Mid Canterbury Rugby Union

Great day for the refs out there. Thanks to them all for their hard work to keep the games flowing.

Staff watch - Nate is hyped to be out there and helping community rugby. Love your work Nate.

Big shout out to our long time supporter ANZCO Foods as they are represented across Mid Canterbury Rugby region with their sponsorship of our amazing referees. It’s this kind of support that goes a long way to making sure our referees are well set up for every season.

Underway at Hampstead Rugby Club in the semi final v Allenton Rugby Club. What a day for rugby!

Senior Draw – Week 17

Matariki weekend serves up a cracker of a round across our senior grades. With finals just around the corner, there's momentum to build, scores to settle, and combinations to fine-tune before finals day on the 18th.

The final round of Watters Cup action sees a dress rehearsal for next Saturday's big dance. Methven and Rakaia RFC will both be desperate to lay down a marker, build confidence, and claim top-table bragging rights before the real prize is on the line.

Senior B is where the drama really ramps up, with two mouth-watering semi-finals on the menu. Hampstead Rugby Club host Allenton at the Hampstead Sports Club, while top qualifiers Mt Somers welcome Ashburton Celtic to the Domain. There are no second chances now—win and you're into the final, lose and it's a long summer of "what ifs."

The Senior Women also get a finals preview, with Hampstead and Southern meeting under lights in what promises to be a Thursday night blockbuster. Both sides have already locked in their spots for next weekend's decider, but don't expect anyone to be holding back. Top of the table and plenty of bragging rights are up for grabs, and neither side will want to blink first.

In the U21 Colts, it's the final round of the combined competition. With Allenton already crowned champions, you could be forgiven for thinking there's not much left to play for. Think again. The Maroon and Gold's have an unbeaten season in their sights—an achievement rarely seen in any club competition. Methven, meanwhile, will be looking to take care of business against Oxford and build momentum ahead of a blockbuster Mid Canterbury final against their local rivals. Dead rubber? Not a chance, pal.

Plenty of action this long weekend, for all draws and results, check out midcanterburyrugby.co.nz

In recent Season's many of you may have seen the work we have undertaken with Amohia Te Waiora to help reduce alcohol harm in our community.
In 2026, GOTCHU becomes the single, unifying Wellbeing system for Mid Canterbury Rugby & South Canterbury Rugby. From the Rakaia River to the Waitaki River we are united in our messaging.
WE GOTCHU!
This approach will:
• Seek to unify all wellbeing messaging & support
• Strengthen club awareness to alcohol related harm and support members to get home safely
• Embed consistent behaviour and culture standards across our Rep Teams
• Expand education and prevention relating to alcohol harm and take an athlete led approach for our player, coaches and support teams.
• Ensure safe, respectful environments across the region.

We are also working with Police, Fire & Emergency & local Road Safety teams to ensure that we get the message out there that we always want people to get to and get home from rugby safely.

Watch out for the game v South Canterbury on the 12th September for some entertainment on the day.

MCRU WĀHINE

Notice: MC Wāhine wider training squad.

Venue change for Wednesday 8th: NBS Oxford Stadium - 52 Oxford St, 6:30pm - 7:30pm.

As many of our rugby community will have heard, unfortunately one of the Hampstead rugby players suffered a serious injury on Saturday in their game v Tinwald RFC.
At this time, our main focus is to respect the family’s wishes for time to process what has happened and focus their attention on their loved one.
We will continue to work closely with Hampstead Rugby Club to support them and their club members wherever & however we can.
The strength of our rugby community is when we come together to support each other at this difficult time.
💙💛🙏

At this time we stand together as a rugby community as we support the Langi family and Hampstead Rugby Club during this difficult time.
If you can help, even just a little bit, we know it will go a long way to helping.
If you’ve got a spare moment, reflect, say a prayer and send some good vibes to all involved.
Many thanks 💙💛

Support the Langi Family Supporting the Langi family through life’s toughest challenge—every donation, share, and prayer helps.