Annual Under 15 Boys' Tournament

As part of Winter Tournament Week, the annual Under 15 Tournament comprises sixteen teams from secondary schools (on an invitational basis) who compete in a Cup and Plate section for the Rex Kerr Trophy.

Annual Under 16 Boys' Tournament

Every year in the third term school holidays, the Council holds New Zealand's premier tournament for Under 16 players, comprising teams from all member Provincial Unions, competing in two divisions for the Don Broughton Shield, the Saracens Cup and the Manaaki Tangata Trophy.

Annual Under 18 Boys' Competition

Every year in September, the Council holds a competition for Under 18 teams from member Provincial Unions, competing for the TrustBank Central Secondary Schools Shield first competed for in the 1990's.

Annual Under 19 Tournament

This competition comprises teams from Wellington, Hawkes Bay and Manawatu, and a Hurricanes Heartland Team (comprising players from the Council's member Heartland Provincial Unions), competing for the Central Region Shield on a home and away basis.

Annual Under 20 Heartland Development Series

Comprising teams from the regions Heartland Provincial Unions, the Heartland Development Series is held annually over two weeks, with teams competing for the Hurricanes Under 20 Cup.

Girls' Rugby Development Programmes

Every year, with the support of New Zealand Rugby, the Council provides Development Days, an Under 15 Tournament and an Under 18 Development Camp for young women within the Hurricanes Region.

Annual Hurricanes Sevens Tournament

The best secondary school Sevens players in the region (in Boys and Girls divisions) compete for the Hurricanes Secondary Schools Sevens Cup, hosted by Wairarapa-Bush.

Snow, Sunshine & Success At Somme Road Stadium

For the first time in 13 years – and for only the third time in 50 years – Manawatu RFU have won the Don Broughton Shield, with a convincing 29 points to 18 victory over Wellington RFU Gold in Upper Hutt this afternoon. Leading by 21 points to 10 at half-time, Manawatu never relinquished the lead, although Wellington were able to narrow the margin to six points midway through the second spell.

Weather conditions in Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta (Upper Hutt) were challenging earlier in the day, with snow flurries sweeping across the Somme Road fields until around midday. However the Shield Final was played in bright sunshine, with the southerly breeze an increasingly influential factor as the game progressed.

While Wellington relied on their athletic forward pack to carry the ball upfield, Manawatu were more adventurous, moving the ball into space on the edges of the field from where they were able to build the momentum leading to their four tries in the match. Both sides defended courageously, but it was Manawatu who played the better game plan for the conditions.

In the earlier Saracen’s Cup Final, previously unbeaten Poverty Bay RFU roared away to a 12 points to 3 lead early in the game, only for Wairarapa Bush RFU to come roaring back, locking up the scores at 17 points to all with around five minutes to play.

Two long-range penalty kick attempts by Wairarapa Bush, despite having the benefit of the icy southerly, failed to score points, although the second of the two attempts bounced off the cross-bar, denying the underdogs the chance to claim the Cup. As it transpired, while they were unbeaten on the day, it was not enough for Wairarapa Bush to secure the Saracen’s Cup for the first time.

With New Zealand Rugby not allowing for extra time in secondary school fixtures, under the Tournament Rules, the team with the better points differential is declared the winner. With a differential of 116 (compared to 13), Poverty Bay were declared 2022 Division B champions.