King Country Rugby Football Union King Country Rugby Football Union The King Country Rugby Football Union is a constituent union in the New Zealand Rugby Union. It is located in the central North Island of New Zealand. It was formed in 1922 when the South Auckland Rugby Union was split into three (the other two Unions formed were Waikato and Thames Valley). The King Country team play from Owen Delany Park, Taupo, Rugby Park, Te Kuiti and Taumarunui Domain, Taumarunui. King Country are like many other heartland unions have struggled since the start of professional era. In 1996, King Country were in the first division
Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium Olympics. The name Chichibunomiya commemorates the sporting prince, Prince Chichibu, who was not a rugby union player but was passionately fond of the sport and died in 1953. His statue is in the stadium. On February 3, 2008, snow prevented two Top League games being played in the 13th and final round of the fifth season. They were postponed to February 9. From 2012 through 2015, the stadium hosted the Japan Sevens, a newly created event on the circuit for men's national rugby sevens teams now known as the World Rugby Sevens Series. When inaugurated, the tournament was the seventh