Early years Northland Rugby Union was known as North Auckland Rugby Union following the amalgamation of
Whangārei, Northern
Wairoa,
Bay of Islands, and Otamatea initially and then followed by
Mangonui,
Kaipara,
Hokianga,
Whangaroa, and
Rodney in 1925.
Rugby union was first played in
Northland in late 1880, and the first union was set up in the province in 1895, known as the Marsden Football Union. In 1994, North Auckland changed its name to the Northland Rugby Football Union. They played their first ever match as a union on 3 August 1920, in an 11-0 victory over South Island Country. However, they did not play their first inter-union match until 27 July 1922, an 8-6 loss to
Auckland. Their first inter-union win came in August 1923, when they beat
King Country The Auckland Rugby Union and Northland Rugby Union became regular rivals. They had
Ranfurly Shield victories over them in 1960 and 1971. Northland won the Ranfurly Shield on two further occasions. 1950, when they defeated
South Canterbury and 1978, when they defeated
Manawatu. In the 1971 challenge Northland won 17-12 in a narrow match played in front of 47,000 people at
Eden Park,
Auckland. The following season 40,000 spectators packed Whangārei
Okara Park to watch the rematch. With the city's population only 34,000, this showcased the significance of both the shield and the rivalry with Auckland. However they lost 15-16. The reputation of Northland rugby took a downfall following its controversial victory over Manawatu in 1978. After what seemed to be an excessive amount of stoppage time, Northland kicked a winning penalty. What followed was the refusal that the union wouldn’t put the shield on the line for its final home matches of the season against
Southland and
Otago. However no rules were broken.
Professional era Northland began their professional era playing in the inaugural
Air New Zealand Cup competition. They are known as the Taniwha, a reference to the mascot adopted in the professional era. Along with Auckland and
North Harbour, Northland is part of the
Blues Super Rugby franchise. == Season standings ==