka o Aoraki (the South Island).[3]
Inaugural Super Rugby Aupiki season
2022
Matatū played their first game against the Chiefs Manawa in a pre-season match ahead of the inaugural Super Rugby Aupiki season at the Owen Delany Park in Taupō. Liv McGoverne kicked the teams first-ever points and Julia Gorinski scored their first try. The Chiefs Manawa won the match 28–20.[4][5] Matatū and the Chiefs Manawa met five days later to play the inaugural Super Rugby Aupiki match on 10 March 2022. It was a historical moment for Matatū as this was their first team to take the field. It was a tense match but the Chiefs Manawa edged Matatū 17–15 to win the second match between the teams.[6][7][8]
Matatū next played the Blues Women in round 2 of the competition, but lost the game 10–21.[9][10] In the final round, they faced the Hurricanes Poua at FMG Stadium Waikato in Hamilton, and were defeated 8–16 to finish last overall.[11][12][13]
2023
Matatū recorded their first Super Rugby Aupiki win after defeating the Blues Women 33–31 in the opening round of the competition.[14][15] In round 2 and 3, they lost to the Hurricanes Poua 24–25 and the Chiefs Manawa 38–46.[16][17] They met the Blues again, but this time in the semi-finals. They defeated them 26–23.[18][19] They claimed their first title after defeating the Chiefs Manawa 33–31 in the Grand final in Hamilton at FMG Stadium Waikato.[20][2]
2024
Matatū's 2024 title defense started off with a 17–24 loss to the Blues Women in Invercargill.[21] It was followed by two more defeats to the Hurricanes Poua 29–36 in Wellington and Chiefs Manawa 22–38 in Hamilton.[22][23] They lost again to the eventual champions Blues Women in Auckland 17–27,[24][25] before defeating the Hurricanes Poua 37–17, and Chiefs Manawa 22–20 in both rematches.[26][27]
2025
In 2025, Matatū defeated the Chiefs Manawa (31–25) in Hamilton to kickstart their campaign.[28] They then went on to defeat the Hurricanes Poua with a (29–7) bonus point victory in Christchurch.[29] Matatū suffered their first loss of the season with a (7–28) defeat to the defending champions Blues Women in Nelson.[30] They defeated the Hurricanes Poua again with a (43–24) win in Wellington.[31] They defeated the Blues Women (37–29) in Whangārei to hand them their first loss of the season.[32] Matatū were defeated by the Chiefs Manawa (22–28) in Christchurch in the last game of the regular season.[33] Matatū were defeated by the Blues Women (19–26) in the Final at Eden Park in Auckland.[34]
Overall record
| Coach | Period | G | W | L | D | P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Blues Women |
2022– | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 38% |
| Chiefs Manawa |
2022– | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 43% |
| Hurricanes Poua |
2022– | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 50% |
| (2022–present)* | 21 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 43% | |
| Updated to: 12 April 2025 | ||||||
Notes:
Season standings
A summary of Matatu's results in the regular season is shown below:
Season Pos Pld W L D F A +/- BP Pts Notes 2022 4th 3 0 3 0 31 56 -25 1 1 Finished 4th overall 2023 2nd 3 1 2 0 95 102 -7 1 5 Defeated the Chiefs Manawa in the final 2024 3rd 6 2 4 0 144 162 -18 3 11 Finished 3rd overall 2025 2nd 6 4 2 0 169 141 +28 2 19 Lost to the Blues Women in the final
Current squad
On 31 October 2024, the squad for the 2025 Super Rugby Aupiki season was announced.[35][36]
| Matatū Super Rugby Aupiki squad | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Props
Hookers
Locks
|
Loose forwards
Halfbacks (Scrum-halves)
Five-eighths (Fly-halves) |
Midfielders (centres)
Outside backs
|
| (cc) Denotes team co-captains, Bold denotes internationally capped, SP denotes a shadow player[further explanation needed] and ST indicated short-term cover. | ||
Coaching staff
In 2021, Blair Baxter was announced as Head Coach, with Whitney Hansen and Tony Christie appointed as the two assistant coaches.[37] Baxter stepped down from head coach after the 2023 season.[38] Whitney Hansen was named as Matatū's Head coach for the 2024 season.[39]
- Head Coach: Whitney Hansen
- Assistant Coach: Simon Kneebone
- Assistant Coach: Jason Kjestrup
- Assistant Coach: Blair Baxter
Captain
| Captain | Years |
|---|---|
| Alana Bremner |
2022 – present |
Coaching record
| Coach | Period | G | W | L | D | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blair Baxter |
2022–2023 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 38% |
| Whitney Hansen |
2024–2025 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 46% |
| Blair Baxter |
2026– | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| Totals (2022–present)* | 21 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 43% | |
| Updated to: 12 April 2025 | ||||||
Notes: