There's Something in the Water

SOMETHING IN THE WATER? Petone Rugby Club, in Wellington, has produced the second greatest number of All Blacks of any club in New Zealand.

On the northern shores of Wellington Harbour lies the region’s oldest settlement and also its most successful Rugby club.

Settler ships landed in Petone and set up a community in the picturesque spot, before moving to what is now Wellington city a few months later. What they didn’t know then was that the hardy nature of the swamp habitat that Petone is built on was going to live on in its local Rugby players.

Having just celebrated its 125th centenary, Petone Rugby Football Club has one of the greatest club Rugby heritages in New Zealand. With 30 All Blacks and 17 Maori All Blacks dotting its history, spokesman Wayne Smith says it has a strong backbone that was evident in a recent gathering of hundreds of Petone alumni.

Former players in their 90s turned up for the celebration, including Ben McIntosh, the club’s oldest living All Black.

With walking legends in the same room as the young stars of the club, Wayne says the defining qualities of what Rugby is all about was obvious.

“Rugby is a leveller.”

With the 125th out of the way, Wayne says Petone promptly shifted its focus to attracting the thousands of visiting Rugby fans that will be looking for those Rugby stories during RWC 2011.

“We have the best collection of memorabilia of any club in New Zealand. It will be a showpiece for the Tournament. We want to put together a complete Rugby experience for the visitors.”

One of the secrets behind their success is already an attraction for Wellingtonians across the region. Petone’s artesian water supply is as legendary as its All Blacks, with people coming come from far and wide to fill bottles from the free aquifer just off its main street.

Wayne agrees it might have something to do with the clout Petone Rugby teams have when they run onto the pitch.

“The water has been there for a long time and we’ve been successful for a long time. There must be something in it.”

The club motto Kia Kaha Kia Maia – Be Strong Be Upstanding – will transcend the rugby field and the whole Wellington region during RWC 2011.