Bay of Plenty Rugby Union is the envy of many. Les McLean was the first of the 20 players who have so far been selected for the All Blacks from Bay of Plenty. He played as a forward in the second and third tests against the 1921 Springboks – and at full-back against New South Wales in 1923. Bay of Plenty’s most capped All Black is Hika Reid. Hailing from Ngongotaha near Rotorua, Reid’s grandfather, J. Hikatarewa, played for New Zealand Maori in 1913. Reid was selected for the All Blacks in 1980 when test incumbent Andy Dalton was unavailable for what turned out to
Radio Bay of Plenty is also a Saturday Morning Sports Preview programme with Tony Kirby. The network carries and contributes to national news bulletins produced by NZME Radio through Newstalk ZB. 1XX still operates as a completely local radio station today. One Double X is the emergency broadcaster for much of the Bay of Plenty, with sirens and civil defence services encouraging people to tune into the station for emergency information. In 2013, the station had to respond to a false alarm that prompted several people to listen to station or contact the studio for more information. Bayrock is an album rock format radio