In September 1875 an Auckland team commenced the first organised rugby tour of New Zealand (or the Colony as it was known). At this time players from Thames and Waikato were also included in the team which played five matches between 18 and 28 September 1875 against representative teams from Wellington, Christchurch, Nelson and Picton and Taranaki. They lost all five matches. In 1876 Canterbury were the first province to make a representative trip to Auckland where they played the match at
Graham's Gardens, Ellerslie which Auckland won 7–3. A follow up match against Thames was also won by Auckland. In August 1877 an Otago team first visited Auckland and the match played at Ellerslie ended up a draw 0–0. In September 1880, the first Wellington team to visit Auckland resulted in a 4–0 win for them at the
Auckland Domain. Auckland hosted a
New South Wales team in September and October 1882, where Auckland won the two matches at the Auckland Domain.
The Early Years (1883–1899) The Auckland Rugby Football Union (ARFU) or Auckland Rugby Union Football Association as it was then known was officially formed on 20 April 1883, in response to the need for a governing body to oversee rugby in Auckland. A preliminary meeting earlier in the year led to the drafting of rules and a constitution, which were finalised at a gathering at the United Service Hotel
, Auckland. Mr. H. Croxton was elected President, with Mr. W. H. Gretton as Honorary Treasurer, alongside representatives from affiliated clubs. The Auckland,
Grafton,
North Shore and
Ponsonby clubs belonged to the Association and any other clubs in the Auckland Provincial District could be admitted. The union joined the
Canterbury,
Wellington and
Otago unions in the fledgling
New Zealand Rugby Football Union. The first representative match played by Auckland as a union was against Canterbury at
Lancaster Park, Christchurch on 25 August 1883, with Auckland winning 4–1. This match was followed by a drawn match against Otago at the
Caledonian Ground, Dunedin on 1 September 1883. A further match against Wellington at
Newtown Park on 8 September 1883 resulted in a draw as well. On 25 April 1884, the first annual meeting was held and included the admittance of the Newton, Gordon and Albert clubs as 'senior clubs. There were no provincial fixtures until 1886 which included a match against Wellington in Auckland and a visit by the New South Wales team for three matches which were all won by Auckland. In 1887, Auckland began playing their matches at
Potters' Paddock which included their first match against Taranaki on 21 June which they lost. Auckland played further home matches against Canterbury (a draw) and Otago (a win). Auckland has been the most successful union in New Zealand rugby history, having won a record 16 ITM Cup (and predecessor competition) titles. Auckland also holds the record for the most Ranfurly Shield wins (16), successful defences (148), and longest streak of successful defences (61).
All Blacks statistics also reveal the extent of Auckland's influence: of the 1071 players to have worn the national jersey from 1888 to 2008, 133 were born in Auckland, compared to Christchurch (74), Wellington (60) and Dunedin (53). In 1996, with the advent of professional rugby union, Auckland became the host, and primary feeder, to the
Blues, known from 1996 to 1999 as the Auckland Blues.
Golden eras Auckland went undefeated for six seasons from 1897, with victory over the
British and Irish Lions in 1904. There was an undefeated run in the early 1920s under Sir Vincent Meredith. The 1960 to 1963 period, known as the Golden Era, was summed up in
The Golden Years written by Don Cameron in 1983.
Sir Wilson Whineray, who captained Auckland through those years and the
All Blacks in 30 tests from 1957 to 1965, describes the period as one of "excitement, drama and fervor that transformed Eden Park into an oasis of magic during the winters of 1960, 1961, 1962 and 1963." The period from 1982 to 2007 is also regarded as a golden period, with Auckland winning more than half (16 out of 26 ) of all NPC titles and five
South Pacific Championship titles during the era and winning the team of the year award at the 1992
Halberg Awards.
Ranfurly Shield years Auckland were the first holders of the
Ranfurly Shield in 1902 and have won 153 out of 194 shield matches – the most successful record of any provincial union. Notable periods include from 1905 to 1913, when they defeated 23 successive challenges, 1960 and 1963, when 25 challenges were defeated, 1985 to 1993, when a record 61 were defeated. Auckland most recently held the shield between 2007 and 2008, when 5 challenges were defeated. Players like
Andy Haden,
Sean Fitzpatrick,
John Drake,
Olo Brown,
Zinzan and
Robin Brooke,
Gary and
Alan Whetton,
Michael Jones, Steve McDowall,
Grant Fox, Bernie McCahill, Grant Dickson,
Mark Carter,
Joe Stanley,
John Kirwan and Terry Wright were important in Auckland's success in that last period. In 1993, Auckland defeated the
British Lions by 23–18 during their
tour to New Zealand. With six titles in the 1990s and four in the 2000s, Auckland's domination of the New Zealand rugby landscape continued. The 2007 team was the first since the 1990 side to remain unbeaten in a season and win the Ranfurly Shield and the provincial championship. Players like
Kees Meeuws,
Keven Mealamu,
Ali Williams, Justin Collins,
Xavier Rush,
Steve Devine,
Brad Mika,
Ben Atiga,
Doug Howlett,
Daniel Braid,
Brent Ward and
Angus Macdonald contributed to that success. Auckland' fortunes collapsed when New Zealand Rugby moved to being a
professional sport. It was 2018 before an Auckland side once again won the
National Provincial Championship. ==Honours==