The Manawatu rugby union was formed on 17 April 1886 at Palmerston North, with the founding clubs being: Palmerston, Feilding and Foxton. It was initially named the Manawatu County Union but was renamed in 1888. The sport had been introduced to the area by a few players from
Wanganui, who had moved into the region. Following the unions establishment many other clubs were formed as the sport became more popular.
Early years The first recorded match in the Manawatu took place on 13 July 1878. A Feilding side faced a "Rangitikei Combined Clubs XV" which was played at Feilding. The first Ranfurly Shield game Manawatu appeared in was in 1914. This was played against
Taranaki at
Pukekura Park. The match was lost 11–3 with William Carroll scoring a sole try. Their next challenge came ten years later, in 1924, where they would lose 31–5 to
Hawke's Bay. Manawatu also provided J.F. Manning to referee a match in 1905 between
Auckland and
Wellington.
1970s and early 1980s: First division era and Ranfurly shield reign The period from 1976 to 1983 saw Manawatu as one of the leading New Zealand rugby provinces. In this period Manawatu consistently beat teams such as Otago, Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury. Manawatu held the Ranfurly Shield from 1976 to 1978 and this was followed by victory in the 1980 First Division Championship. Manawatu were also runner-up in 1976 and 1981. A large sign reading "Go! Go! Manawatu!" was lifted above Palmerston North Showgrounds Oval by crane. Manawatu beat Auckland 12–10 at
Eden Park in 1976 to win the Log 'o Wood, as the
Ranfurly Shield is sometimes referred to, for the first time. Doug Rollerson's dropped goal secured the famous victory for Manawatu. This led to a homecoming parade through the city streets. With prop Kent Lambert sent-off, Manawatu were reduced to 14-men in their defence of the Ranfurly Shield against the Counties side in 1977. However, Manawatu rallied to record a victory 15–10. A last minute try prevented the Counties side from taking the Shield back to
Pukekohe for the first time. There was some controversy in 1977 when the Auckland rugby union had a request for a shield challenge that season denied by Manawatu who argued that Auckland had had 'too much influence in shield rugby for too long'. In the final Ranfurly Shield challenge of the 1978 season Manawatu were leading North Auckland (now named
Northland) 10–9 with time up on the clock. However, the referee, Bill Adlam, from Wanganui, played 5–6 minutes of 'injury' time before awarding the visitors a penalty, due to an offside, close to the posts. A penalty kick was successful and the shield was won by North Auckland. The referee then required a police escort off Showgrounds Oval (as it was known) while Manawatu fans showed their disgust and disappointment. Adlam claimed after the match that the game clock at the venue had not allocated for a couple of "lengthy" injury breaks, and so he rightly let the game go on. This was also backed up by a photographer who accurately timed the game.
Lee Stensness starred in a 58–24 win over Ireland in 1992. In 1996 Manawatu and Hawke's Bay merged their teams to form the
Central Vikings Rugby Union. It was an attempt to elevate both unions back to the first division. Players such as
Mark Allen,
Christian Cullen,
Mark Ranby,
Stephen Bachop and
Roger Randle featured in the team. The 1997 season saw them finish second overall with 6 wins and 2 losses. This saw the team into the semi-finals. In the semi-final, the Vikings would go on to beat Bay of Plenty and came up against Northland in the final. Northland won the final 63–10. Northland were thus promoted to the first division. However, had the Vikings won, they would not have been eligible to be promoted. 1998 saw a repeat of form for the Vikings who went unbeaten in the season. They subsequently won the final against Bay of Plenty and were promoted to first division. However, due to financial issues, the merger split back to Manawatu and Hawke's Bay as separate unions. Manawatu returned in 1999 to the second division. Manawatu began the new millennium firmly fixed in the second-tier competition. In 2005, Manawatu were heavily defeated 6–109 by the touring
British and Irish Lions at Palmerston North.
2006 onwards - return to the first division In 2005, Manawatu were invited along with four other unions, reduced to three after an amalgamation of Nelson Bays and Marlborough into Tasman, to play in the first division of a restructured
National Provincial Championship, initially called (for sponsorship purposes) the Air New Zealand Cup. It was the first time since 1988 Manawatu had fielded a team in the top grade and unlike the 1980s it was now a professional rugby competition. In 2009, Central Energy Trust Arena was the venue for a Highlanders home game against the Bulls from South Africa. Fly-half
Aaron Cruden was selected for the
All Blacks in 2010. He was the first All Black chosen whilst playing for the union since
Christian Cullen in 1996. Manawatu hosted two matches during the
2011 Rugby World Cup. In 2011, a resurgent Manawatu Turbos side defeated the Wellington Lions 31–25 in Wellington. It was Manawatu's first competition win over Wellington in the capital, after 124 years of trying. Also in 2011, Manawatu scored 54 points against Waikato team at Arena Manawatu. The Turbos led 35–17 at halftime, eventually winning 54–20. This kept the Turbos unbeaten at home for the season. In 2012, Manawatu scored its first victory away to North Harbor. The win at home against Hawke's Bay made Manawatu one of the few Championship teams to beat a Premiership team. In 2012,
Aaron Smith was selected in the All Blacks after fine performances with Manawatu and the Highlanders. Smith joining Aaron Cruden meant for the first time since 1986, two All Blacks came from Manawatu. In 2021 Manawatu appointed Andrea Jackson as Chief Executive Officer. Manawatu were the first top-flight union to appoint a woman in that role. ==Club rugby==