Central Vikings Rugby Union


Central Vikings Rugby Union was a New Zealand rugby union team that played in the second division of the NPC for two seasons in 1997 and 1998. The team, formed from the merger of the Hawke's Bay and Manawatu unions, featured current and future All Blacks and a former All Black in coach Frank Oliver. It came second in its division in 1997, and first in 1998, and would have progressed to the first division. However, following financial trouble it split back into the two separate unions.
Reviving the Central Vikings as a Super Rugby team was floated in 2016, but this did not occur.

History

The Central Vikings Rugby Union was founded in December 1996 with the merger of the Hawke's Bay and Manawatu unions. The Vikings were formed with the hopes of lifting themselves out of the 2nd division and to be competitive in the 1st division. The Central Vikings had two All Blacks in the team which included Bull Allen and Christian Cullen as well as featuring various Super 12 players such as Chiefs star Mark Ranby who later became an All Black himself. The Central Vikings finished 2nd in 1997 when they were beaten 63–10 by Northland but even if they had won, they weren't allowed to progress into the 1st division. They finished 1st in 1998 when they beat the then Nelson Bays team, now part of Tasman Makos. They were subsequently allowed to progress to the 1st division. The Vikings however got into financial trouble and they split back to Hawke's Bay and Manawatu for the 1999 season.
The Vikings were largely hindered in their second season after not only losing All Black legend Christian Cullen but also losing the then All Blacks Coach John Hart after Hart was advised he could not coach NPC, Super Rugby and All Black teams at the same time. Despite of these disadvantages the Vikings went on to win the second division and were picked to be a major force in the first division before financial problems prevented them from advancing and ultimately caused the end of the Vikings.
With the announcement that New Zealand might receive a 6th Super Franchise in the SANZAR Super Rugby competition beginning 2016, the Hawke's Bay union announced its interest in forming this franchise together with Manawatu, effectively resurrecting the Central Vikings brand as a Super Rugby franchise. This never came to fruition and instead the Super Rugby added the South African Southern Kings, the Argentinan Jaguares and the Japanese Sunwolves.

Controversy

In December 1997 a special meeting of the Hawke's Bay Rugby Football Union was held to decide the future of the Central Vikings Rugby Union. Eight of the Hawke's Bay Union's 21 clubs called the meeting to seek agreement for Hawke's Bay to withdraw from the Vikings. A vote on a resolution calling for Hawke's Bay to withdraw from the combined Hawke's Bay–Manawatu team was lost, 7–12, in a secret ballot. Once the resolution was lost, HBRFU president Tom Mulligan said there was no reason for the meeting to continue. The Vikings were then given the all-clear to continue as an NPC second division rugby team.

Fixtures/Results

1997 Season

The Central Vikings played their first match against Fiji in Palmerston North on June 2, 1997.
DateCompHome teamScoreAway teamScore-
02-05-97PS Central Vikings10 Fiji19-
06-08-97PS Central Vikings38 Wellington21-
23-08-97NPC Central Vikings72 Thames Valley0-
30-08-97NPC Wanganui6 Central Vikings42-
06-09-97NPC King Country35 Central Vikings41-
13-09-97NPC Central Vikings90 Nelson Bays21-
20-09-97NPC South Canterbury7 Central Vikings87-
26-09-97NPC Northland42 Central Vikings13-
03-10-97NPC Central Vikings10 Bay of Plenty31-
11-10-97NPC Central Vikings95 Wairarapa Bush12-
19-10-97NPC Bay of Plenty6 Central Vikings29Semi final
25-10-97NPC Northland63 Central Vikings10Final

Former Manawatu rugby captain and All Black trialist Andrew McMaster returned from Ireland, where he had four years coaching the Monkstown club, to join the Central Vikings as the new Vikings assistant coach. The Central Vikings had a non-championship match against Southland on 1 August 1998. Southland only just managed to hold on to the game, although they scored five tries to the Vikings two.
Southland 31
Central Vikings 29. Halftime 19-13 to Southland.
DateCompHome teamScoreAway teamScore-
01-07-98PS Central Vikings30 New Zealand Marist XV29-
01-08-98PS Central Vikings29 Southland31-
22-08-98NPC Central Vikings79 Wairarapa Bush12-
29-08-98NPC Central Vikings43 Marlborough11-
05-09-98NPC Thames Valley5 Central Vikings52-
12-09-98NPC Nelson Bays18 Central Vikings34-
19-09-98NPC Central Vikings25 Wanganui12-
26-09-98NPC Wairarapa Bush3 Central Vikings55-
03-10-98NPC Bay of Plenty19 Central Vikings37-
10-10-98NPC Central Vikings29 King Country8-
17-10-98NPC Central Vikings23 King Country20Semi final
24-11-98NPC Central Vikings33 Bay of Plenty18Final

Frank Oliver was the coach of the Central Vikings in the two seasons they played in the second division of the NPC 1997–98. In 1998 former Manawatu rugby captain and All Black trialist Andrew McMaster joined the Central Vikings as the Assistant coach, after four years of coaching the Monkstown club in Ireland. Former All Black and Manawatu flanker Mark Shaw was set to replace Frank Oliver as the head coach of the Central Vikings, however the Vikings split before playing in the 1999 season so Shaw did not coach them through the season.

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