History of the Cook Islands History of the Cook Islands The Cook Islands are named after Captain James Cook, who visited the islands in 1773 and 1777. The Cook Islands became a British protectorate in 1888. By 1900, the islands were annexed as British territory. In 1901, the islands were included within the boundaries of the Colony of New Zealand. The Cook Islands contain 15 islands in the group spread over a vast area in the South Pacific. The majority of islands are low coral atolls in the Northern Group, with Rarotonga, a volcanic island in the Southern Group, as the main administration and government
Rugby union in the Cook Islands Cook Islands have suffered a problem common to many other surrounding nations such as Samoa; with potential players opting to play for bigger nations. Both brothers Graeme and Steve Bachop were eligible to play for the Cook Islands but chose to play for their country of birth New Zealand. The Australian rugby league captain, Mal Meninga also started off in Cook Island rugby union. The Cook Islands national rugby union team began playing international rugby union in 1971. Thus far, the Cook Islands have not made an appearance at any of the Rugby World Cups. They are very far from